Animal Smarts Surprise Researchers

Humans May Not Be The Only Animals That Plan For The Future - Monkeys And Pigeons Do Too

(AP)  Monkeys perform mental math, pigeons can select the picture that doesn't belong. Humans may not be the only animals that plan for the future, say researchers reporting on the latest studies of animal mental ability.

"I suggest we humans should keep our egos in check," Edward A. Wasserman of the University of Iowa said Thursday at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Wasserman, a professor of experimental psychology, said that, like people, pigeons and baboons were able to tell which pictures showed similar items, like triangles or dots, and which showed different items.

This is the definition of a concept, he said, "and the animals passed it with flying colors."

He spoke at a symposium on "Animal Smarts," where researchers discussed the latest findings in the mental abilities of animals.

In the last 20 years there has been a major revolution in the understanding of animals, added Nicola S. Clayton, a professor of comparative cognition at the University of Cambridge in England.

Animals not only use tools, there is evidence that some of them save tools for future use, she said.

"Planning ahead was once thought to be unique to humans," Clayton said. "We now know that's not true."

For example, she said, crows have been seen stashing food away for the next day and even finding ways to protect it from being stolen.

The term "birdbrain," is obsolete, she said, and should be replaced by "brainy birds."

Speaking of crow intelligence, Alex Kacelnik, a professor of behavioral ecology at the University of Oxford in England, noted the "master tool user of the avian world," the New Caledonian crow.

These birds have been shown to not just use tools, but to make their own by twisting and bending pieces of wire to fish food from places they couldn't reach otherwise.

"What we are describing about the abilities of different species is that human abilities are expressed, sometimes, in other species," Kacelnik said.

Jessica Cantlon of Duke University noted that "number sense" seems among the shared evolution of many primates.

Cantlon and Elizabeth Brannon have studied how human adults and babies, lemurs and monkeys think about numbers without using language.

After seeing the same number of objects repeatedly in different-looking groups, infants notice when the number of objects is changed, they found. So, too, do macaques.

Indeed, college students and macaques seem equally able to roughly sum up sets of objects without actually counting them.

That abiliity can be useful to the macaques in determining whether there is enough food to remain in an area or to get a sense of how large their group is compared to competing groups.

They are currently working to see if monkeys can recognize the concept of zero.

Some people may be uneasy as new studies find increasing similarities between animal and human mental abilities, Wasserman said.

The aim is to learn how much thinking ability is general throughout the animal kingdom, he said, "the evidence that we collect constantly surprises us."

[rational_1]

According to a recent gallup poll, only 39% of American citizens believe in Darwinian evolution.
Posted by quartersaw at 04:03 PM : Feb 15, 2009

I''m sorry but I just can''t resist the obvious. The mean IQ of the population is around 100 and so roughly half of the people score greater than 100 (the people mentioned in the post referenced above) and the rest fall below 100 (those who get elected to school boards and then try to get intelligent {ahem} design taught in science class).

Getting serious now. Considering the numbers of Americans who don''t know that the Earth revolves around the Sun (20%) and that about a third don''t know that DNA is involved in inheritance of genetic traits, it''s perhaps not a good idea to also point out that 61% of Americans don''t believe in evolution. The majority of Americans are scientifically illiterate so who cares what their opinions are regarding biology, physics, chemistry, etc. It''s like me giving my less than learned opinions to my car mechanic or my heart surgeon - pretty well useless.

[nothappyatall]

Geoffrey Stanford, 17, discovered during a Kansas writing test last week that an essay question concerning greenhouse gases incorrectly used the word "omission" for the word "emission," prompting the Wichita East High School junior to point out the error."

Shrug, I found an error in the DMV''s driver''s test- randomized selection of multiple choice thing when I got my license, pointed it out after I completed the test, had to take another one and got 100% on that too, no big deal it happens.

