What do you think separates humans from other animals?

[conflictofinterests]

That's easy. Self-restraint. Next question.

That comes with a complex understanding of the world around us and of the consequences of our actions, which is only enabled by our ability to combine numerous ideas at once.

 

[A Satanic Panda]

That, there, is what you're seeing in humans (particularly in first world countries). Our resources are in abundance. The weak can thrive. When, inevitably, a situation occurs where our resources are no longer so plentiful, then a great number of those unable to cope with the change in circumstances will die. Regardless, none of this separates us from animals. We are still subject to evolution.

So, while you have me almost convinced that I'm wrong and people and animals are not separated, I have one doubt in my mind and that is this:

Spoiler: Japan's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&ctype=l&strail=false&bcs=d&nselm=h&met_y=sp_pop_totl&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=country&idim=country:JPN&ifdim=country&tstart=-285015600000&tend=1292821200000&hl=en&dl=en&icfg[/link]

Spoiler: Ukraine's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&ctype=l&strail=false&bcs=d&nselm=h&met_y=sp_pop_totl&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=country&idim=country:UKR&ifdim=country&tstart=-285015600000&tend=1292821200000&hl=en&dl=en&q=population+chart+ukraine[/link]

Spoiler: Germany's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&ctype=l&strail=false&bcs=d&nselm=h&met_y=sp_pop_totl&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=country&idim=countryEU&ifdim=country&tstart=-285015600000&tend=1292821200000&hl=en&dl=en&q=population+chart+germany[/link]

Now these are some fairly isolated incidents, but it still begs the question, If people are animals, then why in first world country's populations starting to stagnate, while developing countries populations are exploding?

Spoiler: Afghanistan's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&met_y=sp_pop_totl&idim=country:AFG&dl=en&hl=en&q=population+chart+afghanistan[/link]

Spoiler: DPKR's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&met_y=sp_pop_totl&idim=countryRK&dl=en&hl=en&q=population+chart+north+korea[/link]

[sub]upon finishing this I just realized I could have put all the graphs into one link[/sub]

 

[Suicida1 Midget]

We are animals. Only thing is, we tried to seperate ourselves from the wild, cause letting nature takes its course is too tough,(captcha is 'anditye can' iwish there was more like him) so we built our own 'nature'. Now look at the economy of a city, it pratically the same as nature, the best ppl get good jobs, while those who arnt that skilled kinda die off (i know its cold). We are animals, we surround ourselves with all this stuff, and in the end we cant escape it.

 

[BiggDoggJake]

I'm not sure if anyone has said this, but after seeing this thread and reading the first few comments (assuming it would be so obvious the first handful would have said it) I want to throw my hat in the ring:

In my opinion, among other things, the one BIG thing that separates us humans from other beings is religion.

 

[Azahul]

That, there, is what you're seeing in humans (particularly in first world countries). Our resources are in abundance. The weak can thrive. When, inevitably, a situation occurs where our resources are no longer so plentiful, then a great number of those unable to cope with the change in circumstances will die. Regardless, none of this separates us from animals. We are still subject to evolution.

So, while you have me almost convinced that I'm wrong and people and animals are not separated, I have one doubt in my mind and that is this:

Spoiler: Japan's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&ctype=l&strail=false&bcs=d&nselm=h&met_y=sp_pop_totl&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=country&idim=country:JPN&ifdim=country&tstart=-285015600000&tend=1292821200000&hl=en&dl=en&icfg[/link]

Spoiler: Ukraine's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&ctype=l&strail=false&bcs=d&nselm=h&met_y=sp_pop_totl&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=country&idim=country:UKR&ifdim=country&tstart=-285015600000&tend=1292821200000&hl=en&dl=en&q=population+chart+ukraine[/link]

Spoiler: Germany's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&ctype=l&strail=false&bcs=d&nselm=h&met_y=sp_pop_totl&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=country&idim=countryEU&ifdim=country&tstart=-285015600000&tend=1292821200000&hl=en&dl=en&q=population+chart+germany[/link]

Now these are some fairly isolated incidents, but it still begs the question, If people are animals, then why in first world country's populations starting to stagnate, while developing countries populations are exploding?

Spoiler: Afghanistan's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&met_y=sp_pop_totl&idim=country:AFG&dl=en&hl=en&q=population+chart+afghanistan[/link]

Spoiler: DPKR's population chart

[link]http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&met_y=sp_pop_totl&idim=countryRK&dl=en&hl=en&q=population+chart+north+korea[/link]

[sub]upon finishing this I just realized I could have put all the graphs into one link[/sub]

It ultimately comes down to this. Having a lot of resources available doesn't necessarily make animals breed more often. What it mean is that it allows the offspring that would normally die (natural selection, see) to live, because they are not in competition with better suited individuals. The difference in population growth between the first world countries and developing countries is something different, where in developing countries having a larger number of children is the best way to guarantee that a number of them will live to reach adulthood. And of course there are a whole heap of other factors. The difference in birth rates, and thus population growth, is a complicated topic that could be given a topic of its own, but it really doesn't have much to do with natural selection. I will say that I would expect a developing nation's population to increase however, as resources are slowly becoming more plentiful. In the first world however, we're at a point where we don't really see resources as any constraint at all at the moment, but there are other factors that serve to limit the reproduction rate as opposed to the actual survival rate of people.

