Guest guest Posted July 6, 2000 Report Share Posted July 6, 2000 What a wonderful story Sherry! Who else has stories about communication between humans and other animals? Deborah in BC, Canada Human superiority is only human arrogance. Ask any pet " owner " if their pet understands any of their words (commands). Then ask them how many words do they understand in their pet's language. I thought I was pretty bright (for a human) until a sassy little cockatiel came to live with me. (She literally walked up on my deck one evening and pecked me on the foot.) In the 3 years we've lived together she's learned to understand numerous words that I use (kiss, fly, potty, etc.) It took me a year to figure out that she tapped me once on the hand if she wanted to be placed in the doorway of her cage and twice if she wanted to be put on top of the cage. (Her cage doors are never closed and her wings are never clipped, but she's a little on the lazy side.) In spite of my best efforts, I simply can't grasp her complex language of whistles, postures, pecks, etc. I have finally learned her whistle for me, but it took me a lot longer than it took her to learn my name for her. I'm not a dummy (IQ over 140), but this little bird blows me away. We don't know what forms of communication, culture and societies animals have with each other because no human has ever been smart enough to learn their language. Blessings to you all, Sherry - " Deborah Pageau " <Deborah_Pageau Thursday, July 06, 2000 1:44 PM Re: Human " superiority " ? > >*what do you tell people who say that we are intellectually superior to > >animals? > I would suggest looking at them with a little quizzical smile, and responding " We are? " I find that questioning their assumptions saves a lot of time in these attacks. > >People tell me that because of our Scientific and Technological > > " achievents " we have a superior brain capacity. > > AV said: Assuming for a minute that humans are 'intellectually superior' (I > interpret that to mean being more self-aware and conscious of our > existence), surely we, as humans, should use that knowledge not as an excuse > to torture and exploit animals but instead to apply our special gifts (e.g. > the ability to empathize) to show compassion for their suffering and respect > for their lives. > Well said! Here, here! Is 'technological achievement' something to be proud of if we use it to destroy the earth and cause mass suffering and destruction? > AV said: ...people know the truth about what is happening in our world but they choose to ignore it or try and come up with many reasons to rationalize their behaviour or even try to blame it on something/someone else. That is not intelligence, it is fear. > Bulls-eye! > AV said: ... maple syrup, tahini and apple sauce sound so much nicer than soy margarine >don't they? > I agree, and I think they actually do produce a much tastier product too! > > Deborah in BC, Canada > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2000 Report Share Posted July 7, 2000 >*does anyone have proof animals communicate? studies? > anything? there is absolutely proof of this. why else would birds sing? how else would bees run a hive? hell, it now seems that whales use grammar and syntax. http://calvino.biology.emory.edu/signalling/Comm.html is a website for signalling theory and animal communication. It talks about the ways animals communicate and makes some comparisons between the ways humans and other animals do it. chimps who learn english sign-language have even taught it to their young. unfortunately i can't give you any refs... maybe someone here can help me out? http://www.cwu.edu/~cwuchci/ is the website for the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute at the Central Washington University. There are 5 chimps there, 4 learned American Sign Language (ASL) from humans, and the 5th learned it from other chimps. These chimps are highly protected and nurtured to the very best that humans know how to do for chimps at this time of human understanding about their needs. The Institute offers apprenticeships to a select group of students in the summer, and volunteer opportunities, but it is not open to the public as entertainment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2000 Report Share Posted July 7, 2000 In my opinion, expressing is communicatinc. All animals express emotions to a certain extent. There's a really great book by Jeffrey Masson called " When Elephants Weep: The Emotional Lives of Animals " . I think the most notorious cases of interspecies communication are Koko (a gorilla) and Washoe (a chimp), who have learned ASL. There's a very nice article about Washoe in the Aug 2000 issue of Psychology Today. Information about Koko can be found at http://www.gorilla.org -Belle ______________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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