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BigPapaSmurf
SFN Die Hard
3192 Posts |
 Posted - 02/02/2005 : 14:02:30
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http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/science/02/01/bird.brains.reut/index.html
Im always a fan of giving credit where credit is due. Birds being the likely next intelligent species.
Weird hypothetical,
It is generally assumed that humans intuitiveness and advancement can be directly linked to opposible thumbs and tool making. What if we have such a close relationship with an animal and it essentially uses our hands as the tool maker/user as an extension of itself. Over many generations of time could an advanced intelligence be created from such a situation? Keep in mind that all known techniquies for teaching the animal would also be used. Clearly the animals would be totally dependant on us and useless in the wild, untill they became smart enough to relearn those techniques...
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"...things I have neither seen nor experienced nor heard tell of from anybody else; things, what is more, that do not in fact exist and could not ever exist at all. So my readers must not believe a word I say." -Lucian on his book True History
"...They accept such things on faith alone, without any evidence. So if a fraudulent and cunning person who knows how to take advantage of a situation comes among them, he can make himself rich in a short time." -Lucian critical of early Christians c.166 AD From his book, De Morte Peregrini |
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woolytoad
Skeptic Friend
313 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2005 : 18:23:54 [Permalink]
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| I saw a documentary on Discovery about Ravens. Ravens are incredibly intelligent, its suggested they are smarter than dogs. They show one captive raven actually work out and solve a problem. |
| Edited by - woolytoad on 02/02/2005 18:26:37 |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2005 : 20:05:52 [Permalink]
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Anyone who has ever lived with a parrot knows that this is old news. I kept an Amazon for two years while it's owner was overseas. They are amazing.
They play, even as adults. I think that that is a sign of 'intelligence', whatever that might be. Cracker, his name, was free roaming in the house, although he spent most of his time perched on top of his cage. But now and then, he'd sort of pick a fight with me. This involved fake biting, rolling over on his back and grabbing my finger with his feet and more fake biting along with agonized screaming. Sometimes he'd take an object such as a pencil and, on his back, would turn and twist it with his feet. Terrorizing the cat was a favorite recreation.
Ravens and crows, and most corvine(sp?) birds are well knowen to learn very quicklty.
Perhaps the dinosaurs will out-live us yet.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist! 
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