Anyone else ever had the thought we aren't the smartest beings on earth?

[Rendark]

I think this guy has just proven not all humans are intelligent.

[Kalador]

It's really hard to answer this kind of question as it's hard to tell what is smart when there is so many type of intelligence, some of them are clearly beyond our understanding.

Also as human we have a strong tendency to project what work for us on animal that work in other way. It's also realy hard to have a good metric of intelligence for animal as it's hard to understand and test stuff on many of them. As an exemple we know that most of animal in suborder cetacea (whale) are highly intelligent and have way of undertanding emotion and some species have there own higly developed way of comunicating. For sure we are the only species that as developed science but it does not mean anything when its not hard to understand that we have the tool to developed such a thing that many other animal don't have.

it's an interesting questions that can't be anwsered by a simple statement like LOL yes animals are dumb LOL...

[Egregious]

Glad a reply like this popped up. None of what you said can i dispute on a human definition of intelligence. What i am proposing in this thread is something different altogether. Because animals are not burdened with all of the things the human mind inherently are encumbered with, is it possible they are the more intelligent species. They KNOW how to live life when they are born, they dont have serial killers, rapists, racists, slanderers, list goes on and on.

Human definition sure we are at the top, i am asking something different entirely.

Animals have not the enjoyment of eating grass, the satisfaction of nurturing an idea, the perspicacity to wonder, nor the sense of one's self and one's universe. You want to trade all those things just to get rid of murder and rape -which, by the way, happens everywhere in the God damned animal kingdom? You're entire premise is based on an irrational fantasy stemming from an escapist emotional craving.

You also said animals don't have mental disabilities? They do, they just evidence them less frequently as their computer is not as complex to manufacture and hasn't the availability for nearly so many defects.

I pity you that would wish away your most precious possessions to be again a creature.

[Fascinate]

Actually, they don't do it because its good for their health. That is applying human reasoning to animals as well. They do it because they evolved to have a desire to play, because being playful allowed one generation to pass those genes on, because it helps develop motor skills and hunting and fighting skills. It has nothing to do with a preconceived concept of health. Animals don't form such concepts. It's too abstract.

Who says it isnt good for their health? I would concede the main reason is to learn hunting, but at the same time it keeps them fit FOR the hunt. All of this done via instincts.

Do humans go to the gym via instincts? No, they go to the gym to either attract the opposite sex or show their high school classmates they arent fat anymore (either way its self serving, animals dont know what an ego is)

[Gib Lover]

they go to the gym to either attract the opposite sex or show their high school classmates they arent fat anymore (either way its self serving, animals dont know what an ego is)

Between this and your earlier comment about animals not playing mind games when it comes to relationships, you are projecting so hard I think you have an Epson logo on your side.

[Shiny212]

No, I'm not that stupid. I'm amused when people use their intelligence on stuff like degrading intelligence as a subjective thing in an effort to anthropomorphize or deify animals; especially since the entire exercise you're putting your mind through is only possible because of the very thing you're trying to warp and distort.

[Gilgemesh]

Who says it isnt good for their health? I would concede the main reason is to learn hunting, but at the same time it keeps them fit FOR the hunt. All of this done via instincts.

Do humans go to the gym via instincts? No, they go to the gym to either attract the opposite sex or show their high school classmates they arent fat anymore (either way its self serving, animals dont know what an ego is)

They also don't know why they do it. That is preconceived. It is instinct. Programming. To call it intelligence is a stretch of our definition of the word. You are taking instinct and calling it intelligence and attempting to form a new definition for the thing that already exists--INSTINCT. Humans have very little instinct left. Animals win this.

Animals have very little intelligence AS WE DEFINE IT http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intelligence .
Your reasoning fits the wrong definition of words. It is solid for instinct but not intelligence.
God help me I hope I'm not trying to teach blind people colors.

[Fascinate]

I only made this thread to get a gauge of how many people had the thought enter their head that we werent the smartest beings on the planet. Apparently its not too many. (human ego is hard to crack)

- - - Updated - - -

They also don't know why they do it. That is preconceived. It is instinct. Programming. To call it intelligence is a stretch of our definition of the word. You are taking instinct and calling it intelligence and attempting to form a new definition for the thing that already exists--INSTINCT. Humans have very little instinct left. Animals win this.

Animals have very little intelligence AS WE DEFINE IT http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intelligence .
Your reasoning fits the wrong definition of words. It is solid for instinct but not intelligence.
God help me I hope I'm not trying to teach blind people colors.

Ive said at least 4 times in this thread, its more about defining intellect than anything else. I am asking big questions here.

[Gib Lover]

I only made this thread to get a gauge of how many people had the thought enter their head that we werent the smartest beings on the planet. Apparently its not too many. (human ego is hard to crack)

It's not ego. It would be hubris if anything, but it still isn't even that. An animal instinctively doing something is not intelligence as we define intelligence, and your reinterpretation of intelligence is just the textbook definition of instinct.

[Alvito]

Uh, Lions are only alive at the moment because we decided to stop people killing them for fun.

Sharks are in a separate environment, but we still manage to kill 100 million sharks a year.

