The curiously long absence of cooking in evolutionary thought

Abstract

Beran et al. (2015, p. 1) characterized the idea that Bcooked food was integral in human evolution^as a Blongheld hypothesis^favored by Darwin and Engels. In fact, however, although Darwin and Engels considered the use of cooked food to be an important influence on behavior and society, neither of them suggested that its effects were evolutionary in the sense of affecting biology. Explicit discussion of the possible evolutionary impacts of cooking did not begin until the twentieth century.

Chimpanzees, cooking, and a more comparative psychology

“…We offered alternative explanations and mechanisms that could account for the behavioral responses of those chimpanzees, and questioned the manner in which the data were used to examine human evolution (Beran, Hopper, de Waal, Sayers, & Brosnan, 2015). Two commentaries suggested either that we were overly critical of the original report's claims and methodology (Rosati & Warneken, 2016), or that, contrary to our statements, early biological thinkers contributed little to questions concerning the evolutionary importance of cooking (Wrangham, 2016). In addition, both commentaries took issue with our treatment of chimpanzee referential models in human evolutionary studies.…”

“…Wrangham (2016) provides relevant historical quotes but does not accept that these authors were dealing with Bevolutionary effects.^Wrangham and his colleagues (e.g., Wrangham 2007Wrangham , 2009Wrangham & Conklin-Brittain, 2003;Wrangham et al, 1999) have considered cooking and its potential behavioral and anatomical consequences more thoroughly, by far, than any other authors. Our goal was simply to give appropriate credit to these earlier thinkers who discussed cooking in works explicitly devoted to human evolution, and noted the primary functional importance of this behavior.…”

“…Both commentaries (Rosati & Warneken, 2016;Wrangham, 2016) are concerned over our discussion on the role of chimpanzees in human evolutionary studies. We concur that chimpanzee data should play a crucial role in this work, and did not intend to imply otherwise.…”

“…and Wrangham (2016) have produced thoughtful responses to our review that can do much to further the conversation about the ideals of comparative psychology, as well as the requisite capacities for cooking. We believe that the individuals involved in this debate are, as a whole, fully committed to the idea that there is tremendous value in research assessing the behavior and cognition of chimpanzees, other great apes, and other primate species.…”

Wearable Technology to Quantify the Nutritional Intake of Adults: Validation Study

“…Realistic and precise quantitative assessment remains challenging because of energy losses involved at every step of transforming a food matrix into bioavailable energy: absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion. The rate of breakdown and net usable energy vary depending on macronutrient composition (ie, a mixed meal high in fiber, protein, and fat will digest much more slowly than a meal high in simple carbohydrates) [ 25 ]. Furthermore, interindividual differences in metabolic rate, gastrointestinal health, and previous meals consumed all contribute to discrepancies between measured intake and bioavailable energy.…”