Author: Conwy Lloyd MorganPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Animal behavior
Languages : en
Pages : 544
Book Description
Animal Life and Intelligence
Author: Conwy Lloyd MorganPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Animal behavior
Languages : en
Pages : 544
Book Description
Animal Life and Intelligence
Author: C. Lloyd MorganPublisher: Forgotten Books
ISBN: 9781330417294
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 528
Book Description
Excerpt from Animal Life and Intelligence There are many books in our language which deal with Animal Intelligence in an anecdotal and conventionally popular manner. There are a few, notably those by Mr. Romanes and Mr. Mivart, which bring adequate knowledge and training to bear on a subject of unusual difficulty. In the following pages I have endeavoured to contribute something (imperfect, as I know full well, but the result of several years' study and thought) to our deeper knowledge of those mental processes which we may fairly infer from the activities of dumb animals. The consideration of Animal Intelligence, from the scientific and philosophical standpoint, has been my primary aim. But so inextricably intertwined is the subject of Intelligence with the subject of Life, the subject of organic evolution with the subject of mental evolution, so closely are questions of Heredity and Natural Selection interwoven with questions of Habit and Instinct, that I have devoted the first part of this volume to a consideration of Organic Evolution. The great importance and value of Professor Weismann's recent contributions to biological science, and their direct bearing on questions of Instinct, rendered such treatment of my subject, not only advisable, but necessary. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
Clever as a Fox
Author: Sonja Ingrid YoergPublisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674008700
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 244
Book Description
Researched, Clever as a Fox will challenge your previously held notions about animals and the measure of intelligence, both theirs and ours.
Animal Social Complexity
Author: Frans B. M. De WaalPublisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674034129
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 650
Book Description
For over 25 years, primatologists have speculated that intelligence, at least in monkeys and apes, evolved as an adaptation to the complicated social milieu of hard-won friendships and bitterly contested rivalries. Yet the Balkanization of animal research has prevented us from studying the same problem in other large-brained, long-lived animals, such as hyenas and elephants, bats and sperm whales. Social complexity turns out to be widespread indeed. For example, in many animal societies one individual's innovation, such as tool use or a hunting technique, may spread within the group, thus creating a distinct culture. As this collection of studies on a wide range of species shows, animals develop a great variety of traditions, which in turn affect fitness and survival. The editors argue that future research into complex animal societies and intelligence will change the perception of animals as gene machines, programmed to act in particular ways and perhaps elevate them to a status much closer to our own. At a time when humans are perceived more biologically than ever before, and animals as more cultural, are we about to witness the dawn of a truly unified social science, one with a distinctly cross-specific perspective?
If a Lion Could Talk
Author: Stephen BudianskyPublisher: Free Press
ISBN: 9781501142741
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
How many of us have caught ourselves gazing into the eyes of a pet, wondering what thoughts lie behind those eyes? Or fallen into an argument over which is smarter, the dog or the cat? Scientists have conducted elaborate experiments trying to ascertain whether animals from chimps to pigeons can communicate, count, reason, or even lie. So does science tell us what we assume -- that animals are pretty much like us, only not as smart? Simply, no. Now, in this superb book, Stephen Budiansky poses the fundamental question: "What is intelligence?" His answer takes us on the ultimate wildlife adventure to animal consciousness. Budiansky begins by exposing our tendency to see ourselves in animals. Our anthropomorphism allows us to perceive intelligence only in behavior that mimics our own. This prejudice, he argues, betrays a lack of imagination. Each species is so specialized that most of their abilities are simply not comparable. At the mercy of our anthropomorphic tendencies, we continue to puzzle over pointless issues like whether a wing or an arm is better, or whether night vision is better than day vision, rather than discovering the real world of a winged nighthawk, a thoroughbred horse, or an African lion. Budiansky investigates the sometimes bizarre research behind animal intelligence experiments: from horses who can count or ace history quizzes, and primates who seem fluent in sign language, to rats who seem to have become self-aware, he reveals that often these animals are responding to our tiny unconscious cues. And, while critically discussing scientists' interpretations of animal intelligence, he is able to lay out their discoveries in terms of what we know about ourselves. For instance, by putting you in the minds of dogs or bees who travel by dead reckoning, he demonstrates that this is also how you find your way down a familiar street with almost no conscious awareness of your navigation system. Modern cognitive science and the new science of evolutionary ecology are beginning to show that thinking in animals is tremendously complex and wonderful in its variety. A pigeon's ability to find its way home from almost anywhere has little to do with comparative intelligence; rather it is due to the pigeon's very different perception of the world. That's why, as Wittgenstein said, "If a lion could talk, we would not understand him." In this fascinating book, Budiansky frees us from the shackles of our ideas about the natural world, and opens a window to the astounding worlds of the animals that surround us.
