in the minds of animals 
iopensocognitivo dear friends (not to be confused with the far less noble iopensocongiuntivo), the holidays are finished for a while now 'and then it seems to me right after the Christmas binge, and much deserved relaxation, return to subsidize our beloved brain with new knowledge and new ideas!
for me during the holidays I borrowed from my friend the veterinary un libro di Danilo Mainardi, l'etologo ufficiale di Super Quark... il prestito è giunto dopo che io e il mio suddetto amico abbiamo discusso animatamente, durante la notte di Natale, su quanto gli animali possano essere considerati intelligenti; io ero piuttosto convinto della superiorità intellettuale dell'uomo sulle altre specie, mentre lui sosteneva che non si potesse tracciare una linea di demarcazione così netta tra l'uomo e gli altri animali.
devo dire che il mio amico mi ha fatto un grande regalo natalizio prestandomi quel libro, che si chiama
"Nella mente degli animali" (Danilo Mainardi)! infatti l'autore riesce, con uno stile molto "easy" e con una grande passione, a far capire al lettore le fantastiche intellectual ability found in many animal species.
Mainardi is very good at explaining how the birth of different minds in different animals depends on the developmental needs, from space and the type of life they have had to face.
this book can be very useful to understand, even to those who are skeptical as I was, how many and what things accomunino an elephant, a cat or a crow to a human being.
the book, as I said, it is very tough (only blemish on the cover, which I think would be more appropriate to a novel harmony) and is divided into 33 essays, each accompanied by a drawing of the author in each essay addresses the Mainardi different aspects of intelligence and makes us understand how it has grown into one direction or another according to an evolutionist. becomes evident, if we use this perspective, why the elephants, which are animals that live in packs (at least for females), and therefore need a "social mind" may recognize in the mirror and have developed a complex system of communication through sounds can not be perceived by us and a great sensitivity to ground vibrations.
this is just one example, because the author also speaks of the intelligence of birds (especially crows and parrots), various primates, domestic animals, dolphins ... each of these instruments is in its functional, above all, wonderful, wonderful as is the nature that created it!
another example of the talent that each express a particular adaptation to the environment in which the species lives is given to us from an animal that we all, sooner or later we found to interact with the dog. Imagine interposed between a dog and a tasty reward an insurmountable obstacle. The animal, rather than around it, is prohibited and watch the master. Groped to interpret the behavior that apparently failed when subjected to the dog show experiment detour or bypass (just to place a barrier between animal and reward), apart from the process of domestication by humans that this species has undergone could lead to the mistaken conclusion that these animals lack the cognitive skills necessary to successfully accomplish this task of "diversion". Only by knowing the history of this species can instead realize that "any dog, whether in the company of people he knows, are accustomed to receive instructions on what to do." She hesitates knowing, having been genetically selected to obey in case of doubt. In short, the dog would succeed on its own to carry out the task, but since we are there, preferring to rely on what he considers the "leaders"!
really recommend to everyone, but especially to animal lovers and psychologists, this book, which for me was a second iniziazione all'etologia dopo "L'anello di Re Salomone" di Konrad Lorenz!
p.s. ora, quando vedo un cane o qualsiasi altro animale non mi sento più tanto superiore intellettualmente a lui, quindi alla fine dei conti il mio amico veterinario l'ha avuta vinta!
