Takuya Matsumoto Takuya Matsumoto

Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science, Shinshu University *Profile is at the time of the award.

2026IncubateHumanities & Sociology

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Research topics: Elucidating the Influence of Material Culture on Primate Cognition and Sociality: Focusing on Japanese macaques bathing in hot springs.

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Summary: Public bathing has a long history in human societies, from bathhouses in ancient Egyptian civilization to the thermae of classical Greece. Moreover, geological evidence of hot springs has been discovered in strata dating to approximately 1.7 million years ago in Olduvai Gorge, suggesting that ecosystems including hot springs formed part of the environmental backdrop to human evolution even before the emergence of the genus Homo._x000D_
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In contrast, a wild troop of Japanese macaques inhabiting Jigokudani Monkey Park has continued the practice of hot-spring bathing for more than 60 years. This behavior can be considered one of the longest-documented cultural traditions known in non-human primates._x000D_
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This study empirically examines the effects of hot-spring bathing on the social dynamics and gut microbiota of Japanese macaques, with the aim of evaluating the potential role of hot springs in human evolution.