Those “new species” that radiation would produce have always existed and always will exist — in the human imagination at least. Meanwhile, it is just the dogs. “Evolution” led them back to your basic dog.
Tag: dogs
At Mind Matters News: Dogs understand many more words than we think
Of course, the dog is responding to words as signals, not as components of sentences.
At Mind Matters News: Why do dogs understand people better than wolves?
In the study, the wolf pups were raised so as to trust humans and the dog pups were not. Yet the wolf pups did not trust humans — but the dog pups did.
Researchers: Genes help dogs understand pointing
Chimpanzees don’t easily understand the pointing gesture even though they have fingers. Puppies don’t have fingers but can easily learn to understand the pointing gesture.
Bones of contention: A new clue as to how dogs got to the Americas
U Buffalo: “Researchers analyzed the dog’s mitochondrial genome, and concluded that the animal belonged to a lineage of dogs whose evolutionary history diverged from that of Siberian dogs as early as 16,700 years ago.”
Why do researchers need to try to prove that animals have personalities?
Mammals, birds, and reptiles differ by ability but those that have been studied seem to have individual personalities within the frame of their intelligence. What they don’t have or make little use of is abstract reasoning.
Researcher: It’s not clear whether dingos are really dogs
Maybe they are descended from wolves but never really became dogs?
If you think dogs are smarter than cats, this will surprise you
Interspecies comparisons are difficult but if we are going to compare, a better matchup would be between cats and wolves because both species have generally had to solve their own problems, as opposed to dogs which are bred to wait for human guidance.
There is no human counterpart to some types of dog intelligence
What dogs really excel at is understanding humans. It’s the key to their well-being. Naturally, when they succeed, we think they are very clever. Are wolves more clever because they survive on their own? Well, they are more clever in certain ways, such as group co-operation and problem-solving, but not in understanding human communications. It really depends on what type of intelligence we want to measure.
Coffee!!: Lion adopts leopard cub. Why is this supposed to be a “bizarre biological twist?”
These people read too much Darwin and his followers. The lioness has not read any of those sources, as it happens.
Researchers: Dogs co-operate as well as wolves
“The researchers point out that, although the kind of coordination shown in the present study may rely on more simple mechanisms than full, conscious cooperation, … ” Surely no one thinks that dogs or wolves have a theory of co-operation?
Researchers: Purebred dogs are not “biological species”
Their assertion shows, of course, what as mess the biological species concept is. If anyone does think all those breeds of dogs are really species, well…
What’s the difference between a wolf and a dog? Terminology, it seems…
Perhaps most groups of canines have never been very separate for any length of time and that fact may have served them well.
Neuroscientist: “Ultra social ability” makes humans smarter than apes
Maybe greater social intelligence is the outcome of a much higher order of underlying intelligence in humans?
Researchers: We tend to overrate dog intelligence
From ScienceDaily: People who think dogs are exceptionally intelligent are barking up the wrong tree, new research shows. Scientists reviewed evidence that compared the brain power of dogs with other domestic animals, other social hunters and other carnivorans (an order including animals such as dogs, wolves, bears, lions and hyenas). The researchers, from the University Read More…