Science

Judi Lynn

(160,453 posts) Mon Dec 16, 2013, 05:03 PM Dec 2013

Humans are not smarter than animals - we just don't understand them [View all]

Humans are not smarter than animals - we just don't understand them
Heather Saul
Friday 13 December 2013

For many years, humans have believed we are the most intelligent beings on the planet. However, evolutionary biologists are now claiming that some members of the animal kingdom may in fact have superior brains - we just don't recognise their intelligence.

Scientists at the University of Adelaide argue that evidence is emerging to suggest some animals actually have cognitive faculties that are superior to those possessed by human beings.

“For millennia, all kinds of authorities – from religion to eminent scholars – have been repeating the same idea ad nauseam, that humans are exceptional by virtue and that they are the smartest in the animal kingdom,” says Dr Arthur Saniotis, Visiting Research Fellow with the University's School of Medical Sciences.

"The belief of human cognitive superiority became entrenched in human philosophy and sciences. Even Aristotle, probably the most influential of all thinkers, argued that humans were superior to other animals due to our exclusive ability to reason.

More:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/humans-are-not-smarter-than-animals--we-just-dont-understand-them-9003196.html

46 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

Humans are not smarter than animals - we just don't understand them [View all] Judi Lynn Dec 2013 OP

is this the onion? itsrobert Dec 2013 #1

Oh yeah? Let's see them twerk progressoid Dec 2013 #2

K&R As usual, Douglas Adams was right. Egalitarian Thug Dec 2013 #3

Thread win here. longship Dec 2013 #4

Right fucking on. BrotherIvan Dec 2013 #7

A common measure of IQ is reaction time KurtNYC Dec 2013 #5

this runs into the serious issue of what do we mean by "smarter" mindwalker_i Dec 2013 #6

I'm smarter than my cat. The_Commonist Dec 2013 #8

My dog's smarter than I am ... Scuba Dec 2013 #9

Maybe they are wiser at doing what they do CFLDem Dec 2013 #10

I will drop you and my dog off in the wilderness... SoLeftIAmRight Dec 2013 #19

Well it wouldn't be the dog. CFLDem Dec 2013 #20

wiser yes. human beings have barely (if at all) retained the ability to have fun for no reason Voice for Peace Dec 2013 #26

There's a hell of a lot of us... Thor_MN Dec 2013 #39

'compatible' .. that's a big order. Voice for Peace Dec 2013 #41

Not really. Give two people nothing to do. Thor_MN Dec 2013 #42

I don't doubt that animals are intelligent. I do doubt they are as intelligent as humans beings. Jim__ Dec 2013 #11

Artificial Intelligence research runs into the same problem. hunter Dec 2013 #12

yeah no we are qazplm Dec 2013 #13

Dogs trained humans to take care of them. Neoma Dec 2013 #22

cats do the same. Voice for Peace Dec 2013 #27

I think dogs have adjusted better in order to appear useful. Neoma Dec 2013 #29

you may be right, though the cats do bring me a mouse :( Voice for Peace Dec 2013 #30

We often fail to see the intelligence of animals because of our tendency to anthropomorphize. gtar100 Dec 2013 #14

How many animals do you think are working out what goes on in the minds of other species? muriel_volestrangler Dec 2013 #16

You are still judging intelligence by human standards. gtar100 Dec 2013 #17

Redefining 'intelligence', and then using that to say "we're not more intelligent than other animals muriel_volestrangler Dec 2013 #18

Dogs put quite a bit of effort into exactly that. hunter Dec 2013 #43

I don't think they have the concept of a 'mind' muriel_volestrangler Dec 2013 #44

I know what a brain is, what is a mind? hunter Dec 2013 #45

Intelligence can be compared; humans are more intelligent than other animals muriel_volestrangler Dec 2013 #46

^ Wilms Dec 2013 #15

Only humans have complex language, both spoken and written, and indulge in abstract thought. Lionel Mandrake Dec 2013 #21

We didn't used to read as a species. Neoma Dec 2013 #23

It's true that our species didn't evolve to read and write. Lionel Mandrake Dec 2013 #24

So because animals can't do what is limited to human beings... Neoma Dec 2013 #25

LOL! So, regurgitation of the ignorance-based arguments that led to an erroneous conclusion Egalitarian Thug Dec 2013 #31

Do you think that all animals are EQUALLY intelligent? FiveGoodMen Dec 2013 #32

No. n/t Egalitarian Thug Dec 2013 #33

Then there's a continuum, and humans must fall somewhere on it FiveGoodMen Dec 2013 #34

Certainly. The problem lies when one species that lacks the senses to even have Egalitarian Thug Dec 2013 #35

You're not making sense(s). Lionel Mandrake Dec 2013 #36

Senses. I thought the metaphor would help to clarify. Egalitarian Thug Dec 2013 #37

We are not blind or deaf; nor do we lack a sense of smell. Lionel Mandrake Dec 2013 #38

Animal lovers have known this since they were born... liberalmuse Dec 2013 #28

If one has made oneself subservient to another species... Thor_MN Dec 2013 #40