Re: AAT Questions...

Pat Dooley (patdooley@aol.com)
9 Jul 1995 20:21:21 -0400

Alex Duncan writes:

<< deletions>>

> But why the flame in the first place? Schaller's observation
>notes gorillas laying on their backs, with sweat pouring over their
>chests. The chest of gorillas is generally hairless. Mr. Dooley
>suggests that the moisture could have come from "residual moisture in
>their fur". This is unlikely, for the reason stated above. The same is
>true for their faces, which are also generally hairless.

I was being a bit facetious. My real point was that an observer
would not be able to determine the mechanism involved in the
Gorilla's sweating process, if it was, indeed sweat. I'd like to know
whether the glands involved were eccrine or acoprine; whether the
sweat was salty or not; whether the gorillas were panting or not;
and so on.

If it could be clearly demonstrated that the gorilla's sweat mechanism
was very similar to the human mechanism, and that they had a similar
evolutionary origin, then a moderate sized bite would have been taken
out of the AAT.

Pat Dooley