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Socially Aware
As you read this, you are probably aware of reading this. Indeed, you can
also imagine yourself reading this -- a sort of picture within a picture
in your mind's eye.
But do animals share this kind of consciousness?
Many researchers believe that chimps are able to see themselves in relation to others in their groups. |
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That is the question asked by Part Three of NATURE's INSIDE THE ANIMAL MIND. The program ponders just what consciousness is --
and which animals might share this trait with people.
Bees, for instance, appear to meet one of the requirements for consciousness.
They can create "mental maps," images they hold in their minds that allow
them to navigate around their environments by picturing themselves there.
Chimps and elephants appear to exhibit another consciousness trademark:
an awareness of death. Both animals grieve when family members die: elephants
even linger over the bones of long-dead relatives, seeming to ponder the
past and their own future. But are these behaviors enough to give bees, chimps, and elephants membership
in the consciousness club?
 Researchers are actively debating the answer to that question. "Consciousness is one of the hardest things to define and study," says Pete
Chernika, an Austrian researcher who has studied consciousness in dolphins
and other animals. "In experiments, for instance, dolphins appear to pass
one consciousness test by recognizing themselves in mirrors. And dolphins
also exhibit a keen awareness of the status and identity of other dolphins
in their highly social groups, he says.They know who mom is, who the leaders
of the pod are, and how they should behave around different individuals,"
he says. "They appear to be able to envision themselves in relation to all
these other animals and then act accordingly."
Indeed, many researchers believe consciousness is more likely in highly
social animals such as chimps and dolphins, who must be able to see themselves
in relation to others in their groups in order to get along. "Complex social
interaction puts a high priority on awareness of self and others," says
Chernika. But he warns that the more people study other animals, the more
we realize how hard it is to define consciousness -- and how hard it is
to decide who has it, and who doesn't.
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