Friday, May 23, 2008

Are Humans Unique?

According to an article in the latest issue of NewScientist, we humans are not special as we used to believe since we now know better. We are not the only species that feels emotions, empathises with others or abides by a moral code. Neither are we the only ones with personalities, cultures and the ability to design and use tools. Yet we have steadfastly clung to the notion that one attribute, at least, makes us unique: we alone have the capacity for language.

Some recent research has revealed that six seemingly "uniquely" human traits are already found in animals (here), and that animals can even "possess" some human abilities (here).

No comments: