I don't know, Fred. Try explaining how to get to Spencer Island from
Seattle using only such grunts.

Gene.

On Thu, 1 Feb 1996, Fred Sharpe wrote:

>
> I agree with Gene that:
>
> "The symbolic communciative capacities of non-human animals are
> substantial but are
> qualitatively distinct from those of humans"
>
> This begs the question, however, do humans really talk about anything
> different than animals? If you conduct a cross cultural analysis of human
> behavior and language, I think you will find that we communicate pretty
> much the same things as animals. Obviously, the circumstances of our
> individual plights are more complicated than other social vertebrates, but
> most humans (like animals) are basically concerned with two things:
>
> 1) enhancing their status
> 2) aquiring resources
>
> These two basic objectives can be communicated by animals with
> fundimentally simple vocal repertoires. Try this simple experiment. Use
> only a single word for the next week. You will be amazed at how much
> information you can pack into a single sound by changing its inflection,
> frequency, duration, etc. I have a sound that I use in many social
> situations, I learned it from a red-necked grebe.
>
> I propose at the next WOS meeting, attendants only be allowed to
> communicate using individual signature calls.
>
>
> Fred
>
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