TPO12

The reading passage and the lecture are both about altruism, which is a behavior in which an animal sacrifices its interest for the others. The author of the reading feels that the meerkat, which is a mammal that lives in the grassland area of Africa, is an example of altruism. However, the lecturer challenges the claims made by the author and he thinks that those explanations are faulty.

To begin with, the author asserts that in the group of meerkats, individual acts as a sentinel by standing guard and looking out for predators while others hunt for food or eat food. Additionally, the passage mentions that the sentinel meerkat goes without food. Nevertheless, the professor refutes this point by saying that this sentinel meerkat is the one who eats first as per the recent study.

Secondly, the author claims that the sentinel meerkats place themself in grave danger as it has to fly away alone, but the professor attacks this reason by saying that these sentinels are the ones who most likely escape first while others are eating or hunting.

Thirdly, the passage says that altruists are the ones who are selfless and always benefit others. Again, the lecturer disagrees with this and explains that even these people get benefits from society. They are more appreciated and for few people, non-material benefits matter a lot.
Therefore, both the author and the lecturer have different views.