I've seen Alex at work, and he was impressive. For once, though, I agree with Dr. Sylvester; Pepperberg's parrots never perform out of the sight of their trainers, with the usual claims that the phenomenon is too fragile to be manifested without the emotional support of the trainer. Red flag. I'm still waiting for a systematic replication in an operant chamber.
Paul Brandon Emeritus Professor of Psychology Minnesota State University, Mankato [email protected] On Apr 16, 2011, at 7:46 PM, <[email protected]> <[email protected]> wrote: > > And while we're on the subject of animal intelligence, I'd like to > strongly recommend a PBS (public TV, USA) video called "How Smart Are > Animals?" from the PBS series Nova Science Now. > > ......... > > The grey parrot bit, of course, is mainly Alex, a tribute to him and > a retrospective of Irene Pepperberg's work. Alex tragically died > recently, probably the only parrot to ever have his obituary in _The > Economist_ (http://www.economist.com/node/9828615 ). The segment also > gives us a look at Pepperberg's new pupils. [Probably?!!!] --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=10085 or send a blank email to leave-10085-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
