There's also the problem of defining intelligence. Intelligence can mean many different things although it's generally agreed that it involves the deliberate manipulation of the surrounding environment. Species such as crows, chimps, octopi, etc. have varying degrees of intelligence because they all exhibit problem solving behaviour, sometimes using tools to accomplish this.
This is a very Earth-centric definition of intelligence though.
It's very probable that out there we won't recognize intelligence when we see it. We'll land on a planet looking for intelligent life without realizing that the mossy stuff that we're walking on IS the intelligent life on this planet. Or the gassy bags that drift by in the thin atmosphere that we assume are some sort of primitive animal are, in fact, the intelligent life on this planet.
We assume that other intelligent species will be exploring space just like us. However, they may be thin tendrils that live miles below an ocean with no concept of space. Or, they may be terrestrial but place no priority on space exploration so we may overlook them when we explore their planet.

Chimps should gather in zoos and protest against the 1%

>> ^Yogi:

Don't babies respond equally to chimps for the first 6 months of life?


Yeah, the last thing he says pretty much sums it up, "They'll grow up with a general sadness inside, but.. they won't know why."

Don't babies respond equally to chimps for the first 6 months of life?

In reply to this comment by Sarzy:
The full version of that Wes Anderson ad is up, and I don't believe it's been sifted yet. You'd better get on that, before a certain chimp decides to beat you to the punch.


Thanks Sarzy, owe ya one!

The full version of that Wes Anderson ad is up, and I don't believe it's been sifted yet. You'd better get on that, before a certain chimp decides to beat you to the punch.

yep, *dupeof=http://videosift.com/video/Chimp-Sculpting-30-secs

*dead and pretty sure it's a dupe of mine.

I saw a chimp do this with a seagull at the San Francisco Zoo. Chimp ate the gull, too.

>> ^jonny:

dead


Yep, and I failed to find a replacement.

"Animals have no moral obligation" - chimps live in groups and have a clearly moral obligation to each other. So do all other group animals if not all other animals.
"Without god there is no moral accountability" - accept what the rest of the world thinks, which is exactly what secular morality is, democratic morality.
"Giving the finality of death, it doesnt matter how you live" - except when you are alive and have to live with others who do care.
etc etc

His view is that anything made by men is not good enough, where as the secular view is that God is made by a part of men and that secular morals are at least based on rationality of all men.

The theist is full of misinformation, just a pretty face and good discussion skills. Blah. I was hoping for a true discussion.

I wasn't surprised to hear that young human children do the best at this task. They are the most like chimps in mental age.

http://videosift.com/video/Lab-Chimps-See-Sunlight-For-the-First-Time for lab chimps!

It's a chimp, not a monkey.