Similar to a gorilla, the strength of an average male human will be judged by their natural weapons: teeth and fists. A human mouth is typically composed of 32 teeth — eight incisors, four canines, eight premolars and 12 molars — that aren’t very sharp or ideal for cutting through skin and causing serious damage. Human bites can cause bruises or small lacerations, leading to infections at worst since the human mouth houses tens of billions of bacteria, composed of hundreds of microbes. Additionally, the average human bite force is only a measly 162 pressure per square inch (PSI).
As for the human punch, the impulse-momentum relationship produces force based on the puncher’s weight and speed combined. The average man in the United States has a weight of 199.8 pounds with a height of five foot nine inches, and would likely throw a punch anywhere from 150 PSI to a few hundred PSI for more experienced fighters. Although every human’s body type varies, the average man has a raw weightlifting capability of hundreds of pounds, showcased by deadlifts, squats or the bench press.
Comparably, gorillas have the same basic mouth and tooth structure of humans, including all 32 teeth. Like many primates, gorillas are herbivores with flat teeth used for grinding leafy greens such as leaves, stems, fruits and shoots. Don’t let this fool you, however; these monkeys on steroids also have incisors and canines that are much superior to humans’. While you might chip your human teeth on a couple of small popcorn kernels, gorillas use their two inch canines for tearing bark off trees and, unfortunately, fighting. A gorilla bite can cause deep lacerations, significant tissue damage and even fracture bone. This bone-fracturing power comes from the gorillas’ incredibly strong bite force, with a study by ifaw concluding that the bite force of the Western gorilla is about 3,420 Newtons or 1300 PSI.
Gorillas fight with their teeth, hands and legs. They don’t normally throw punches or have a select fighting style, but the force from one strike alone is enough to produce between 1300 and 2700 PSI, that’s enough force to break human bone, which crumbles under 1000 to 2000 PSI. According to Virunga National Park, “Silverbacks are incredibly strong and can lift over 1763 pounds (800kg) of dead weight. That’s roughly twice as much as a well trained weightlifter.”
So, in terms of strength, a Gorilla outclasses a human 10 to one, but what happens when there’s 100 times the amount of humans?
The explosive force of a gorilla is generated by their higher levels of type II twitch muscle fibers, meant for short bursts of quick movements, making them susceptible to fatigue. On the contrary, the average man has around 67 percent type I muscle fibers — not easily fatigued and perfect for stamina — compared to a gorilla’s roughly 31 percent type I composition. This makes gorillas ideal for short explosive power, and humans ideal for long drawn-out battles.
Furthermore, throughout history, humans have demonstrated the ability to win wars, reshape the landscape and even reach the stars; a skill called teamwork. If you put 100 gorillas together they would fight — if you put 100 people in a ring with a common enemy, they not only would work together, but also even strategize.
“Overwhelming the gorilla would … be the most successful attack,” offered Henry Escobar ‘27. His strategy for the humans relies on the natural faults of the gorilla. “They don’t have a lot of stamina when it comes to hunting,” he said.
Jonah Brown ‘27 formulated a different plan of attack; or rather, not attacking. “Stay back, … let everybody else handle it,” he said. “In this scenario, I’m not [taking on] a gorilla first.”
Escobar decided the best person to draft in a possible one-on-one battle would be the strongman, Brian Shaw. “The gorilla might have him in the first half, but Brian Shaw is a huge dude … If [he’s] got some determination, Brian Shaw’s got it,” he confirmed.
Determination: another factor that is integral to the question of gorilla versus humans. With the power of the indomitable human spirit, does the gorilla really stand a chance?
“If you have 100 Texans, that indomitable human spirit, … is not going to lose,” Brown said jokingly.
“The human spirit is going to help out … [Humans] just keep going,” Escobar added. “We came from monkeys, and look at where we’re at now.”
It’s clear that, despite a gorilla’s many strengths, the combination of 100 humans working together is enough to take down a gorilla through strategy, brute force and even the indomitable human spirit.
