garyt.infogami
To err is human...
A page in progress
Wikipedia on biophilia.
So I am interested in E O Wilson's idea: that human beings have a natural propensity to show an interest in, or empathy for other organisms.
I have just read Pleasurable Kingdom by Jonathan Balcombe. Jonathan Balcombe spoke at the Science Festival in 2006 here in Edinburgh and it's due to him that I found out about Joanna Burger and Tiko.
The Parrot Who Owns Me by Joanna Burger.
Tiko has taught me, a sometimes headstrong and often ferociously independent woman, the importance of interdependence, the importance of taking care, and the importance of being cared for. It's a necessary part of being human and being connected to the world around us that we realize and acknowledge our vulnerability and the vulnerability of all creatures, and that we act in accord with that knowledge. It is critical that we allow the empathetic and altruistic part of ourselves to be the guiding force behind the way that we conduct our lives, whether we give to those less fortunate than ourselves, take care of the magnificent creatures that share our world, work tirelessly to preserve native habitat or separate each strand of an unruly mass of hair so gently that we do not wake our loved one as she sleeps.
BBC Radio4's Woman's Hour host Jenni Murray does a short interview with Joanna Burger.
Of course Alex is another famous parrot. He is assisting Irene Pepperberg with her research.
Starlings may be able to understand grammar - The Birds and the B’s: Challenging Chomsky, Starlings Learn ‘Human-Only’ Syntax Patterns
Great site on alpha taxonomy and phylogeny Tree of Life web project
Researchers from the University of St Andrews have discovered that dolphins, like humans, can recognise themselves and each other as individuals.
"Each animal develops an individually distinctive signature whistle in the first few months of its life, which appears to be used in individual recognition."
Vincent Janik of the Sea Mammal Research Unit at St Andrews University
Dolphins 'have own names' - I'm sorry about pointing to a page with a very annoying crunchy nut cornflakes ad at the top of the page. Awful.
Monkeys use 'sentences'. Researchers from St Andrews once again.
Study shows apes can plan ahead
"Because both orangutans and bonobos showed the ability to future plan in these tasks, this means this skill could have been present in the common ancestor to all great apes," Dr Call told the BBC News website. ~Dr Josep Call, the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
last updated 3 years ago #
