Originally Posted by Jack Swain
There have been studies done with both chimpanzees and gorillas who were taught to use sign language. Washoe was a chimp who actually began using sign language while still a young infant because his mother had been taught to use it and he began picking it up from her. He was one of the best known longest running subjects of study of the chimpanzees who used sign language. A gorilla named Koko was also an interesting subject of study using sign language.

There are people in the scientific community that challenge the conclusions of some of the research, just as Ralph does, but there are other highly respected members of the community that believe there is more to it than Ralph's claim.


Notice that those Dr. Dolittle 'I can talk to the animal' PBS specials never interview linguists. They talk almost exclusively to animal researchers whose funding is dependent on results. The chimps you mention never learned how to use sign language. they learned the meaning of a select number of signs and were trained by their handlers to use them in certain ways in order to receive rewards (food). that is simple classical conditioning. The chimps never showed any evidence that they could use the system in creative and innovative ways, they way a deaf child can. Washoe and Koko are major failures from the 60s and 70s.

All those signs that these chimps supposedly learned were signs associated with concrete things in their environment, like food, which were necessary for their survival. None of the signs in question were related to abstract concepts, suggesting that these animals did not possess the necessary cognitive ability to process them. Also, there has never been a single example of a chimp using an existing sign to create a new sign, something humans do all the time. If they cannot manipulate the system to create new words, THEN THEY CAN'T REALLY BE SAID TO BE LEARNING THE SYSTEM.

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