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Les musiques du Gabon semblent se distinguer par certains aspects importants des autres musiques d'Afrique centrale, en particulier du Cameroun et de Centrafrique. Cette singularité pourrait être liée à l'histoire complexe des populations de cette région. L'histoire de ces musiques, aujourd'hui presque inconnue, pourrait aider à mieux comprendre celle des personnes qui les pratiquent. Cette thèse explore l'utilisation des méthodes d'inférence historique, développées parallèlement en philologie, en systématique biologique et en linguistique historique afin de retrouver l'histoire des musiques et des populations. J'étudie un jeu de données obtenu par l'analyse (via les outils de la systématique musicale) de près de 200 pièces voco-instrumentales collectées dans une vingtaine de populations provenant de différentes régions du Gabon. Cette recherche nourrit des questionnements empiriques et théoriques concernant l'usage de la musique comme source historique, mais aussi sur la pratique de l'interdisciplinarité. / Gabonese music differs in several important ways from other Central African musics, especially music from Cameroon and Central African Republic. This could be due to the complex history of populations in this area. The history of these musics, almost unknown up to now, could help better understand the history of the people playing them. This thesis investigates the use of historical inference methods, indepndently developed in philology, in biological systematics and in historical linguistics, in order to discover the history of musics and populations. I analyse a dataset obtained through the analysis (thanks to the tools of musical systematics) of almost 200 voco-instrumental pieces collected in 20 different populations from various regions of Gabon. This investigation raises interesting empirical and theoretical questions concerning the use of music as historical source, but also concerning the practice of interdisciplinarity.

Interaction of genes and culture is crucial for human evolution. Human ethnic groups and subcultures frequently function as discrete units, and people clearly distinguish between in- group and out-group individuals on a cultural basis. This thesis aims to model the formation of distinct cultural clusters, cultural equivalents of distinct species. Historical development of theories of blending inheritance led to the formation of biometric parallels to Mendelism. Galton-Pearson model of nonparticulate inheritance with constant offspring variance, the most influential model of continuous inheritance ever formulated, was based on measurements of genetically transmitted traits. Ronald Fisher later demonstrated, that this type of inheritance directly stems from polygenic traits with additive genetic variance. Dan Sperber's metaphor of culture space allows integrating any continuous models of position inheritance into computer simulations of the evolution of culture. Most studies today, however, employ particulate models of cultural inheritance. The exceptional works of Cavalli-Sforza and Feldman pioneer the continuous models of cultural inheritance applying Galton-Pearson model to culture. Galton-Pearson inheritance is, unfortunately, not a very good model of cultural transmission. Parental...

The traditional assumption that perfumes are used only for masking of the body odour was doubted by the results of recent researches. In spite of the fact that the biological role of human body odour is very important, it is likely that perfumes are not in conflict with the body odour but there is mutual cooperation. Individuals could choose the scent which goes with their body odour instead of hiding it. In the theoretical part of this thesis I describe a dual inheritance theory, which is a basic concept for our research. We have been concerned with the interaction between biological effects of body odour and social effects of perfumes. Moreover, we have worked on the assumption that the body odour of relatives is similar. We have tested if people are better in their choice of the appropriate perfume for their relatives than for anyone else, in this case partners. Which perfume fits into which body odour was assessed by the independent evaluators of opposite sex because one of the main objectives of chemical signalling is to attract a potential partner. Surprisingly, the results of our research have shown that in the case of couples, the samples of the body odour and perfumes chosen by female partners were slightly better evaluated than the perfumes chosen by men themselves. Moreover, there were...

