Animal Learning, Language, and Cognition
Current Research Projects
A foundation developed by Jane Goodall and includes much about her life and work. She began studying chimpanzees in the wild in 1960 in Gombe, Tanganyika (now Tanzania). In 1975, she established the Jane Goodall Institute for Wildlife Research, Education, and Conservation to promote animal research throughout the world.
The home page of the Language Research Center at Georgia State University where Sue Savage-Rumbaugh and Duane Rumbaugh and others work with great apes and human children comparing and contrasting language development. This is a world renowned international research facility on many acres of land outside the city of Atlanta, GA.
Click on "The Apes" for detailed biographies, pictures, research findings and more on the primates they are currently working with. Included are the Pan troglodytes - Lana, Mercury, Sherman and Austin; and the Bonobos, including the famous "Kanzi" that Sue Savage-Rumbaugh has written extensively about. Biographies are also included of Matata, Neema and others.
The Center's site also includes research studies and reports on such topics as Kanzi's understanding of word order, sentence structure, grammar, etc.
A list of current and past publications is also available. Some of these reports are in full-text on-line for downloading.
Chantek is a twenty-two year old male orangutan who was cross-fostered, enculturated and taught to use sign language by anthropologist Dr. H. Lynn Miles. The mission of the Foundation is to support cultural research with Chantek; to understand the nature of orangutan communicative ability and intelligence; to foster the development of orangutan and other great ape persons in a Primate Cultural Center; to promote orangutan conservation through awareness of Chantek's abilities; and, to develop creative education about building a bridge between our species. Dr. Miles work began more than 20 years ago, but was interrupted for about 10 years. She has recently resumed her research and work with Chantek.
Visit the Think Tank at the National Zoo where Shumaker works with Orangutans - Indah, Azy and others on the computer teaching language comprehension through the use of lexigrams (symbols).
A comprehensive site on the work of Penny Patterson and team with the world renown gorilla "Koko." The site includes information on gorillas, detailed photographs of their work with the apes, Koko, Michael and Ndume. Also includes the elaborate artwork of Koko and Michael and much more.
You can also communicate with Koko and see Koko signing.
Roger and Debbie Fouts carries on the original work of Alex and Beatrice Gardner with the chimpanzees, Washoe, Loulis, Dar, Moja and Tatu. The site provides pictures and biographical sketches of each primate. Also includes a listing of their past and ongoing research at the Institute, along with their future plans.
The home of researcher Matsuzawa Tetsuro who has been working with the chimpanzee "Ai" since 1978. Ai is learning linguistic skills and knows how to write the alphabets. She also has her own home page at: http://www.pri.kyoto-u-ac.jp/ai/index-E.htm. You can access it from the above home page. Go to "Topics" in the right bottom column and click on chimpanzee Ai. The page includes her biography, friends, favorite foods, art - and pictures of her new baby boy born in April 2000.
The work of Dr. Irene Pepperberg and her African Grey parrots, "Alex" and others. Alex can count, identify objects, shapes, colors and materials. Alex also understands concepts of same and different. Pepperberg believes that Alex will be able to read some day. Alex can articulate language better than some humans.
A talking parrot with telepathic abilities. You can hear an audioclip of N'Kisi talking in a language teaching session with trainer and researcher Aimee Morgana.
Thisi site has collected extensive data on crows, their culture, the language they speak and more.
Located in Kailua, Hawaii, the project is devoted to advancing scientific understanding and public awareness of the dolphin mind. The site is very comprehensive, showing you their work and research with photos and video clippings of the dolphins at work and play. The dolphins also have an underwater touch screen that allows them to interact with computers. See the dolphins make underwater bubble sculptures. The site also includes an extensive bibliography.
Dr. Lilly, MD, has been conducting dolphin communication research for 23 years. His lab is in the Virgin Islands at the Human/Dolphin Foundation. He is a physician and psychoanalyst, specializing in biophysics, neurophysiology, electronics, computer theory, and neuroanatomy. He is inventor of the isolation tank method of exploring consciousness. This work has led him to interspecies communication research projects between dolphins and humans. He was the first to believe that dolphins could talk. Listen to Peter, the dolphin, saying "hello."
Dr. Sheldrake is author of Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home, and has written and conducted research extensively on other unexplained powers of animals.
_____
Journals Online
_____
_____
Other Primate Research Centers
_____
Ornithology
Site dedicated to the education of bird ecology and conservation. Includes articles, photo gallery, gardening, etc. Also includes links to other nature web sites, dragonflies, hummingbirds, butterflies, frog and toads, etc.
_____
Marine Life
See how they train dolphins and whales at Sea World using operant conditioning, shaping and chaining.