Korolev said:
As a species we are generally intelligent, and a hell of a lot more intelligent than any other species on the planet. We are the only species with a complex language that has grammar and syntax. We are the only species which has extend its natural lifespan. We are the only species which have comprehended the most fundamental aspects of the universe. We are the only species with philosophy, advanced morality and science. We are the only species which has ANY prospect of self-improvement.
Actually, dolphins and whales communicate with a more complicated language than we do according to a lot of studies.
Countless species have extended their natural life span by adapting to better live around humans. Whether this involves pretending to be dogs (in the case of wolves) so people will give you food, patroling with three people intead of two (in the case of racoons) to ease the act of stealing food, or just making yourself look cuter and more cuddly while around humans (in the case of pigs who before domestication had tusks and wiry hair and now look mostly harmless) so that humans will get rid of all your parasites and generally make your life more pleasent, species are extending their life spans all the time.
As for not grasping the basics how the earth works, Racoons perfer to wash the food they find before they eat it. There would be no reason to do this except to remove germs. Ants build boats which are capable of crossing things like the Mississippi River, I think they would understand properties like boyancy and displacement. There are also the countless species (Crows, Monkeys, ect) who know to use things like gravity in problem solving.
As for animal morality I would point out that just because we don't recognize it doesn't mean it's not there. We can't get people to agree on what is morally correct even amoungst our own species (and there is often violent disagreement on this particular issue), how would we be able to discern what other species view as morally sound or how would we even know that their species had come to any kind of concensus? that being said though, Elephants have grave yards and mourn their dead and it would be impossible to name all the speicies that put the life of their children before their own.
And evolution gaurantees self improvment. All species are subject to evolution and therefore all species have some prospect of self improvement.
I once sat down and tried to make a list of all the things that empiraclly seperated Humanity from the animal kingdom. The only things I could think of were that humans create things for entertainment and have currency. Looking back I'm not entirely sure that those are unique to humans either.
