Dolphins have been declared the world’s second most intelligent creatures after humans, with scientists suggesting they are so bright that they should be treated as “non-human persons”.
Studies into dolphin behaviour have highlighted how similar their communications are to those of humans and that they are brighter than chimpanzees. These have been backed up by anatomical research showing that dolphin brains have many key features associated with high intelligence.
The researchers argue that their work shows it is morally unacceptable to keep such intelligent animals in amusement parks or to kill them for food or by accident when fishing. Some 300,000 whales, dolphins and porpoises die in this way each year.
continue reading
1 comment:
If you haven't already read it, I recommend David Brin's "Uplift Saga" series of books. I think Brin's postulation that our descendants will use advanced genetic engineering to uplift dolphins and other semi-intelligent species to full sentience to be very plausible.
Post a Comment