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Published online 22 August 2007 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news070820-4
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Chimps practise self control
Apes distract themselves with play to resist temptation.
Chimps struggling to accumulate a large quantity of food deliberately keep themselves busy to avoid the temptation to gorge themselves straight away, researchers have found. The study shows that, like a shopaholic striving to resist the lure of the department store, our ape cousins welcome a distraction that takes the mind off the impulsive urge to splash out.
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