Wednesday, August 15, 2012

scientists declare that non-human animals are conscious



fcmconference | The First Annual Francis Crick Memorial Conference, focusing on "Consciousness in Humans and Non-Human Animals", aims to provide a purely data-driven perspective on the neural correlates of consciousness. The most advanced quantitative techniques for measuring and monitoring consciousness will be presented, with the topics of focus ranging from exploring the properties of neurons deep in the brainstem, to assessing global cerebral function in comatose patients. Model organisms investigated will span the species spectrum from flies to rodents, humans to birds, elephants to dolphins, and will be approached from the viewpoint of three branches of biology: anatomy, physiology, and behavior. Until animals have their own storytellers, humans will always have the most glorious part of the story, and with this proverbial concept in mind, the symposium will address the notion that humans do not alone possess the neurological faculties that constitute consciousness as it is presently understood.

11 comments:

Plane Ideas said...

Animals cannot speak in tongues ( excuse the pun)

Greg Thrasher said...

Animals are not human so why equate the two in any measure!

CNu said...

The overwhelming majority of bi-pedal hominids don't qualify either...,

Tom said...

lol, i've softened on that a little with age, but it's the core of why I view people like BD with such a jaundiced eye. There are so many weenies and shitheads of all kinds, all around us ever day, and the story is it's vital that we immediately divide up into teams based on ... ancestry? Are they freaking kidding me? I mean, sure I like my tribe ok, and maybe in some perfect world of the future we'll get down to where that's the leading term, but sweet Jesus right now who has time?

CNu said...

Big Ups to that!!! If you got time and inclination to be practicing archaic beliefs, and it's these beliefs that give you primary purpose and meaning, then you are WAAAAAAAY underemployed in anything even remotely approaching a useful endeavor and should by all means and with all due haste commence to finding something useful and productive to do.

brotherbrown said...

Now and again, a story hits about chimps, an elephant, a tiger or some other captive animal getting some "get back" against a human. They usually get the human that was taunting or otherwise mistreating them. At times like those, I am convinced they have consciousness.

CNu said...

I particularly like how the captive orca's roll...,

Big Don said...

Big Don was pruning a shrub a few days ago and apparently cut into an IQ-15 wasp nest...they were really pissed and a few of them did a drive-by number on our left hand...

Dale Asberry said...

Lol...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whale_attacks_on_humans

CNu said...

rotflmbao...., IQ-15 wasp nest

On tuesday I demonstrated one of my favorite boyhood pastimes to my son by confronting and ruthlessly executing an angry squadron of large, loud and scary-looking mud dauber wasps with a tennis racket. I could do that for hours in my front yard and found it endlessly amusing to have one of the wasps fly in to attack and get diced in mid-air. Never once have I been stung by a mud dauber.

Dale Asberry said...

Lol,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_whale_attacks_on_humans

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