Month: September 2019

Ep 237: Raccoons, brains, hands, and clever disguise

Ep 237: Raccoons, brains, hands, and clever disguise

Raccoons, brains, hands, and clever disguise

Raccoons have surprisingly crowded little heads. With as many neurons as a similar sized monkey, these furry little bandits have nimble hands, and a knack for cheating on intelligence tests.

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Ep 236: Brains on the wing

Ep 236: Brains on the wing

Brains on the wing

If you compare brain size to body size, some animals have much more brain per pound than others. That includes the primates, who climb and swing through the trees. It also includes parrots and ravens and crows, who fly through the trees. Join us as we talk about some surprisingly sophisticated bird brains.

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Ep 235: Elephants, their big brains and handy faces

Ep 235: Elephants, their big brains and handy faces

Elephants, their big brains and handy faces

The largest animal on land also has the largest brain. With complex social lives, cooperative problem solving, self-awareness and tool use, the elephants also have brains that have three times the number of neurons that our brains do. Join us as we take a look at elephants.

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Ep 234: Seals and sea otters

Ep 234: Seals and sea otters

Seals and sea otters

Last time we talked about the whales, and how some of them turn out to be rather clever. The whales and dolphins aren’t the only mammals who have returned to the sea. We’ve also got things like seals and sea otters. Some of them are rather clever as well. In fact the sea otter is a tool user. Does going back to the ocean make a species smarter?

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