Is Your Boss a Primate?

If he (or she) acts like an ape, it’s because he’s at the top of the pecking order (and if you want to keep your job, you’ll "groom" him).

When a subordinate chimpanzee grooms a dominant one, it often does so for a long time and doesn’t wait to be "asked." When it in turn requests to be groomed, it receives only a perfunctory grooming, after having to ask a second time.

In the April 21st edition of the Wall Street Journal, Matt Ridley explains how it works in the academic world. He writes: "A new member of a committee on which I served once asked me why a senior colleague was being so horrible to him. I replied: ‘Oh, it’s because when a new male baboon joins a troop, it’s traditional for the alpha male to beat him up before becoming his best friend–soon he’ll think the world of you.’"

Ridley quotes academic Dario Maestripieri as saying, "I am a Monkey-Man, and when I submit a grant application for peer review, I am terrified that it might fall into the hands of the Rat-People. They want to exterminate all of us (because our animals are cooler than theirs)."

One thing about UFOs–they turn everybody who experiences them into equals. That’s how we feel about our Dreamland Festival–it’s people who are used to being laughed at or derided (or keeping their secrets to themselves) meeting OTHER people who are in the same situation (NOTE: Subscribers can still listen to this show), and making new friends. Come find out what this is all about, but hurry–seats are limited and our tickets are going fast. If you subscribe you’ll get 10% off, plus a coupon for a great novel to read on the plane!