Clever As a Fox : Animal Intelligence And What It Can Teach Us About Ourselves

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Summary: How animal intelligence can teach us about ourselves
Review: By questioning our inadequate traditional definitions of intelligence, ethologist Yoerg, project director for the Captive Breeding Program at the University of California, leads the reader through a lively, literate book, loaded with case studies, on animal behavior, intellect and instinct. Too often, he argues, our perceptions and understanding of animals, and our feelings for and against their different ilk, are linked to cultural prejudices. We have an affinity for those we deem closer to us on the evolutionary ladder, and tend to grant primates and other mammals a higher degree of understanding and emotion than other orders of animals. Birds, reptiles, amphibians, arachnids and insects are too often perceived merely as instinct-driven living mechanisms, even though, as Yoerg points out, the tree of evolution has sprouted numerous, diverse forms of survival-related intelligence. With numerous examples based on scientific experiments and observation, combined with a wealth of anecdotal personal experiences from North America, Africa and Europe, Yoerg challenges our comfortable beliefs. This is a fast-paced read, studded with insightful perspectives ranging from behavioral authorities (Robert Yerkes, B.F. Skinner) to literary lights (George Orwell, Wallace Stevens). Specialists with an interest in ethology and animal psychology will benefit as much from this intriguing stroll through the kingdom of animal intellectual ability as the general reader.

Rating:
Summary: A"Great Read" for a scientific overview
Review: I purchased Ms. Yoerg's book in San Diego (her hometown). Little did I know that I bought a signed copy! I felt the book was very interesting, and written with great wit. Ms. Yoerg knows her stuff, and has done extensive research in her field. I found her animal/insect comparisions informative, and quite funny (you'll know what I mean when you read about Portia, the spider). I am currently an undergraduate, and will be using her book for some of my research. I would highly recommend this book for anyone who wants a good overview of animal behavior and intelligence.

Rating:
Summary: Frustratingly Interesting
Review: The author challenges a number of traditional assumptions about the nature of intelligence and about our ability to 'rate' the intelligence of various animals based on our preconceived notions of either 'great chain of being' thinking or on a Darwinian evolutionay model. Why, she asks, do we rate behaviors that appear equally sophisticated as indicative of different degrees of intelligence (or non-intelligent instinctual reactions) based not on the behaviors themselves but on the 'type' of animals that exhibit them. We are far more likely to give a primate credit for exhibiting problem solving ability than we are to a scrub jay even though both routinely perform very similar actions. In addition the author offers a wide variety of ancedotal evidence for intelligence among species that normally are not regarded as being among the sharpest knives in the drawer. She also quesitons the various defintions of 'intelligence' concluding that although we use the word and think we can understand it, none of us can really offer an adequate defintion. And it is herein that my frustration lies. Our author raises a lot of questions and debunks a lot of myths. But I am left, after reading the book, asking myself exactly what MORE do I know now about animal intelligence than I did before. Perhaps I should, like Socrates, be happy just to become more knowledgeable of my own ignorance, but, to be honest, I want to know more about what THIS author thinks are some answers to the very questions she's raised.