[willow313]

Error On Test Spotted By Kan. Student 1 Year Later
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This headline appeared in the "strange" section of the title listings on the main page of CBS News.....

(AP) A high school student''s keen eye has caught a state test error that managed to slip past teachers, test coordinators and other students for almost a year.

Geoffrey Stanford, 17, discovered during a Kansas writing test last week that an essay question concerning greenhouse gases incorrectly used the word "omission" for the word "emission," prompting the Wichita East High School junior to point out the error.

"I thought, `Surely they''re not talking about leaving out carbon dioxide altogether.'' It just didn''t make sense," Stanford said. "It had to be a mistake."

My question is this...."Why is it so strange that a 17 year old would make such a discovery on a test after the test had been in circulation for almost a year?????

Maybe animal smarts aren''t so far off base as some would like to believe....After all, I''ve known for years that my dogs have more sense than a lot of humans.

[jamster31]

Do we need a test to see if an animal plans for the future? Don''t squirrels gather nuts an bury them. How many animals plan for the winter? What a waste of time and money. These animals are smarter than their researchers.

[rational_1]

Regardless of the "will of the people", you are in for a rude awakening...unless you can think up ways to dispute the lastest PHYSICAL findings regarding similarity of DNA/genome factors between humans, other primates, birds, and even insects!
Posted by Solarrays247 at 12:15 AM : Feb 16, 2009

I''ll tell you his answer to your comment, because it''s always the same answer whenever anyone asks the creationists to address anything to do with biology - ''God made it that way''. Lovely isn''t it? It explains nothing, merely acquiescing to the fact that things are as they are. That''s why this stuff doesn''t belong in high school science classrooms - despite its name, ''scientific creationism'' is in no way scientific. It has no power to generate testable questions or hypotheses and the explanation for any discovery is that, well, God made it that way. It''s scientifically useless and we do a disservice to our kids to teach them this in a SCIENCE class.

[rational_1]

''Indeed, college students and macaques seem equally able to roughly sum up sets of objects without actually counting them.''

Ya, that seems about right from what I''ve seen in college students lately. LOL - just kidding kiddies, no need to get huffy

[solarrays247-2009]

The ridiculous pro-evolutionary Darwinian socialism world view is once again being pushed by CBS with this article, as it immediately refers to human beings as "animals" in the sub-title of the article. Human beings were created in the image of God. God gave us dominion over the animals and responsibility over them. The Darwinian world view continues to be pushed in America even though the majority of us Americans do not believe in this garbage that''''''''s pushed in schools. According to a recent gallup poll, only 39% of American citizens believe in Darwinian evolution.

The will of the people as usual is being completely ignored. The last time I checked, the Declaration of Independence clearly states that we are ALL ENDOWED BY OUR CREATOR, nature''''''''s GOD, not "we are all endowed by Charles Darwin".

Posted by quartersaw at 04:03 PM : Feb 15, 2009


With all due respect, I think humans, as a creation, must be a HUGE disappointment to God by now.....

Regardless of the "will of the people", you are in for a rude awakening...unless you can think up ways to dispute the lastest PHYSICAL findings regarding similarity of DNA/genome factors between humans, other primates, birds, and even insects!

You seem very fearful....I sincerely hope that you are made of stronger character, because I have a feeling that you will need that strength in the coming years.

[trishab59-01]

They are currently working to see if monkeys can recognize the concept of zero.......

When a monkey has eaten all his bananas, he understands the concept of zero.

When a banker has eaten up all his assets, he understands the concept of bailouts.

Monkeys get it, bankers don''''t.
--------------------------------------------
Posted by spiritwalk at 11:19 AM : Feb 14, 2009

-Nice one!

[johnjacobs4]

I hope this doesn''t sound foolish. In a mere 10,000 years homosapiens are able to communicate with Chimps and apes with sign language. Horses, dogs, dolphins, seal, walrus have cognitive powers and seem to understand, what we want them to do. I imagine, if we communicate with a being from a distant world in the future more advance from own. They probably would have learned to talk and listen to the amimals we hunt and invite to be our lunch. How can we expect them, not to treat us, like we treat others aanimals including our fellow man.

