[Vision2020] Animals are People, Too: Overcoming the Myth of Human Uniqueness

[Ted Moffett]

 I was once astonished when a professor of physics at the U of I insisted
that human intelligence has not been proven to be of survival value.  I
pointed out the arguments that are obvious: that our intelligence allows us
to adapt to and protect ourselves in environments all over the Earth, even
in space, produce food in huge quantities, defend against predators and
protect our young, block disease, treat injuries, and so forth.  But this
professor, a mild mannered and moderate man, calmly insisted that long term
the evidence is not yet in on this "experiment" in human intelligence.

The belief in human superiority (human personhood shared only with God, as
moral and spiritual beings with a "rational soul") over other species is
sheer vanity, based on anthropocentric judgements defining "intelligence"
and what is or is not important in life.  Other species share "human"
qualities of mind, as Gier's column argues, but these qualities are a
product of the evolution of life, present to some degree before homo sapiens
sapiens appeared, I think.  And as the U of I physics professor pointed out,
human intelligence has yet to be proven to be of long term survival value.
Indeed, it may be that in most cases throughout the universe life forms that
evolve human-like intelligence coupled with tool making and the resultant
technologies, destroy themselves.

The erroneous and common belief that humans are separate from and above
other animals and Nature, rather than animals evolved from, dependent upon
and integrated into the Earth's ecosystems, with bacteria as essential to
human survival as air, sunshine and water, is an example of the limitations
of human intelligence.  Human behavior and perceptions are often irrational
and unconsciously controlled, just as with other animals.

A primary reason that human intelligence may not result in a long term
survival advantage is that as the technology for war becomes vastly more
destructive, so has the capacity to destroy ecosystems and deplete
resources, partly a result of our "success" as a species leading to
over-population, which of course may increase the probability of war as an
over-populated world competes for depleted resources and a degraded
environment and food production capacity.

Given human behavior at this point in history, unless we truly become more
like the "free willed conscious rational beings" that optimists laud,
emotional irrational impulses to engage in tribalistic warfare (nation
states, extremist ideologies and religions can be viewed as defining tribal
loyalties leading to war), and lack of awareness of our true position on
Earth as a species dependent upon the eco-capital of Earth's biological
systems and diversity of life, will result in a future bringing the long
term value of human intelligence in question.
-----------------------

Straw Dogs
Thoughts on Humans and Other Animals
*John Gray
*
http://www.macmillanacademic.com/Academic/book/BookDisplay.asp?BookKey=6117801

"'Humans think they are free, conscious beings, when in truth they are
deluded animals,' writes London University economics professor Gray in a
series of brief and intriguing mini-essays."
-----------------------
Vision2020 Post: Ted
Moffett<http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2002/sep/15/highereducation.shopping>


