DailyDirt: Animals Are Getting Smarter...

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Thu, Dec 8th 2011 5:00pm — Michael Ho

The more we study animals, the more we find out about their impressive cognitive abilities. And as we learn more about how other animal brains work, we might learn more about how our own minds think. Or perhaps someone will just figure out how to train parrots to pass CAPTCHA tests. In any case, here are a few interesting examples of animal intelligence.

Chimps are the only other species, besides humans, that regularly throws things. It's presumably a pre-cursor to speech and communication. Chimps in captivity even throw things without any training, as the researchers say, "I've never in my life seen a chimp be given a banana for throwing shit at someone." [url]
Until someone actually invents a dog collar that can translate dog barks into English, we'll have to study dog behavior and guess at how dogs think. Animal behaviorist John Bradshaw discusses his behavior guidebook for dogs and tips for training dogs. [url]
Researchers have observed ravens in the wild using pointing gestures. "It's over there!" quoth the Raven. [url]
To discover more interesting articles on the mind, check out what's currently floating around the StumbleUpon universe. [url]

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

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Filed Under: animals, chimps, cognitive abilities, dogs, gestures, intelligence, ravens, smart animals

19 Comments

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SF Company Joker, 8 Dec 2011 @ 5:09pm

animals vs humans
I disagree. Animals aren't getting smarter, humans are getting dumber.

Kardashians are on TV, 16 & Pregnant is a show and apparently the cupcakes are at war.
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Michael Ho (profile), 8 Dec 2011 @ 5:29pm

Re: animals vs humans
I wonder if anyone is tracking the "average intelligence" of the human population... it's quite possible that the median intelligence is trending downwards.
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Jeff (profile), 8 Dec 2011 @ 6:05pm

Re: Re: animals vs humans
trending??? No... the correct term is "free-falling"
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Hip Hop Production, 8 Dec 2011 @ 6:30pm

The lack of intelligence of the human species is linked to too much tv. Therefore I blame television.
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A Guy (profile), 8 Dec 2011 @ 6:40pm

Re: Re: animals vs humans
Intelligence seems to be linked to some magical property akin to "the degree to which we like what you say, or how you say it."

Before you can measure it, you need a rigorous definition of what you are measuring.
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Stupid is as stupid does, 8 Dec 2011 @ 6:51pm

Animals Are Getting Smarter...
After following OOTB's comments.... I have to disagree with that statement.
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Anonymous Coward, 8 Dec 2011 @ 7:43pm

Just Look at Congress
"Animals Are Getting Smarter..."

Or maybe humans are just getting dumber...
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Wayne, 8 Dec 2011 @ 8:28pm

Animals are not getting smarter, we are just (finally) figuring out that animals are more than simply "squishy robots". I think the idea that animals do not have intelligence will be looked back upon by future humans the same way as the idea that the earth is the center of the universe.
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Anonymous Coward, 8 Dec 2011 @ 9:56pm

Re:
I agree. They were always intelligent, we are just now better discovering their true intelligence.

So they are adapting to new environments in new and intelligent ways. Doesn't make them any 'more' intelligent, they already had the intelligence to adapt to a changing environment before the environment changed but they didn't adapt (because they have no reason to) until after the environment changed. Doesn't make them any more intelligent, they just don't need to apply their pre- existing intelligence to adapt to a new environment before the environment changes. They're intelligent, not psychic.
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Hephaestus (profile), 8 Dec 2011 @ 10:23pm

Re: Re: animals vs humans
Michael

You forgot a major one... Dolphins talk in images

David
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Hephaestus (profile), 8 Dec 2011 @ 10:25pm

Re:
What do you mean the earth is not the center of the universe? Next thing you will be telling me is that the earth is shaped like a potato.
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Anonymous Coward, 9 Dec 2011 @ 3:35am

www.npr.org/2011/12/09/143304206/cagebreak-rats-will-work-to-free-a-trapped-pal

Even rats are more empathetic than some people I know :)
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Michael Ho (profile), 9 Dec 2011 @ 1:51pm

Re: Re: Re: animals vs humans
David,

These DailyDirts aren't supposed to be comprehensive... but I did mention dolphin communication in this one:
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20090513/1026354871/dailydirt-talking-to-animals.shtml

If you've got any more examples of cool animal communication techniques, I'd love to see 'em.

Thanks!

Mike
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darryl, 9 Dec 2011 @ 9:28pm

Chimps are dumb
Dogs are far more intelligent that chimps, they are also very skilled in human communications.

Most humans can determine the nature of a dog bark from it's sound alone, therefore it is a very effective form of communication.

Dogs are also expert at reading facial expressions and body language, also their 'mind map' of the world around them is based on smells.

You could teach a dog to do something in 5 minutes that would simply be impossible with a chimp.

Also lion ants throw things.
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Anonymous Coward, 9 Dec 2011 @ 9:38pm

Re: Re:
The earth is shaped like a potato !!!!.

A round one...
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Darryl, 9 Dec 2011 @ 9:47pm

Accuracy of Techdirt ??????? *NOT VERY*
Since the sides of the pit consist of loose sand at its angle of repose,[10] they afford an insecure foothold to any small insects that inadvertently venture over the edge, such as ants. Slipping to the bottom, the prey is immediately seized by the lurking antlion; or if it attempts to scramble up the treacherous walls of the pit, it is speedily checked in its efforts and brought down by showers of loose sand which are thrown at it from below by the larva. By throwing up loose sand from the bottom of the pit, the larva also undermines the sides of the pit, causing them to collapse and bring the prey with them. Thus it does not matter whether the larva actually strikes the prey with the sand showers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antlion
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Anonymous Coward, 9 Dec 2011 @ 9:57pm

Re: Re: Re: animals vs humans
are you speaking from personal experience ?
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Anonymous Coward, 10 Dec 2011 @ 3:29pm

A quote from one of my favorite movies
F****n' scrugs. They're getting smarter all the time.
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lol, 3 Aug 2013 @ 8:26pm

Re: animals vs humans
I think the fact your reading this article and using the internet is an argument to your statement. Your using a database of unimited human knowledge. Tv is ignorant. But people have never read as much as they have today. People have never had access to the amount of information they have today. TV is being phased out and it's catering to the lowest common denominator of humans who still view it
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