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In einem Bienenkorb voll Antworten für Ordnung zu sorgen, so ließe sich mit Montaigne die Aufgabe der vorliegenden Arbeit beschreiben. Um ein Integral zu schaffen, wird Bernard Mandeville als Ordnungstheoretiker betrachtet. In dieser Form sollen sowohl die funktionellen als auch die normativen Aspekte seines politischen Denkens erfasst werden. In historischer Perspektive soll es so ermöglicht werden, Mandeville in einem weit gefassten, ideengeschichtlichen Kontext zu positionieren. In systematischer Hinsicht wiederum sollen stilistische, methodische und inhaltliche Untersuchungen koordiniert werden, um anthropologische, ökonomische, soziologische, politische und ethische Momente in ihrem Nexus zu erfassen. Sofern man (1) die anthropologischen Fundamente fokussiert, wird die Bedingtheit ökonomischer und rechtsstaatlicher Ordnungsmomente hinsichtlich der Entstehung wie dem Fortbestand der politischen Ordnung aufgezeigt. Dabei wird (2) Mandevilles Konzeption einer spontanen Ordnung den Anforderungen einer zunehmend plural erfahrenen und global verwobenen Welt in funktionaler Hinsicht gerecht. Zugleich stellt (3) sein Modell einer Ordnung der Diversität eine Transformationsleistung dar, welche dem Prinzip der Individualität faktisch eine zentrale Position im politisch-normativen Diskurs sichert. Wird darüber hinaus (4) das Konzept der Öffentlichkeit in Betracht gezogen, so das Argument der vorliegenden Arbeit, kann dem lebendigen Individuum mit Mandeville eine moralische Dimension in der belebten Welt eröffnet werden. / To establish order in a beehive full of answers, could be a reformulation of the task within the research on hand. To achieve an integral, Bernard Mandeville will be perceived as an order theorist. His political thinking will be dimensioned in terms of this integral. This will include functional as well as normative aspects. Historically, the study will seek to site Mandeville in a broad context that the History of Ideas has instituted. Systematically, it will coordinate stylistic, methodical, and topical investigations. Thus the nexus of anthropological, economic, sociological, political, and ethical elements within his philosophical thinking is exerted. If (1) the anthropological fundaments are focussed, the interdependency of economic and constitutional momenta is depicted. This will prove substantial for the evolution as well as the continuance of the political order. Mandevilles concept of (2) spontaneous order meets the functional claims arising in a pluralistic and globally experienced world. His shaping of (3) an order based on diversity achieves a transformation that may bring the principle of individuality to bear. This will hold up in the political as well as in the general normative discourse. Furthermore, (4) the concept of the public sphere is taken in account. The research argues that Mandeville hereby opens up a moral vista for human beings as living creatures in an animated world.

Zweifellos beansprucht Schiller wie kaum ein anderer Dichter, die Freiheit des Menschen zur Grundlage seines philosophischen Denkens und künstlerischen Schaffens gemacht zu haben. Vorliegende Studie, die Schillers Jugendschriften zentral thematisiert, eröffnet den Blick auf die ideengeschichtliche Kontinuität dieses Denkens, das seinen Ursprung in der Stuttgarter Akademiezeit hat. Es wird also die innere Einheit von Schillers Denken betont, die jedoch nicht in der Kant-Lektüre, sondern in der frühen anthropologischen Prägung gesehen wird. Das verwendete quellenuntersuchende Vorgehen ermöglicht es, Schillers Akademieschriften in Verbindung mit der intellektuellen und szientifischen Gesamtlage der Zeit detailliert zu analysieren und zu interpretieren. Was dabei sichtbar wird, ist ein Naturbegriff, mit dem die lebendige Ganzheit der Natur als universeller Wirkungszusammenhang einzusehen versucht wird und der Akzent auf der Selbstbewegtheit der Natur liegt. Die Natur wird als etwas Produktives, sich Selbstorganisierendes, sich Selbstvollendendes begriffen. Dieser Naturbegriff liegt dem anthropologischen Selbstverständnis zugrunde. Frühzeitig gibt Schiller diesem anthropologischen Konzept eine geschichts- und moralphilosophische Dimension. / Undisputed, Schiller demands- as hardly any other poet – that he had made freedom of mankind to the foundation of his philosophical thoughts and artificial creation. This essay on hand has Schiller’ leaflet of his youth as subject and opens a view to the variety of ideas of the continuity of these thoughts which has its origin in the time at the academy in Stuttgart. The inner unit is marked which will not be seen in Kant’s readings , but also in the early anthropological coining. The used source- survey gives a chance to analyse and interpret Schiller’ leaflets in an association with the intellectual and scientific situation of this time in detail. It becomes clear that the expression of nature is seen as the living holistic of the nature which has a relationship between effects and that the accent lies on the automatically moving of the nature. The nature is made clear as something automatically organising and completed and something productive. This expression of nature is the basic of the anthropological comprehension. Premature, Schiller gives this anthropological draft a historical moral standard dimension.

