The Language of Animals (Scientific American Focus Book)

Hart, Stephen

ISBN 10: 080503840X / ISBN 13: 9780805038408

Published by Henry Holt & Co, 1996

Item in good condition. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00046092187

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

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.

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Language of Animals (Scientific American...
Publisher: Henry Holt & Co
Publication Date: 1996
Binding: Soft cover
Condition: Very Good