Animal Intelligence
Author: Edward Lee ThorndikePublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Animal behavior
Languages : en
Pages : 328
Book Description
Animal Life and Intelligence
Author: C. Lloyd MorganPublisher: CreateSpace
ISBN: 9781517405953
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 358
Book Description
Animal Life and Intelligence is an illustrated introduction to life on Earth.
Inside Animal Minds
Author: Mary RoachPublisher: Disney Electronic Content
ISBN: 1426210035
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 65
Book Description
The Animal Intelligence Bundle: “Minds of Their Own” by Virginia Morell (March 2008) “Almost Human” by Mary Roach (April 2008) “The Genius of Swarms” by Peter Miller (July 2007) In “Minds of Their Own,” Virginia Morell provides an overview of the science of animal intelligence. She introduces you to an African gray parrot named Alex, a bonobo named Kanzi, and a border collie named Betsy. Each of these animals tells us something interesting about the way they perceive and manipulate their world. The article also looks at what scientists are learning about the intelligence of dolphins and crows, beyond mere communication. In “Almost Human,” Mary Roach takes us to the savannahs of Senegal to meet a group of 34 chimpanzees, whose behavior and social structures have given scientists some important clues about the nature of their communication and intelligence. In “The Genius of Swarms,” Peter Miller looks at the collective behavior of ants, bees, and other insects for what they can tell us about social organization and how sometimes intelligence lies outside of the individual brain. This article served as the basis for his book, The Smart Swarm: How Understanding Flocks, Schools, and Colonies Can Make Us Better at Communicating, Decision Making, and Getting Things Done.
Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are?
Author: Frans de WaalPublisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0393246191
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
A New York Times bestseller: "A passionate and convincing case for the sophistication of nonhuman minds." —Alison Gopnik, The Atlantic Hailed as a classic, Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? explores the oddities and complexities of animal cognition—in crows, dolphins, parrots, sheep, wasps, bats, chimpanzees, and bonobos—to reveal how smart animals really are, and how we’ve underestimated their abilities for too long. Did you know that octopuses use coconut shells as tools, that elephants classify humans by gender and language, and that there is a young male chimpanzee at Kyoto University whose flash memory puts that of humans to shame? Fascinating, entertaining, and deeply informed, de Waal’s landmark work will convince you to rethink everything you thought you knew about animal—and human—intelligence.
Animal Life and Intelligence (Classic Reprint)
Author: Conway Lloyd MorganPublisher: Forgotten Books
ISBN: 9781333120245
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 530
Book Description
Excerpt from Animal Life and Intelligence However profoundly the laws of phenomena may be modified by such introduction of new and higher factors, the older and lower factors are still at work beneath the surface. And he who would adequately grasp the social problems of our time should bring to them a mind prepared by a study of the laws of organic life: for human beings, rational and moral though they may be, are still organisms and man can in no wise alter or annul those deep-lying facts which nature has throughout the ages been weaving into the tissue of life. Some parts of this work are necessarily more technical, and therefore more abstruse, than others. This is especially the case with Chapters V., and VI.; while, for those unacquainted with philosophical thought, perhaps the last chapter may present difficulties of a different order. With these exceptions, the book will not be beyond the ready comprehension of the general reader of average intelligence. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.