On 4/1/09, nickgier at roadrunner.com <nickgier at roadrunner.com> wrote:
>
> Good Morning Visionaries:
>
> This is my radio commentary/column this week. The full version with a
> picture of Irene Pepperberg and her amazing parrot Alex is attached.  I used
> to be a big brain species chauvinist, but I can no longer draw a line
> between ape persons and parrot persons.
>
> I hope I don't spoil the culinary joy of any you carnivores out there
> today.
>
> Nick Gier
>
> ANIMALS ARE PEOPLE, TOO:
> OVERCOMING THE MYTH OF HUMAN UNIQUENESS
>
>
> In his book "On the Soul" the Greek philosopher Aristotle proposed that
> there were three types of souls, and the human fetus evolves organically
> from one to the next.  During the first trimester the fetus is a "nutritive"
> soul, a life principle that we share with animals and plants.  After three
> months the fetus develops a "sensitive" soul: it now has the capacity,
> unlike plants, to move and to perceive.
>
> After six months the human fetus adds a "rational" soul on top of its
> nutritive-sensitive base.  (Explosive fetal brain development from 25-33
> weeks confirms Aristotle's speculation on this essential point.) This is a
> faculty that humans share only with God, and this makes them superior to all
> the other beings on earth.  Only God and humans can be called persons; and
> only they can be moral and spiritual beings.
>
> For nearly 2,400 years this view of human uniqueness has dominated
> Judeo-Christian religion, morality, and law.  Aristotle's influence is seen
> in St. Augustine's view that the abortion of a first trimester fetus was not
> murder, and Thomas Aquinas' belief that the fetus did not become a person
> until late in pregnancy.  Canon law on this essential point was not changed
> until 1917.
>
> Many cracks have begun to appear in the hard shell that has enveloped the
> claim of human uniqueness.  Dolphins have 40 percent more neo-cortical area
> in their brains than we do, and they have rich emotional and mental lives.
> At the Dolphin Institute in Hawaii, Louis Herman has taught his four
> dolphins to understand sign language.  One day Herman asked two of them to
> make up a new trick on their own.  The two dolphins dove and within seconds
> exploded out of the water, circling on their tails, and spouting water like
> synchronized fountains.
>
> Dozens of unemployed Asian logging elephants now have second career as
> painters.  Most of the paintings are abstract, but trainers have taught them
> to depict natural scenes as well.  Most amazingly, some have actually done
> self-portraits.  Selling for $350-$750 each, these pachyderm art works have
> raised $100,000 for elephant rehabilitation.
>
> The mental and emotional achievements of our primate cousins are well known
> and so impressive that the Chimpanzee Collaboratory has formed to promote
> chimp personhood.  As Harvard lecturer Steven Wise argues: "If a human
> four-year-old has what it takes for legal personhood, then a chimpanzee
> should be able to be a legal person [too]."
>
> In addition to learning sign language (including making up new words) and
> teaching it to their young, chimps have been observed making tools and using
> herbal medicines.  In a fairly simple computer memory game, a chimp,
> seemingly without much concentration, can remember all nine numbers in a
> random sequence while the sharpest human subjects remember only one or two.
>
> If Aristotle were come back for a visit today, he would advisedly make an
> amendment to his theory: chimps, gorillas, dolphins, and whales are persons
> and as such have a serious moral right to life.  But this may still be a
> case of big brain species chauvinism, and Irene Pepperberg's African Grey
> parrot Alex is the key witness.
>
> Alex of course had the proverbial bird brain--the size of a shelled
> walnut--but over 31 years Pepperberg carefully documented Alex's amazingly
> rich mental and emotional life.  Under strict laboratory conditions Alex,
> when asked to combine seven colors, five shapes, and four materials, could
> identify 80 different objects.
>
> Just like Washoe the Chimp, who called ducks "water birds," Alex made up
> "yummy bread" for cake. Because one needs lips to say a "p," Alex improvised
> for an apple calling it "banerry," a combination of banana and
> cherry.  While in the laboratory with other parrots, he was constantly
> criticizing the others for their poor pronunciation, repeatedly saying
> "speak more clearly!"
>
> Emotionally, Alex would respond to Pepperberg, not repetitively or
> arbitrarily, but specifically and appropriately, such as "What's your
> problem?" and "I'm going to go away now."  His last words to the love of his
> life were "You be good, I love you."
>
> A recent experiment with dogs did not require language for scientists to
> conclude that they had a sense of fairness.  At the Clever Dog Lab at the
> University of Vienna, scientists placed two dogs side by side and commanded
> them to offer a paw.  Initially, one received a piece of sausage for the
> correct response, and the other got a piece of bread. When the reward was
> withdrawn from one dog, she not only stopped offering her paw, but turned
> away from the scientist in disgust.
>
> As opposed chimps placed in the same circumstances, the Austrian dogs did
> not perceive the vegetarian option as a slight.  Primatologist Frans de Waal
> has also found that a capuchin monkey refused to trade pebbles for pieces of
> cucumber when his companion was given a grape instead for the same task.
>
> In 1992 while on sabbatical in India I gave up eating beef, pork, and
> chicken. My decision was based primarily on a choice of a healthier diet
> rather than any strong belief in animal rights. This new evidence for animal
> personhood should force all of us to rethink what is now become the Myth of
> Human Uniqueness.
>
> Nick Gier taught philosophy at the University of Idaho for 31 years.
>
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/vision2020/attachments/20090411/ffc2b1aa/attachment.html