[Xmca-l] Re: [Xmca -l] sociocultural theory of sentient beings

[Harshad Dave]

"Human is the only animal who fabricated ethics to justify his unethical
acts."
Harshad.

On Sun, 6 May 2018 7:54 AM Andy Blunden, <andyb@marxists.org> wrote:

> As Vygotsky showed, whatever behaviour "distinguishes"
> humans from other animals, then that behaviour will be found
> in rudimentary form in some animals. The point is not to
> look for an attribute which one has and another doesn't, but
> the behaviour which generates the transition from non-human
> animal to human. If that behaviour did not exist in any
> non-human animals, then you would be looking for God to
> grant it to humans.
>
> Andy
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> Andy Blunden
> http://www.ethicalpolitics.org/ablunden/index.htm
> On 6/05/2018 10:47 AM, John Cripps Clark wrote:
> > A recent episode of Freakonomics is perhaps apposite here:
> >
> > http://freakonomics.com/podcast/animal-economics/
> >
> > Alexandra Horowitz finishes the show by saying:
> >
> > " I’ve studied and taught animal cognition and comparative psychology
> for decades. And this question, “What’s the one thing that distinguishes
> humans from non-human animals?” is clearly the driving force of much
> research. We might trace it back to Plato, who described man as a
> featherless biped. But the smart-alec Diogenes then plucked a chicken and
> said triumphantly, “Here is Plato’s man.” To which Plato simply pivoted,
> adding, “Okay, a featherless biped with broad nails, not claws.” And so it
> has been since, trying to find the feature that will verify the human
> species’ uniqueness. “It’s imitation.” “It’s culture.” “It’s teaching.”
> “It’s language.” “It’s a theory of mind.” Each confidently proposed and
> then collapsing under the weight of actual evidence.
> >
> > The one thing that makes humans human? Our obsession with asking and
> answering this question. As far as I know we’re the only species so
> concerned with distinguishing ourselves from other animals. Of course,
> research could prove me wrong."
> >
> > John
> >
> > On 6/5/18, 6:54 am, "xmca-l-bounces@mailman.ucsd.edu on behalf of
> HENRY SHONERD" <xmca-l-bounces@mailman.ucsd.edu on behalf of
> hshonerd@gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >     A continuacion:
> >     So, I’m watching the pre-event narrative for the Kentucky Derby on
> NBC. My Navajo brother Herb is watching, because his daughter works with
> thoroughbred horses a few miles down the road from where the broadcast is
> eminating. “Boring” was what Herb said about the commentary until  a back
> story that was about thoroughbred horses that were set free during a forest
> fire in California, rather than be burned to death.  Forty-six were unlucky
> enough to have the doors to their stalls stay shut as the fires came on.
> Some of the survivors spent days on the run. The story was courage, love
> and respect. And horses and their owners were back to winning in
> statistically unexpected ways. Herb didn’t think that story was boring.
> >     Henry
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >     > On May 5, 2018, at 10:51 AM, mike cole <mcole@ucsd.edu> wrote:
> >     >
> >     > ​That video is thought provoking, Annalisa. I'll have to try it
> with my dog.
> >     >
> >     > There are other dog behaviors that seem to be analogues of human
> >     > behaviors. For example, in humans, around 9-10 months, infants
> begin
> >     > to display "social referencing" when they start to engage in
> behaviors
> >     > that they are uncertain about (a little kids crawls over the open
> drawer
> >     > where kitchen ware is stored, starts to grab a dish  and then
> looks back
> >     > at her father sitting on a chair behind her to check his reaction
> before
> >     > proceeding to pick up the dish or leave it where it is.
> >     >
> >     > My dog does the same thing when we go for a walk and she is unsure
> of which
> >     > direction we are going to take, but she is in the lead on leash.
> >     >
> >     > I do not see how to get that article, Alfredo. Our library does
> not get the
> >     > journal.
> >     > Can you obtain it?
> >     >
> >     > mike
> >     > ​
> >     >
> >     > On Sat, May 5, 2018 at 8:22 AM, Alfredo Jornet Gil <
> a.j.gil@iped.uio.no>
> >     > wrote:
> >     >
> >     >> That’s an intellectual twist to cute cats/dogs vids in social
> media! There
> >     >> was this overview article on comparative cultural cognition that
> I thought
> >     >> of; I think it’s open access: http://wires.wiley.com/
> >     >> WileyCDA/WiresArticle/wisId-WCS14.html
> >     >>
> >     >> Alfredo
> >     >>
> >     >> On 5 May 2018, at 04:35, Annalisa Aguilar <annalisa@unm.edu
> <mailto:annal
> >     >> isa@unm.edu>> wrote:
> >     >>
> >     >> Hello Xmcars,
> >     >>
> >     >>
> >     >> Saw this on twitter and I couldn't help but consider mirror
> neurons
> >     >> working across the species.
> >     >>
> >     >>
> >     >> https://twitter.com/AMAZlNGNATURE/status/992062861735219201
> >     >>
> >     >>
> >     >> It's not exactly pointing, but it seems to point to something.
> >     >>
> >     >>
> >     >> (Then again, we can't hear the sound, so there may be a prompt
> (and a
> >     >> treat) afterwards!)
> >     >>
> >     >>
> >     >> Still, something to consider why animals might be more like us
> than we
> >     >> think!
> >     >>
> >     >>
> >     >> They want to belong too!
> >     >>
> >     >>
> >     >> Kind regards,
> >     >>
> >     >>
> >     >> Annalisa
> >     >>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
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