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Animal Communication (January 16, 2004, Two)

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Program Summary

Can chimps chat? Will monkeys make conversation? Do gorillas gossip? There’s no doubt about it, animals do communicate—with each other and with humans. If you have pets, you know. Your own dog makes it abundantly clear to you when it’s mealtime or time to go outside for a walk. And your cat is probably pretty unmistakable about wanting to be fed or cuddled. If you’ve ever been to the zoo and watched the monkeys interact, you’ve probably seen them communicate with gestures, facial expressions, and even sounds. And then there’s Koko, the gorilla who communicates with humans using American Sign Language.

But is this true language? In this segment, Ira and his guests discuss language and communication in our nearest non-human relatives—apes and monkeys. How do these animals communicate? And what does their communication tell us about our own capacity for language?

Guests

Marc Hauser, author of “Wild Minds: What Animals Really Think” (Owl Books, 2001), Professor of Psychology and Director of the Mind/Brain/Behavior Program at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Barbara King, Professor of Anthropology at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia

Dorothy Cheney, Professor of Biology at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Related Links and Resources

Book Discussed

“Wild Minds: What Animals Really Think” (Owl Books, 2001)

For Discussion:

• How do people communicate with each other?
• What is language?
• How do people who don’t speak the same language communicate?
• What are some ways in which animals communicate with each other? In what ways do animals communicate with people?

Activities

Word! Can animals think even if they don’t use words? Animal Einsteins’ Who Needs Words, Anyway? from Scientific American Frontiers gets students to discuss what they think they already know about animal communication, then asks them to observe animal sounds by watching and listening, and finally to analyze those observations. Extension activity suggestions include explorations of the chimpanzee genome, comparisons between Old World and New World monkeys as well as a look into Koko the Gorilla’s use of American Sign Language.

Cuckoo for Koko! Can gorillas talk? Koko the lowland gorilla made history as the first animal to learn to communicate with humans using American Sign Language. Students can find out more about Koko, gorillas, and communication at the Gorilla Foundation. In Koko’s World, students can learn sign language from Koko herself. Teachers can sign up to receive online materials and lesson plans for curriculum about the great apes.

Chimp chat. For a good overview of chimpanzees and communication, take a look at Chimpanzee Central from the Jane Goodall Institute. Although there are no lesson plans or teacher specific areas on this Web site, the information and research about chimps is clear and interesting.

What did you say? What kinds of things are you saying without speaking a word? Gestures and expressions can speak volumes. The Human Animal from DiscoverySchool.com asks students to people-watch and evaluate the meanings of non-verbal gestures and expressions. Designed for people visiting Japan, Non-verbal Communication is an interesting site that explores how common gestures can be perceived in different cultures.

Go ape. Visit African Primates at Home to see and hear a variety of primates. The site has a number of actual primate vocalizations as well as informative facts and photos.

Use the search box below to perform a Google search within any of the specifc sites or general domains mentioned in this Activities section.

Hear the Program

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