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Never mind 5th graders: Are you smarter than a chimpanzee?
Posted on Dec 5th 2007 10:15AM by Bethany SandersFiled Under: Celebs & Entertainment
Recently, a 5-year-old chimp named Ayumu outplayed his human counterparts in a study that involved short-term memory. When numbers were shown on a computer screen for as little as four-tenths of a second, Ayumu could recall them correctly 80% of the time, while humans could only do so with an accuracy of 40%.
Lest you think Ayumu is some sort of monkey-genius, in other tests, the entire group of chimps were not only as accurate as humans, they were also faster. This study sheds new light on the cognitive functioning of chimps, which has always been thought to be inferior to humans. Scientists think it may be Ayumu's young age that gives him the upper hand. Children have a better memory for images than adults. Or it may be that humans had to lose this skill to make room for the complexity of language.
Hmmm...those almost sound like excuses, don't they? All I have to say is that I don't even want to imagine the reality-TV possibilities.
Lest you think Ayumu is some sort of monkey-genius, in other tests, the entire group of chimps were not only as accurate as humans, they were also faster. This study sheds new light on the cognitive functioning of chimps, which has always been thought to be inferior to humans. Scientists think it may be Ayumu's young age that gives him the upper hand. Children have a better memory for images than adults. Or it may be that humans had to lose this skill to make room for the complexity of language.
Hmmm...those almost sound like excuses, don't they? All I have to say is that I don't even want to imagine the reality-TV possibilities.
