Hi millymilkman, chimps are often considered to be the most intelligent non-human primate, but although the baboon’s brain is smaller it is a very clever animal. Baboons have very organised group behaviour, which increases their intelligence. Rather than just the intelligence of the individual, they combine to have ‘group intelligence’. Baboons are able to communicate with each other by grunts and barks, sharing information between members of the group. It also seems that they are able to lie to or trick each other, a sign of complex thought.
I just read about a study that was done with baboons which showed that they had abstract thinking (complex thought, problem solving) because they could be taught to recognise sets of pictures on a computer screen. Abstract thinking develops in humans at about 12-15 years old. However, this doesn’t mean that a baboon is at least as intelligent as a 15 year old; it took the baboons much longer to learn, and they weren’t as accurate as humans doing the same test.
I can’t find any direct comparsion that says “a baboon is as smart as a ….year old human” but they are definitely clever and capable of complex thought.
Hi millymilkman, chimps are often considered to be the most intelligent non-human primate, but although the baboon’s brain is smaller it is a very clever animal. Baboons have very organised group behaviour, which increases their intelligence. Rather than just the intelligence of the individual, they combine to have ‘group intelligence’. Baboons are able to communicate with each other by grunts and barks, sharing information between members of the group. It also seems that they are able to lie to or trick each other, a sign of complex thought.
I just read about a study that was done with baboons which showed that they had abstract thinking (complex thought, problem solving) because they could be taught to recognise sets of pictures on a computer screen. Abstract thinking develops in humans at about 12-15 years old. However, this doesn’t mean that a baboon is at least as intelligent as a 15 year old; it took the baboons much longer to learn, and they weren’t as accurate as humans doing the same test.
I can’t find any direct comparsion that says “a baboon is as smart as a ….year old human” but they are definitely clever and capable of complex thought.
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