The Human Spark | Alan Alda and Man's Best Friend | PBS

[mindhackz]

I told my friend to go get me a bag of chips at the 7/11, he didn't do it, therefore he is an idiot. Seems legit.

[inmens]

The dog is looking at them and thinking: "What the hell are these monkeys saying?"

[totaldynamix]

Chimps do fetch stuff. The trained ones could fetch coconuts if you demand but, unlike dogs, they simply dont care. So i think they are even smarter than dogs.

[jtslady87]

I love listening to this woman talk, she has such a sweet, soothing voice!

Love seeing people and dogs communicate, it's amazing how well they understand us.

[goliathlup1]

Well it might work on dogs because we have been geneticaly selecting them for millenia, and probably picked the one capable to understand somehow verbal commands. Maybe they should try with a wolf or something.

[DiGiTaLdAzEDM]

I have owned dogs for--excuse me--lived with dogs for almost 30 years. I beleive one reason they relate so well with humans is that both species are very social in nature, and more importantly relate co-operatively as seen with wild canines in hunting as a pack. For humans co-operative behaviour is also a fundamental trait. I also believe that their emotional lives share much in common with our own.

[TheJamesrocket]

@DiGiTaLdAzEDM Don't forget selective breeding: Domestic wolves which were better able to understand the body language and vocalisations of humans would get along better with them, and would be more useful as hunters, trackers, and pets as well (thus, they would be protected and cared for, while wolves which weren't as co-operative would have died off through one means or another).

[LizardMoGold]

I like what the woman says at the very end: "this can hopefully teach us about ourselves." The ultimate point is not to test the intelligent of a particular animal or breed or species by how THEY understand US and how much they want to please us. The breakthrough happens when WE can understand THEM. It's not about intelligence; it's about communication.

[Friesianspirit]

Leoharemusic-Dogs and people both do things for different kinds of rewards. Some dogs require food, others just a kind word will do. People also will do things out of the kindess of their heart or for a monetary reward. 2 very different rewards. I can't imagine a chimp would be much different..there has to be something it would want as a reward. The fact that they haven't been able to find it and get the chimp to do it..makes me wonder....

[JixMa]

Well alright! Alan Alda back on PBS! Yay! I so wish he was back hosting "Scientific American Frontiers". I miss new episodes of that show. Please, PBS, if Mr. Alda isnt capable of doing the show any longer, for health reasons or whatnot, please find a new host for that show and put it back into production! Please!

[mimbrava]

My 10-year-old Pomeranian knows 200 toys by name (I stopped at that number, though she could have learned more), 24 colors and 52 commands. When the story about Rico came out, I sent to the Max Planck Institute my lists of what Zoe Bear knows, but they never got back to me. Zoe Bear, like Rico, has taught herself some of her toys, and like CJ she can be told to go into another room and bring a particular toy to me. An article about her appeared in the February 2007 issue of Reader's Digest.

[binkle1]

Dogs are incredible creatures, no doubt about it. My yellow lab is my constant companion throughout the day. I have bipolar disorder, and she mirrors my mood. She will get depressed BEFORE I go into a depressive state; ditto the manic. It is very important for me to remember to PLAY with her, as the most important thing dogs need is a sense of purpose.

[ho2cultcha]

i don't think that border collie's are necessarily more intelligent than other dogs, they are just hardwired to follow orders and solve problems in order to please humans.

[DaKrazyJokesta]

Thatz flippin amazing... My dog will fetch, sit, and shake handz.. But not smart enough to know the difference between toyz.. And yeah i guess it could be lack of teaching on my part but whatever :P lol big upz to that collie.

[LeoHareMusic]

4:09 ... I bet the chimpanzee *would* understand, but just not care. With chimps you have other stimuli than merely reward. Chimps are hominids, other kinds of persons, and not merely pets seeking approval.

[Chemicalkinetics]

@LeoHareMusic She did not say the chimpanzee does not understand the object. It is the fact the chimpanzee does not understand you want the object. You can verbally tell a chimpanzee to bring you an object by name and the chimp can do that. However, if you hold up an object and point at it, the chimp has no idea. It has nothing to do with chimp does not care because you will have difficult to explain why a chimp cares about a verbal command but not a visual command.

[pjq49]

@LeoHareMusic NOPE! You give them a treat for getting it right. They care.