The Language of Animals (Scientific American Focus Book) - Softcover

Hart, Stephen

  • 3.58 out of 5 stars
    38 ratings by Goodreads
 
9780805038408: The Language of Animals (Scientific American Focus Book)
Softcover
ISBN 10: 080503840X ISBN 13: 9780805038408
Publisher: Henry Holt & Co, 1996

Synopsis

Examines the latest research on animal communication, discussing what is known about the communication abilities of insects, spiders, fish, frogs, birds, cetaceans, elephants, and primates

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Reviews

Hart, a biologist, zoological researcher and science journalist, takes a cautious stance on animal language, summing up the wide range of animal communication he reviews here as "neither a poem nor a twitch." Hart starts with the lowly cephalopods and cuttlefish, translating the latter's Technicolor mating call as " 'Me Tarzan. You Tarzan? No? Must be Jane.' " Moving through insects, fish, amphibians, birds, cetaceans, elephants and hippos, wildcats and domestic dogs and, finally, primates, Hart reviews some of the classic research into how animals communicate, such as Karl von Frisch's study of honeybee directional dances and Herbert Terrace's attempts to teach Nim Chimpsky to "speak." Because this is a complicated subject, some things are skipped (some mention of differences between monkeys' and humans throat apparatus, for example, would be useful). More problematic is the choice of illustrations, which are more aesthetic than illustrative: a diagram of a bee dance, say, would have been more illuminating than the generic photo of "A honeybee entering its hive." Still, this is an easy, anecdotal introduction with plenty of factoids and some interesting details on how experiments in animal behavior are constructed. (Feb.) ~ FYI: Like The Language of Animals, the two other launch titles in the Scientific American Focus series-Scott Veggeberg's Medication of the Mind (paper -3842-6; cloth -3841-8) and Dana Desonie's Cosmic Collisions (paper -3844-2; cloth -3843-4)-have 128 pages and more than 60 b&w illustrations and are priced at $9.95 paper and $22.50 cloth.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

Publisher
Henry Holt & Co
Publication date
1996
Language
English
ISBN 10 
080503840X
ISBN 13 
9780805038408
Binding
Paperback
Number of pages
126
Rating
  • 3.58 out of 5 stars
    38 ratings by Goodreads

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9780805038392: The Language of Animals (Scientific American Focus Book)

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  0805038396 ISBN 13:  9780805038392
Publisher: Henry Holt & Co, 1996
Hardcover