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Inside the minds of animals – Bryan B Rasmussen

TED-Ed

1.6M views 11 years ago

Warm-up Questions

When you hear the title “Inside the minds of animals,” what animals do you think of first?
Do you think animals can think like humans? Why or why not?
What kinds of “minds” or abilities might animals have that surprise people?

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Inside the minds of animals – Bryan B Rasmussen

Instinct vs. intelligence: from Aristotle to Darwin (00:00 – 01:45)

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1. According to the video, what did Aristotle believe humans have that animals do not?

Robotic bodies
Reason
Perfect memory
Waggle dances

2. What extreme comparison did Descartes make about animals?

Animals are indistinguishable from robots responding mechanically to stimuli
Animals are more rational than humans
Animals cannot survive without human help
Animals only live in groups for social fun

3. What did Darwin hypothesize about intelligence?

Intelligence could evolve from simpler instincts
Intelligence is impossible without language
Only mammals can be intelligent
Instinct disappears when intelligence appears

Inside the minds of animals – Bryan B Rasmussen

Evidence for animal problem-solving and debates about behavior (01:45 – 03:47)

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1. Which animal is described as opening jars after watching others and remembering the process months later?

Octopuses
Bees
Earthworms
Dogs

2. What was the real explanation for Clever Hans’s correct “math” answers?

He used a hidden device
He could truly calculate numbers
He copied other horses’ answers
He read subtle nonverbal cues from his trainer

3. What do chimpanzees’ deception schemes suggest, according to the video?

They think and understand that others think, too
They cannot learn from experience
They only react to punishment
They have no social awareness

Inside the minds of animals – Bryan B Rasmussen

Consciousness and “The Hard Problem” (03:47 – 05:13)

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1. What does the video say thinking involves for humans, in addition to problem-solving?

Consciousness and the ability to reflect on our actions
Never making mistakes
The ability to do math quickly
Only instinct for survival

2. What do philosophers of mind call the question of what it is like to be a dog, octopus, or crow?

The Evolution Puzzle
The Robot Theory
The Hard Problem
The Waggle Problem

3. Why is it hard to know how a parrot like Alex feels about the colors he can name?

He refused to communicate with humans
He could not see colors at all
He forgot the words immediately
He couldn’t tell us how he feels about the colors he could name

Inside the minds of animals – Bryan B Rasmussen

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1. Which idea best matches Darwin’s view in the video?

Evolution has nothing to do with intelligence
Animals and humans have completely different kinds of minds with no connection
Minds may be on a continuum, differing in degree, not in kind
Only humans can learn from observation

2. What is one major limitation of using only behavior to judge animal thinking?

Behavior always proves conscious reflection
Behavior is the same in every species
Behavior cannot be measured scientifically
Behavior can be explained by reward/punishment without proving inner experience

3. What is the central question behind “The Hard Problem” in this video?

How to build better robots
How to train animals to speak human languages
How to know what subjective experience (consciousness) is like for another being
How to increase animals’ survival and reproduction

Discussion Questions

Discuss the ideas from this video

Inside the minds of animals – Bryan B Rasmussen

Do you agree more with Aristotle/Descartes or with Darwin about animal intelligence? Why?
Which example from the video (crows, elephants, octopuses, bees, chimpanzees, Alex) is the strongest evidence of “thinking”? Explain.
Is it possible to prove whether an animal is conscious? What kind of evidence would convince you?
The video says how we frame animal minds may reveal more about our minds than theirs. What do you think this means?