Research Reveals Animal Intelligence Overlooked

Scientists have recently adopted more intuitive ways of testing animals claiming an oversight of previous research was that experiments were structured for humans instead of animals. Researchers at Hunter College modified an older experiment testing whether elephants could use tools: they hung fruit high out of reach of the elephant and placed a box nearby. The original experiment called for a stick––which the elephant left alone––but in the new set up, the elephant used the box to step up and reach the fruit. As Wall Street Journal points out, picking up a stick would block the elephant’s strongest sense, smell. “A growing body of evidence shows … we have grossly underestimated both the scope and the scale of animal intelligence,” reports the outlet.