Intelligence is the mental, psychological, and emotional quality possessed by a sentient being that allows it to deal with the complex challenges of daily life. It also ultimately serves as an evolutionary advantage to survive as an individual and species.
According to experts, the term sentience refers to every conscious creature or living organism that have feelings, cognition, and awareness of its surrounding. There are also ongoing debates on which animals feel pain and other stimuli, including octopuses.
For decades, scientists have deciphered that intelligence is not only a trait belonging to humans but also of animals, including different groups and species. Aside from chimpanzees, dolphins, and elephants, members of the world's smartest animals are larger in number than scientists have previously thought.
The most intelligent animals possess unique decision-making skills to sense and deal with threats, as well as find means to forage and copulate. Unlike humans capable of dwelling on art, philosophical, and existential matters, animal intelligence and behavior often involve fundamental elements in relation to survival. However, some studies suggest that some animal species are capable of socialization.
What is Intelligence?
As mentioned earlier, intelligence is a complex evolutionary trait and a product of millions of years of evolution.
According to Daeyeol Lee, in his book "Birth of Intelligence" published by the Oxford University Press in 2020, intelligence is the ability to solve complex problems or engage in decisions with results that will benefit the actor, as cited by Johns Hopkins Medicine.
In addition, intelligence has evolved in different lifeforms to adapt to changing environments, mainly for their survival and reproduction. In the case of animals, intelligence in the form of problem-solving and decision-making skills are functions centered in their nervous systems, which includes the brain. With this, animal intelligence is related to the said systems, Lee adds.
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Animal Intelligence and Behavior
Based on such premise, it is plausible to assert that animal cognition is also capable of problem-solving and decision-making but only as an immediate reaction to an external stimulus deemed by the creature as a threat or other perception deemed relevant to its survival.
Science writer Dan Engber argued that the standard of measurement of animal intelligence is the way humans measure their ability to do activities that we can do, according to Bard College.
Delve into the fascinating world of animal cognition and the surprising ways different species use their intelligence.
World's Smartest Animals
Aside from humans, below are some of the world's smartest animals, according to Sentient Media:
- Dolphins
- Ravens
- Elephants
- African gray parrots
- Octopuses
- Bonobos
- Pigeons
- Crows
Furthermore, BBC Earth also adds some of the world's smartest animals that are just right at our doorstep or even we encounter in our daily lives, such as: house cats, rats, and pigs.
Meanwhile, some marine animals like orcas or killer whales also showed exemplary intelligence, especially when it comes to communicating with one another and when hunting as a group.
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