Culinary Chimps.

• Position: ANIMALS - Brief article

They may not make it to Top Chef anytime soon, but it turns out chimps have some of the skills needed to cook. In a series of experiments, Harvard and Yale researchers provided chimps with a special bowl that seemed to, but didn't actually, cook food; the animals placed a slice of raw potato in the bowl, then scientists covered it, shook it up, and revealed a slice of cooked potato. Several chimps deduced that the bowl could "cook" food; they even resisted eating raw potatoes when given the option to cook them later-suggesting they have both the patience and foresight to cook.

Chimps still don't know how to make a fire--a key step in human evolution...