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Human Exceptionalism

Homo naledi
Photo: A femur, by John Hawks, Marina Elliott, Peter Schmid, Steven E. Churchill, Darryl J. de Ruiter, Eric M. Roberts, Hannah Hilbert-Wolf, Heather M. Garvin, Scott A. Williams, Lucas K. Delezene, Elen M. Feuerriegel, Patrick Randolph-Quinney, Tracy L. Kivell, Myra F. Laird, Gaokgatlhe Tawane, Jeremy M. DeSilva, Shara E. Bailey, Juliet K. Brophy, Marc R. Meyer, Matthew M. Skinner, Matthew W. Tocheri, Caroline VanSickle, Christopher S. Walker, Timothy L. Campbell, Brian Kuhn, Ashley Kruger, Steven Tucker, Alia Gurtov, Nompumelelo Hlophe, Rick Hunter, Hannah Morris, Becca Peixotto, Maropeng Ramalepa, Dirk van Rooyen, Mathabela Tsikoane, Pedro Boshoff, Paul H.G.M. Dirks, Lee R. Berger, CC BY 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Not Enough Evidence: Casey Luskin on Recent Homo naledi Claims

They claim that the small-brained species had high intelligence and engaged in activities like burying their dead, using fire, and engaging in cave wall art. Read More ›
woman and dog
Photo credit: Jamie Street via Unsplash.

Intelligent Design in Human-Animal Friendships

A man and his emotional support alligator, Wally, made headlines last week when they tried to attend a baseball game together in Philadelphia. Read More ›
Jumping Spider
Photo: Phidippus audax, a North American jumping spider, via Wikimedia Commons.

Dreaming Animals and Human Exceptionalism

Researchers have detected something like REM (rapid eye movement) sleep — which is associated with dreaming in humans — in jumping spiders. Read More ›
Homo naledi
Photo credit: Lee Roger Berger research team, CC BY 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Peer Review Rejects Claims that Homo naledi Buried Dead, Used Fire, and Scrawled on Cave Wall

I could not find a single reviewer who accepted the claims of the papers. They were harshly critical of claims of intentional burial of the skeletons. Read More ›
computer
COSM
Image source: Discovery Institute.

ChatGPT Is Becoming Increasingly Impressive

Yet I continue to maintain that human intelligence is qualitatively different from artificial intelligence. Read More ›
guitar
Photo credit: Caio Silva, via Unsplash.

Oliver Anthony and Human Exceptionalism

If you’ve been online at all for the last few weeks, chances are you’ve come across headlines about the folk/country singer Oliver Anthony. Read More ›
Cleveland_Chamber_Symphony_4-09-2006
Photo: An orchestra without a conductor, by Harry Weller, Del57 at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

The Human Mind Is Wired for Music: How Did That Come About?

Most of us can correctly remember melodies and lyrics learned in childhood, even years after last having heard them. Read More ›
storytelling
Image credit: John Everett Millais, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Human Exceptionalism — Why Artificial Intelligence Will Never Tell a Story

The personal, communicative nature of storytelling rules out AI as a legitimate author. It can’t intend meaning. Read More ›
curiosity
Photo credit: Jeremy Bishop via Unsplash.

Asking Questions Demonstrates Human Exceptionalism

This human trait of question-asking begins almost as soon as we learn to talk. Young children can confound their parents with their rapid-fire questions. Read More ›
Tower-of-Babel
Image: Tower of Babel, by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, via Wikimedia Commons.

With Becket Cook, David Berlinski Discusses Speech as a Problem for Darwin, and More

Dog owners know that to look into your dog’s eyes is often to see that the dog has something he wishes to say but lacks the “machinery for externalization.” Read More ›

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