[nothappyatall]

Darwinian socialism world view is once again being pushed by CBS with this article, as it immediately refers to human beings as "animals"

We ARE, we are all MAMMALS, we share some 96% of the same DNA, the dog genome project has been completed and its proven there are corresponding genes in dogs and humans, subject to many of the same diseases and problems. YOUR problem is your book of death gives you right wingers an artifical fantasy license to kill/use/destroy animals for any reason or no reason at all, and demanded the death of sheep and bullocks for SIN offerings- how SICK!
Your church and that sick book is a major cause of the problems we have or have had- religious wars, subversion of women, stripping of the enviroment and resources and much more, I wont even mention the witch trials, reformation and other church sanctioned murders.

"Human beings were created in the image of ***."

So says you, I''m quite happy being classified as a MAMMAL, an animal sharing the planet with dogs and other animals.

[quartersaw]

Science simply shows God''s roadmap.
Only the small minded,and ignorant try to demonize science so it will fit within their narrow,stunted,compartmentalized perception of the world......
;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

The ridiculous pro-evolutionary Darwinian socialism world view is once again being pushed by CBS with this article, as it immediately refers to human beings as "animals" in the sub-title of the article. Human beings were created in the image of God. God gave us dominion over the animals and responsibility over them. The Darwinian world view continues to be pushed in America even though the majority of us Americans do not believe in this garbage that''''s pushed in schools. According to a recent gallup poll, only 39% of American citizens believe in Darwinian evolution.

The will of the people as usual is being completely ignored. The last time I checked, the Declaration of Independence clearly states that we are ALL ENDOWED BY OUR CREATOR, nature''''s GOD, not "we are all endowed by Charles Darwin".

[rushlimpdrug]

How much did this study cost again?
Posted by incog-nito at 09:35 PM


It didn''t cost the animals anything,
the humans paid for it.

[psk123-2009]

If you''d ever had children, and been their primary care giver, there are days you could understand why some animals eat their young! laughing Seriously though, eating their young would be a strange thing for a used to human contact. However it is quite common among rodents.

[psk123-2009]

Judging from many of the comments here, I''d have to say that most animals are smarter than most humans. Anyone who has observed any animals, knows that they do think, react, learn. Many animals use tools, and problem solve. Very few animals in the wild actively destroy their environment, or over breed to the point their environment can not support their numbers like humans do.

Just because a human can create an airplane or computer does not make him/her smarter than the termites that create their own version of sky scrapers. There are many other animals that are just as self aware as humans. A few bury their dead, many mourn them just as humans do.

[erb0087]

"So I guess animals have managed to build skyscrapers..."

Bees have built complicated hives, and spiders subtle webs, long before human beings managed to create anything sophisticated.

[erb0087]

I''m amazed how quickly my two cats figured out the connection between the remote, and the VCR DVD eject tray, which is the thing they find most fascinating.

[incog-nito]

How much did this study cost again?

[spiritwalk]

They are currently working to see if monkeys can recognize the concept of zero.......

When a monkey has eaten all his bananas, he understands the concept of zero.

When a banker has eaten up all his assets, he understands the concept of bailouts.

Monkeys get it, bankers don''t.

[platteman]

my dog is smarter than any of your''s politician.
In fact all 4 of my dogs are smarter than all of congress, POTUS and Tim the Turbotax man.

[spiritwalk]

If only animals knew how smart "humans" are.

Posted by rushlimpdrug

-----------------------------

Then animals would learn to gather more nuts than they need, promise to loan other animals the nuts, take so many nuts for themselves that there arent enough nuts left to give the other animals the nuts they promised to give them. Then they would get the other animals to give them more nuts, take the majority of the new nuts for themselves and call it a "stimulus package".