Natures wonders: ants and other insects farm (Introduction)

by dhw, Tuesday, May 05, 2020, 10:39 (1661 days ago) @ David Turell

dhw: What would you say were the attributes that would combine to form what you regard as intelligence? Would you agree with the little list below, now bolded?

DAVID: Animals and plants must have protective sensors to recognize problems.

dhw: As do we. The cognitive part is how they use these sensors to solve the problems – as do we. More progress: animals and plants have their own forms of cognition, memory, communication, information-processing, decision-making etc. – all elements of what we call intelligence.

Sadly you still won’t tell us what attributes you consider to be essential before you will call an organism intelligent.

DAVID: [...] would you say that ants have a certain degree of autonomous intelligence?

DAVID: To the degree they make either/or choices, yes.

I’m amazed that you consider the invention of farming techniques, of rafting, of the many strategies used to combat enemies, and indeed of building whole cities to be either/or choices. But at least we’ve made a start. Ants apparently do have a degree of autonomous intelligence since they can choose between two options. Otherwise, though, all the above examples of intelligence are apparently the work of automatons to whom a hands-on God gives courses in or implants instructions for farming, rafting, soldiering and architecture. Have I got that right?