To understand our fascination with crystals, researchers gave some to chimps

shagie

Full article share link: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/04/science/chimpanzees-cryst...

mrbluecoat

They're also into bananas

chasil

https://archive.ph/EHCxx

talktalkmake

You're talking ** Karl, PLAY A RECORD

JoelMcCracken

Don’t get me wrong, this is very interesting, but there is something very funny about the idea that “give a chimpanzee stuff and see if they like it” is academic research. This could absolutely be a headline on The Onion.

moi2388

What if you place a whole bunch of similar crystals in a pile, with only 1 or 2 smooth rocks? I’m willing to bet they will go after the smooth rocks and it’s about rarity, not crystals.

tantalor

I'd gladly trade you a banana tomorrow for a crystal today.

nivertech

unsurprising, since they're also into Monoliths https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHWs3c3YNs4

ducttapecrown

NYTimes competing with NYTimesPitchBot for funnier headlines, I see. What a bizarre and awesome piece of science. I like crystals for the miracle of uncountable numbers of atoms transferring symmetry from the smallest scale to the visible scale.

tedmiston

now give them The Orb

pkghost

“While the attraction is clear, the underlying motivation is not,” he said. Nobody involved in the study or the article has ever done even a small dose of psilocybin and interacted with crystals.

e1ghtSpace

Damn now I want to buy a large crystal for my desk.

metalman

here is a random wierd thing about chimps that makes the whole crystal thing worth a go. I give you ,stick in ear and worse https://www.livescience.com/animals/land-mammals/chimps-deve...