We're so far above them on the "foodchain" that it's not even comparable.

Wonderful job making a case that the smarter creature isn't the one on the top of the food chain. I didn't say we weren't ahead of either, I don't know why you would assume that. There are several things below those 2 that people would say are much smarter though. I'll use crayons and pictures for you next time.

[Gib Lover]

I am asking big questions here.

No you aren't though. You have a preconceived notion that animals live better than humans because all they worry about is surviving instead of "playing mind games" and "worrying about eggs," and desperate for validation in your belief you started a thread. You were met with resistance to your beliefs, so you changed the wording. You were met with more resistance, so you changed the definition of intelligence. You were met with resistance, so you changed the definition of intelligence again. You were met with resistance again, and now you say the point of the thread is to define intellect.

[Gilgemesh]

I only made this thread to get a gauge of how many people had the thought enter their head that we werent the smartest beings on the planet. Apparently its not too many. (human ego is hard to crack)

- - - Updated - - -




Ive said at least 4 times in this thread, its more about defining intellect than anything else. I am asking big questions here.

You are defining instinct and calling it intelligence. I don't want to hurt you much here, but this is the definition of being stupid http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stupid at least as we define it in english. We need the definitions of our words in order to communicate. Your concept has a definition already-- INSTINCT http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/instinct Not intellect, not smartness. Instinct. And in this, there are many many animals that outstrap humans.

[Cerus]

Where did you get the idea that only humans can show empathy? Chimpanzees and other apes are fully capable of doing so. The only thing that keeps us on top of the food chain is powerful tools like spears, bows and now guns.


Take away that and stick us in the wild with other predators and prey and watch who comes out on top. Most people wouldn't last a day.

[Fascinate]

No you aren't though. You have a preconceived notion that animals live better than humans because all they worry about is surviving instead of "playing mind games" and "worrying about eggs," and desperate for validation in your belief you started a thread. You were met with resistance to your beliefs, so you changed the wording. You were met with more resistance, so you changed the definition of intelligence. You were met with resistance, so you changed the definition of intelligence again. You were met with resistance again, and now you say the point of the thread is to define intellect.

No truly top of the food chain was a bad representation of what i was trying to get across. Only reason that slipped out is because of how deeply tied that is to being "smart" and it even affected me in this case.

I am more looking at a philosophical approach here. I feel humans simply overcomplicate things, lets leave animals out of this entirely for a second. Who lived a better life, a couple who enjoyed each others company for many years (including indulging in what the planet has to offer, food being the main one) or someone who made a mint off the stock market but in the process pushed him family away in the process. Animals have this stuff figured out at the onset of life, they wont die with regret because they dont even have that in their vocabulary.

[Egregious]

You are defining instinct and calling it intelligence. I don't want to hurt you much here, but this is the definition of being stupid http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stupid at least as we define it in english. We need the definitions of our words in order to communicate. Your concept has a definition already-- INSTINCT http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/instinct Not intellect, not smartness. Instinct. And in this, there are many many animals that outstrap humans.

An actual interesting question might be if we wouldn't have more of it (instinct) if we allowed for natural selection to function more freely.

[Gib Lover]

Where did you get the idea that only humans can show empathy? Chimpanzees and other apes are fully capable of doing so. The only thing that keeps us on top of the food chain is powerful tools like spears, bows and now guns.


Take away that and stick us in the wild with other predators and prey and watch who comes out on top. Most people wouldn't last a day.

If you honestly think most people wouldn't last a single day in the wild you are delusional. You could literally sit in a single place for an entire 24 hour cycle and be fine, if anything just a bit hungry.
Humans would also instinctively, and intelligently, band together.
The exact situation you are putting humans in already happened, it's called literally all the time before civilization.

[Deleted]

I like this thread, it's a funny thread, made me laugh.

Dolphins are smart. But they're also in fishbowls we built, so we're probably the smartest.

But dolphins also rape people. Yet I've never heard of people raping dolphins. proof that they're at the top of the rape chain.

[Kalador]

For sure if u take take the definition of intelligence http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intelligence yes we probably are the best at it.

Here is an interesting take on the ''smartness'' http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/...r-than-we-are/ not saying that whale are smartest or better, it's just somthing intersting to take with an open mind, something that many people here seems to lack.

It's not surprising with the amount of Anthropomorphism people do.

[Putin-Chan]

God is in the universe.

It isn't real.

90% of animal species on earth live at humanity's mercy, the rest are just out of our reach or are undiscovered.

[Egregious]

No truly top of the food chain was a bad representation of what i was trying to get across. Only reason that slipped out is because of how deeply tied that is to being "smart" and it even affected me in this case.

I am more looking at a philosophical approach here. I feel humans simply overcomplicate things, lets leave animals out of this entirely for a second. Who lived a better life, a couple who enjoyed each others company for many years (including indulging in what the planet has to offer, food being the main one) or someone who made a mint off the stock market but in the process pushed him family away in the process. Animals have this stuff figured out at the onset of life, they wont die with regret because they dont even have that in their vocabulary.

That would depend on what the person found to be relatively "better." Animals can make no such choice, we can.