Can biological theories explain Rolex watches in addition to peacock's tails?

As humans, we do many things which are not instrumentally useful in an evolutionary sense: we dance, get drunk, create art, listen to music, and dress up in expensive clothing, amongst other things. These exhibitions of "useless" behaviours cannot be accounted for simply because we are reported to be in an evolutionary disequilibrium (Kirk et al, 2001); even our ancestors exhibited many of these "useless" behaviours. Aborigines have been painting on rocks for at least 50,000 years, and using make up for twice that long; and painting, jewellery and musical instruments have been around for 35,000 years in Europe alone (Pinker, 2002). Indeed, many animal species engage in analogous activities, especially in the contexts of courtship displays and status contests. But how do we explain these seemingly useless behaviours, seen not only in humans, but across the animal world? Darwin (1871) concluded that......

Join Now to view the rest of this term paper!
Members: Login to view this research paper.

Title: Can Biological Theories Explain Rolex Watches In Addition To Peacocks Tails?
Approximate Word Count: 2434
Approximate Pages: 10 (250 words per double-spaced page)

With the Term Papers Lab Membership Pass, you get instant access to every essay on this site, including this essay on Can Biological Theories Explain Rolex Watches In Addition To Peacocks Tails?, for as long as you remain a member.

Other essays sites charge almost $100 for a single term paper. At Term Papers Lab, you can get instant access to over 100,000 research papers for as little as $29.95!