"Now scientists working with a bonobo named Kanzi, who has since died at the age of 44, say the ape was able to identify the location of imaginary objects in pretend scenarios. [It] shows that animals are capable of understanding pretence in a controlled experimental setting, which hadn't been done before, said Dr Amalia Bastos, first author of the research from the University of St Andrews."
"Writing in the journal Science Bastos and co-author Dr Christopher Krupenye from Johns Hopkins University report how they first trained Kanzi to point to containers filled with juice by rewarding him for doing so. They then presented Kanzi with two empty transparent cups and pretended to fill them with an empty jug. The imaginary contents of one cup was then tipped back into the jug, and Kanzi was asked to indicate which of the cups contained juice."
A bonobo named Kanzi was trained to point to containers filled with juice in exchange for rewards. He was then presented with two empty transparent cups while a human pretended to pour juice from an empty jug into them. The imaginary contents of one cup were visibly returned to the jug, and Kanzi was asked to indicate which cup contained juice. Kanzi chose the correct cup in 34 of 50 trials, a rate well above chance, and he was not rewarded for those responses. The performance indicates bonobos can understand pretend scenarios and suggests the ability may date back to the last common ancestor with humans.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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