"I don't know if people will ever be able to talk to animals the way
Doctor Doolittle could, or whether animals will be able to talk back.
Maybe science will have something to say about that. But I do know
people can learn to "talk" to animals, and to hear what animals have to
say, better than they do now. "--From "Animals in Translation"
Why
would a cow lick a tractor? Why are collies getting dumber? Why do
dolphins sometimes kill for fun? How can a parrot learn to spell? How
did wolves teach man to evolve? Temple Grandin draws upon a long,
distinguished career as an animal scientist and her own experiences
with autism to deliver an extraordinary message about how animals act,
think, and feel. She has a perspective like that of no other expert in
the field, which allows her to offer unparalleled observations and
groundbreaking ideas.
People with autism can often think the way
animals think, putting them in the perfect position to translate
"animal talk." Grandin is a faithful guide into their world, exploring
animal pain, fear, aggression, love, friendship, communication,
learning, and, yes, even animal genius. The sweep of Animals in
Translation is immense and will forever change the way we think about
animals.
*includes a Behavior and Training Troubleshooting Guide Among its provocative ideas, the book:
- argues that language is not a requirement for consciousness--and that animals do have consciousness
- applies
the autism theory of "hyper-specificity" to animals, showing that
animals and autistic people are so sensitive to detail that they "can't
see the forest for the trees"--a talent as well as a "deficit"
- explores
the "interpreter" in the normal human brain that filters out detail,
leaving people blind to much of the reality that surrounds them--a
reality animals and autistic people see, sometimes all too clearly
- explains how animals have "superhuman" skills: animals have animal genius
- compares
animals to autistic savants, declaring that animals may in fact be
autistic savants, with special forms of genius that normal people do
not possess and sometimes cannot even see
- examines how humans and animals use their emotions to think, to decide, and even to predict the future
- reveals the remarkable abilities of handicapped people and animals
- maintains that the single worst thing you can do to an animal is to make it feel afraid
