Book: Animal Bodies, Human Minds: Ape Dolphin, and Parrot Language Skills

From: Robert Karl Stonjek (rstonjek_at_bigpond.net.au)
Date: 03/26/05 

Date: Fri, 25 Mar 2005 20:56:07 -0500 (EST)

Animal Bodies, Human Minds: Ape, Dolphin, and Parrot Language Skills
by William A. Hillix (Author), Duane M. Rumbaugh (Author)

Editorial Reviews

>>From Book News, Inc.
Hillix (psychology, San Diego State U., California) and Rumbaugh (psychology
and biology, Georgia State U.-Atlanta) survey what was known or believed
about animal language throughout history and prehistory, summarize current
knowledge and the controversy that surrounds it, identify and try to settle
most of the problems in interpreting the animal behaviors that have been
observed in studies of animal language ability, and present their best
guesses about where research in animal language will go. Among their topics
are methods and problems in language research with nonhuman animals, some
primates famous for using sign language such as Washoe and Koko, a cultural
approach, bottlenosed dolphins, the parrot Alex, and evaluations of ape
language research.Copyright © 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Product Description:
Several books chronicle attempts, most of them during the last 40 years, to
teach animals to communicate with people in a human-designed language. These
books have typically treated only one or two species, or even one or a few
research projects. We have provided a more encompassing view of this field.
We also want to reinforce what other authors, for example Jane Goodall, Sue
Savage-Rumbaugh, Penny Patterson, Birute Galdikas, and Roger and Deborah
Fouts, so passionately convey about our responsibility for our closest
animal kin. This book surveys what was known, or believed about animal
language throughout history and prehistory, and summarizes current knowledge
and the controversy around it. The authors identify and attempt to settle
most of the problems in interpreting the animal behaviours that have been
observed in studies of animal language ability.

Product Details

  a.. Hardcover: 224 pages
  b.. Publisher: Plenum US; 1 edition (December 31, 2003)
  c.. ISBN: 0306477394
  d.. Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.5 x 0.7 inches
  e.. Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds.
$135 at Amazon.com
View details at Amazon.com
795392/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1?v=glance&s=books
Comment:
I've read the book. It gives a good summary of the current animal language
projects as well as a historical foundation, myths of talking baboons etc
and an account of 20th century projects. A handy reference (but not a
reference book as such).

Posted by
Robert Karl Stonjek