Die vorliegende Arbeit befasst sich mit dem Verhältnis zwischen Natur und Kultur in einer evolutionstheoretischen Perspektive. Mein theoretischer Ausgangspunkt ist ein sozial-ökologisches Rahmenkonzept, das physische Interaktionen zwischen Gesellschaften und ihrer natürlichen Umwelt in den Mittelpunkt stellt. Der Anspruch dieser sozial-ökologischen Sichtweise ist es, Gesellschaft-Natur-Interaktionen zu beschreiben, ohne in naturalistische oder kulturalistische Reduktionen zu verfallen. Dieser Ansatz muss daher davon ausgehen, dass "Gesellschaft" aus dem Zusammenwirken von symbolischen oder kulturellen Systemen und materiellen Elementen, zum Beispiel der menschlichen Bevölkerung, verstanden werden soll. Damit beschreitet diese Arbeit einen Weg, der die "zwei Kulturen", wie Snow es in seinem berühmten Aufsatz ausgedrückt hat, also die sozial- und geisteswissenschaftliche Kultur auf der einen Seite und die naturwissenschaftliche Kultur auf der anderen Seite, überbrücken will. Zunächst stelle ich ein so positioniertes sozial-ökologisches Rahmenkonzept vor. Ausgehend von drei möglichen sozial-ökologischen Konzepten, der humanökologischen Position Stephen Boydens, der kulutranthropologischen Theorie Maurice Godeliers und des umwelthistorischen Modells von Rolf Peter Sieferle, erarbeite ich ein epistemologisches Gesamtmodell der Gesellschaft-Natur Interaktionen, das sowohl mit wichtigen kultur- und sozialwissenschaftlichen Konzepten konsistent ist, als auch kompatibel mit einer naturwissenschaftlichen Betrachtungsweise. Daran anschließend unterziehe ich einige der vorgestellten Thesen, einer ersten empirischen Überprüfung. Das zweijährige Einschlussexperiment "Biosphäre 2" dient dabei gewissermaßen als sozial-ökologischer Modellfall. Kapitel 3 führt die Theoriediskussion weiter, jetzt jedoch mit einem anderen Fokus. Nicht mehr die Interaktion zwischen Gesellschaft und ihrer natürlichen Umwelt steht im Mittelpunkt der Überlegungen, sondern Gesellschaft und Kultur selbst. Die Frage, wie nützlich hier der Systembegriff sein kann, wird in konzeptueller und terminologischer Hinsicht diskutiert, ebenso wie die Positionierung einer solchen Theorie gegenüber verschiedenen kulturanthropologischen und soziologischen Theorien. Aufbauend darauf versuche ich eine Theorie der "kulturellen Evolution" zu entwickeln. Leitfragen dabei sind: Was ist Evolution? Was evolviert? Unter welchen Bedingungen kann man von kultureller Evolution sprechen? Schließlich werden aus den erarbeiteten theoretischen Positionen Schlussfolgerungen für eine mögliche Theorie der Gesellschaft-Natur Koevolution gezogen, Wege einer empirischen Umsetzung werden skizziert, und der Versuch unternommen, resümierend die Frage nach den Bedingungen der Möglichkeit nachhaltiger Entwicklung neu zu stellen. / This thesis deals with the interrelations between nature and culture from the perspective of evolutionary theory. The theoretical starting point is an overall social-ecological model that focuses on the physical interactions between societies and their natural environments. This social-ecological approach aims to describe society-nature interactions without reverting to "naturalistic" or "culturalistic" reductions. Society is understood here to be a hybrid comprising symbolic as well as material elements. Thus, the approach proposed here seeks to bridge what Snow in his well-known book termed the "two cultures," namely the culture of the sciences and culture of the humanities. The first chapter of this thesis proposes an overall social-ecological framework that is positioned in these terms. Beginning with a description of three socio-ecological models, as proposed by scientists from three different disciplines -- Stephen Boyden a human ecologist, Maurice Godelier, a cultural anthropologist, and Rolf Peter Sieferle, an environmental historian -- I proceed to develop my own epistemological model of society-nature interactions that is both consistent with central concepts of the social sciences and compatible with a natural sciences perspective. Some of the hypotheses elaborated upon in the first chapter are then exposed to empirical testing, whereby the famous two-year enclosure experiment "Biosphere 2" serves as a social-ecological case study. The third chapter resumes the theoretical discussion, focusing however on the concepts themselves of society and culture. The question of whether a systems approach is useful for and compatible with a socio-ecological model is discussed from a conceptual as well as a terminological point of view, as is the position of such a theory with regard to cultural-anthropological and sociological theories. It is concluded that a systems model is useful and necessary in a limited sense, yet the leading difference/s between nature and culture is/are reconfirmed. The fourth chapter strives to develop a theory of cultural evolution, based upon the positions elaborated thus far and beginning with a classification and discussion of various attempts to adapt evolutionary thinking to society or culture. Key questions here include: What is evolution? What evolves? When is it possible to speak of cultural evolution? My work leads me to suggest the use of an abstract version of the Darwinian algorithm in combination with systems theory to develop a concept of cultural evolution. Finally, I draw conclusions regarding a possible theory of society-nature co-evolution. The potential for empirical realisation is explored and an attempt is made in summing up to define the conditions necessary for a transition towards sustainable development.

