[travel] Monkey coke

[mattbell]

I could have filmed a million-dollar viral Coke commercial for YouTube with my handheld camera. At the Curu reserve there was a domesticated monkey that liked to cuddle up with people and displayed lots of human habits such as drinking from a cup. At one point the monkey fished a half-empty Coca-Cola out of the trash and started drinking it. As a nearby girl tried to get the can of Coke back, the monkey danced backwards, staying out of reach. His tail was comically wrapped around a banana. As he took occasional sips from the can, his face displayed an easily anthropomorphizable "oh no you don't" expression. The whole thing was totally hilarious, but my camera was hidden away.

This moment, however, was well-documented. Dogs will beg from whoever appears to be in command of the food supply.



The monkey's extensive use of tools was very impressive given its small brain size. Given how few other animals, including ones with larger brains, have extensive tool use, it seems that some of the foundations of human intelligence may be a matter of improved software, not just brain size.

Comments

[easwaran.livejournal.com]

Animals are so cute when they do all these things!