We are very firmly of the opinion that Humans are the best animals at Freaky Trigger, and it is nice to see that yet again this is proved by looking at the energy efficiency of our walking style. As this hopefully trustworthy BBC report* has it, walking on two legs like a human is four times more energy efficient than the lolloping gait of a chimpanzee. Which perhaps factors in to that most difficult part of human evolution, namely just how vulnerable we are as wee nippers. No walking, communication, higher functions. Is the price to pay for the complex movement, the complex talking and other complex shit we humans do. Is out first year of life just booting the software?
What is nice about this story is that it is a feel good story on how we are naturally energy efficient creatures. If monkeys rules the Earth i daresay thair standby buttons would use more energy that a human appliance running on full. Indeed such is the natural urge for energy efficiency that I often find myself spending an extra hour in bed JUST TO SAVE ENERGY. Which makes me wonder, this so called profligacy with energy that Al Gore is shouting at us about. It seems unnatural. Almost as if the energy inefficiencies are not due to humans at all. But rather the meddling hands of evil aliens. Its no dumber the Plan 9.
*”Hopefully trustworthy” will be appended to every FT source until the BBC stops lying.