Cuttlefish are smart:
But as smart as children? Let us know when they grow up to teach calculus at the local U.
Note: As the video points out, cuttlefish are a problem for conventional assumptions about animal mind. Like their kin octopuses, they are exothermic invertebrates — not supposed to be smart. And yet…
You may also wish to read: Octopuses get emotional about pain, research suggests. The smartest of invertebrates, the octopus, once again prompts us to rethink what we believe to be the origin of intelligence. The brainy cephalopods behaved about the same as lab rats under similar conditions, raising both neuroscience and ethical issues.
Given that the life-span of cephalopods is 3-5 years, it is amazing that they can achieve what they do in such a short time.
That’s done it! Now kids will be sneaking cuttlefish into exams to help them with the answers.
Prof Cuttlefish, reporting for Calculus 1.
We don’t know how much training is required, or what the training consisted of. We don’t know if children need any such training before passing it. Without those rather crucial details, I’m going to say this is a non-story.
Also, this is the second time that News has written “exothermic” instead of “ectothermic.”