Friday 9 May 2008

Brother Rat

A total digression: Today on Radio Lab, a science show on my public radio station, they profiled a researcher who discovered that rats laugh when they play and when they are tickled by humans. Incredulity on the part of the hosts ran through the piece. Why? Why are human animals so stupid about other animals? Of course rats laugh! Why wouldn’t they? (Though lab rats don’t have a whole lot to laugh about, which does make it kind of incredible that they still do.) Sorry, Aristotle and all other dominionists, we are no closer to the angels than any given mirthful rodent.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

An apt philosophical topic. What is the nature of thought? Of consciousness? How far advanced are humans over animals? When animals do things, why have we always ascribed their actions to Darwinian instinct rather than rational thought or emotion? Which is the simpler explanation?

Are cats really embarrassed when they miss a jump?


-- Plato Dryfood