Animal consciousness is way more sophisticated than previously thought

Are animals as conscious as humans?

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

Charles Darwin, known as the father of evolution, in deed believed that animals were conscious in the same way humans are. However, his theory had long been discarded by the scientific community until very recently.

‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism
A declaration signed by 287 scientists and philosophers in April, called ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’ extends scientific support for consciousness to a wider suite of animals than was formally acknowledged before, Quanta magazine reported.

Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

This group of experts told the magazine the declaration began to shape last fall following conversations they had among them about recent research that points to many species of animals having signs of consciousness.

Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

While before, the scientific concensus was that only animals similar to humans had a consciousness, like apes, recent research suggests that many other animals, including insects and cephalopods, among others, also show signs of consciousness.

Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

Research has shown that octopuses avoid pain, cuttlefish remember details of past events, and crayfish can display ‘anxiety-like’ states that can be altered by anti-anxiety drugs, the BBC recalls.

A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

A species of fish called cleaner wrasse appeared to pass the ‘mirror test’, according to the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, in which animals show signs of self-awareness, recognizing themselves.

Other animals that show self-awareness

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

Other animals that have passed the ‘mirror test’ include orcas, orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, dolphins, elephants and magpies.

The curious zebrafish

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

A 2022 study published in Frontiers of veterinary science, showed that zebrafish voluntarily engage in cognitive stimulation opportunities, seeking out information about an object when presented with it; what we call curiosity.

Playful bees

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

Another 2022 study showed that bees engage in playful behaviors. The Bee Sensory and Behavioral Ecology Lab in London observed that when given little wooden balls, bees would push them around and rotate them, a behavior that had no obvious connection to mating or survival, nor was it rewarded by the scientists.

Behaviors that make up consciousness

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

All of this behaviors; playfulness, curiosity, memory and self-awareness are a major part of consciousness. And although there’s long been debates about the definition of consciousness, these discoveries are leading experts to redefine the consensus on animal consciousness.

A definition of consciousness

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

The oxford dictionary defines consciousness as “the state of being aware of and responsive to one’s surroundings”, definition, we could argue, fits well with what research has revealed about animals.

Photo: Ranae Smith/Unsplash

Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

The research plus the declaration signed by experts in the matter may have implications for the treatment of animals, especially for the prevention of animal suffering, they said.

Scientific findings have led to new policies before

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

It wouldn’t be the first time that scientific findings sparked new policies. Older scientific studies resulted in creating some standards for the treatment of lab mice, for example.

Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

Also, Britain enacted legislation in 2021 to increase protection for octopuses, crabs and lobsters after a London School of Economics report indicated that those animals can experience pain, distress or harm.

Speciesism

Are animals as conscious as humans?, ‘The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness’, Experts having discussions about research on animal consciousness, Before, they thought only human-like animals were conscious, Cephalopods avoid pain, remember things and can feel anxious, A fish species that passed ‘the mirror test’, Other animals that show self-awareness, The curious zebrafish, Playful bees, Behaviors that make up consciousness, A definition of consciousness, Can this new findings have implications in the treatment of animals?, Scientific findings have led to new policies before, Britain enacted legislation to protect octopuses, Speciesism

Animal rights activists have long been talking about speciesism; the practice of treating members of one species as morally more important than members of other species and the belief that this practice is justified.

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