Different in degree or kind: animal minds (Introduction)

by David Turell , Thursday, December 24, 2015, 01:54 (3258 days ago) @ David Turell

This article agrees that humans are a different kind, but presents a very interesting review of animal minds:-http://www.evolutionnews.org/2015/12/furry_feathery101801.html-"How then does the male weaverbird know how to build a nest? That's apparently not simply a genetic program either; the birds must learn some of the techniques by experience.-"Genetics, neural networks, and experience all make animal learning much more complex and information-rich than the concept of "instinct" implied. But we are not yet in the realm of "intelligence." The migrating and nest-building birds access existing solutions to longstanding problems; they do not come up with new ones.
-Comment: A long article worth reviewing. I agree with her thoughts about weaver birds in current times. My issue is with the original nest plans for development. Note the bold. The weavers don't present anything new. It is all a fixed process.