Recent insights into animal intelligence

Recent studies are adding to the growing body of evidence suggesting that animals are much smarter than we think:

• Baby chimps given human love ace IQ tests: Study may shed light on how early care effects human baby development
• Monkeys can subtract: The discovery marks the first time a nonhuman species has been seen having "widespread success" with subtraction.
• Whiz chimps outsmart college students: Three five-year-old chimpanzees have soundly defeated nine university students while playing a computer game that tests numerical memory skills
• Baboons and pigeons are capable of higher-level cognition: It's safe to say that humans are smarter than animals, but a University of Iowa researcher is investigating the extent of that disparity in intelligence.
• Monkeys have a sense of morality: In a series of studies scientists have found that monkeys and apes can make judgments about fairness, offer altruistic help and empathise when a fellow animal is ill or in difficulties. They even appear to have consciences and the ability to remember obligations.
  

Lastly, here's a video about how primate gestures may be linked to early humans -- a possible indication of how our ancestors may have communicated:


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