Social learning has given us insight into how children learn actions from others across different domains (e.g., actions on objects, pretend play, and tool use). However, little research exists to confirm whether young children can generate their own novel actions. Three different settings were chosen to offer a varied investigation of children’s ability to generate novel actions: generating multiple actions with novel objects; generating iconic gestures in order to communicate; and generating pretend actions using object substitution. Generating multiple actions with novel objects: The Unusual Box test was developed to investigate children’s ability to generate multiple actions with novel objects (Chapter 2). The Unusual Box test involves children playing with a wooden box that contains many different features (e.g., rings, stairs, strings), and five novel objects. The number of different actions performed on the box and with the objects (i.e., fluency) was used as a measure of their individual learning. Positive correlations between the fluency scores of 24 3- and 4-year-olds on the Unusual Box test and two existing measures of divergent thinking were found. Divergent thinking relates to the ability to think of multiple answers based on one premise. Furthermore, a large range of fluency scores indicated individual differences in children’s ability to generate multiple actions with novel objects. In addition, 16 2-year-olds were assessed on the Unusual Box test, twice two weeks apart, to investigate test-retest reliability and the possibility that the Unusual Box test could be used with children younger than 3 years. A strong positive correlation between the scores on the two assessments showed high test-retest reliability, while individual differences in fluency scores and the absence of a floor effect indicated that the Unusual Box test was usable in children from 2 years of age. Generating iconic gestures in order to communicate: Children’s ability to generate iconic gestures in order to communicate was assessed using a game to request stickers from an experimenter (N = 20, Chapter 3). In order to get a sticker children had to communicate to the experimenter which out of two objects they wanted (only one object had a sticker attached to it). Children’s use of speech or pointing was ineffective; therefore only generating an iconic gesture was sufficient to retrieve the sticker. Children generated a correct iconic gesture on 71% of the trials. These findings indicate that children generate their own iconic gestures in order to communicate; and that they understand the representational nature of iconic gestures, and use this in their own generation of iconic gestures. Generating pretend actions using object substitution: In order to determine whether children are able to generate their own object substitution actions and understand the representational nature of these actions, 45 3- and 4-year-olds were familiarized with the goal of a task through modelling actions. Children distinguished between the intentions of an experimenter to pretend, or try and perform a correct action. Children mainly imitated the pretend actions, while correcting the trying actions. Next, children were presented with objects for which they had to generate their own object substitution actions without being shown a model. When children had previously been shown pretend actions, children generated their own object substitution actions. This indicates that children generate their own object substitution actions, and that they understand the representational nature of these actions. An additional study with 34 3-year-olds, revealed no significant correlations between divergent thinking, inhibitory control, or children’s object substitution in a free play setting, and children’s ability to generate object substitution actions in the experimental setting.

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