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May 16, 2008
The Chimp that Learned Sign Language
Back in the 1970s, a chimpanzee named Nim Chimpsky took part in a Columbia University research study called "Project Nim."
Project Nim was led by Herbert Terrace, a psychologist at Columbia who was attempting to find out if a chimpanzee could learn to communicate using American Sign Language.
"Everyone knows that words are learned one at a time," but something happens when children begin to combine words and create true language, Terrace says.
The question, he says, was, "Could Nim do this?"
A newly released book takes a look at the project, and the people involved examine the ethics of the experiment.
Full Story and first chapter of the book here
Posted by sue at May 16, 2008 12:45 PM