In his inaugural lecture held at Victoria’s packed-out Memorial Theatre, Professor of Psychology David Harper questioned the notion that humans are smarter than animals.
“People are fascinated by animals, and you only need to spend a few hours on YouTube to see illustrations of animal intelligence” says Professor Harper. “Yet we take the perspective that we are unique and better, especially when it comes to complex cognitive functioning.”
Professor Harper, a behavioural specialist and Dean of Science, says you can’t easily compare abilities between different species.
“You could say birds are superior to humans because they can fly, but this is only because they have wings,” says Professor Harper. “So it is important to ask questions of a species in terms that makes sense to that species. For example using odour for rats, who have a good sense of smell or in terms of visual stimuli for birds who have strong vision.”
Professor Harper pointed to a variety of strong cognitive skills in animals, including pigeons who categorically grouped Picasso paintings, chimps who could quickly recall location and numerical order of digits, and otters who showed creativity by making a slide in the snow.
“Research has found some animals’ cognitive abilities can surpass humans when we take their strongest capacities into comparison,” says Professor Harper. “This challenges the implicit view that humans stand apart from and above other species and shows how comparing animals directly to humans can be blinding.”