Sorry if the above was a bit of ramble, I'm a bit tired at the moment.

 

[WitherVoice]

Humans are separated from other animals by our inability to create fertile offspring with them.

 

[VoidWanderer]

What separates us?

Our desire to be different from everything else.

Other than that, we share enough traits with the 'lesser beings' that there truly isn't that much of a separation.

 

[Zanderinfal]

Abstract thought.

I.E, being able to make art, music, houses/other structures, languages, religion, basically everything that isn't instinct.
...
Yes, I mean games as well. Don't think anybody will be seeing a video game playing cow for a while (because animals don't have abstract thought).

 

[Da Orky Man]

This:

Snip

Tell me when the chimpanzee's have got one too. Until then, I'm rather content with this one.

Second time someone's linked me a picture of a space ship as evidence of our superiority. I don't see it. Whoopdee doo, we have a big, complicated tool. I never tried to deny that humans weren't smart. That we are able to build stuff like that doesn't make us more than animals.

The basic idea is that we are the only species to use second-tier building materials; that is, using naturally found materials and using them to create better ones. Like steel, alloys, concrete, almost everything. Then it's what we do with them. We don't just live in them, we send them to space.

 

[ExileNZ]

The difference is pants.

Nothing else wears pants.

I'm with this one.
(that said, someone's probably already put a picture of a chimp wearing pants)

I'm not going to say "technology", because ants do incredible things with leaves and dirt, and don't even get me started on bees.

I'm not going to say rational thought, because any animal that can overcome its instincts in the name of survival has that, and that means any animal that can be trained.
So, any animal.

I could say "souls", but I firmly believe that if humans even have souls, animals do too.
My cat sitting on my lap clearly knows pleasure and affection, what is so special about humans? The ability to read the bible?

Oh! That's it!

Religion!

Animals kill each other for survival, not because their invisible friend told them to.

EDIT: Fuck, cat ninja'd

 

[mcnally86]

denial, on the most basic level we are all the same

I guess on a cellular level you're correct, but humans are pretty fantastical creatures considering what we've been able to create.

I mean that everything we do is for self preservation, our basic instincts are the same, what we have done with them technologically surpasses animals however it is all for the goal of survival

No. Trap a man in a box with all his needs met, food, water ,ect. and he will die or his brain will. There are other needs a person has besides survival. A person questions things. I tell you not a lot of the animal kingdom questions what separates them from other species. True most people don't want to die but there are other things too.

 

[ExileNZ]

That's easy. Self-restraint. Next question.

That comes with a complex understanding of the world around us and of the consequences of our actions, which is only enabled by our ability to combine numerous ideas at once.

You kidding? Wolves and gorillas know not to fuck with the alpha if they know what's good for them. That's self-restraint right there.

Also, humanity as a whole is showing too little restraint too late - we're fucking up the world for everyone, not just ourselves.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_Garbage_Patch)

Other animals find a balance. We've managed to find where the line in the sand is and completely ignore it.

 

[arcticspoon]

My smart TV. I can sleep in front of it. I can masturbate in front of it. And if worse comes to worst, I can eat the parts I haven't masturbated upon.

 

[OldNewNewOld]

I don't want to say "soul" because I don't think everyone believes in one, but, personally, that is one to me.

I'm going to have to go with the ability to stray from instinct and making certain decisions based on critical thinking.

Not only don't everyone believe in souls, but it also depends on the religion because some religions say that every living being has a soul.

On topic:
The only real difference are our much higher cognitive abilities.
But that can also be considered just a racial difference. Our intelligence to us is what flying is to birds. We are just another race.

The majority does not want to believe in that because they think they are better than other animals because our creativity and intelligence, but as I said, birds are better because they can fly, Chitas are better because they can run 5 times faster than a human, elephants are better because they are bigger and fishes are better because they can live in water.

What we love, value, like, do... that does not make us better. That is just a byproduct of our intelligence and creativity.

 

[CulixCupric]

The difference is pants.

Nothing else wears pants.

well, sometimes old people try to force animals to wear clothing. i guess humans are the only ones who willingly wear it, regularly.

That we waste our time trying to protect the ones natural selection should have weeded out, The ones that need a warning to tell them coffee is hot or to not drink bleach.

yeah, i learned after the first bleach incident at three... um, there are some... after effects. not quite sane.

We kill each other and other species for fun and giggles. Other species don't.

Dolphins do. As do cats. And dogs.

I assume others as well.

yes, plenty more. monkeys, gorillas, elephants, and many others.

intelligence, and emotion, animals don't have emotions, they have instincts

then why do they enjoy getting their ears scratched? instinct is for survival, and that isn't related to survival, that's related to pleasure.

Their not inclined to kill other animals simply because they want to?
Maybe?

we aren't inclined to do it either, and they do kill each other for that reason. a common motive is when they try to court the mate of another. this leads to the motive of killing them for trying to steal their girlfriend/wife, roughly speaking. also when lions, when a new male takes over a pride, he kills the offspring of the former leader.

I've seen a lot of people claim that humans are just as intelligent as animals.
exactly what IS intelligence and how do we measure it?

good question. also, humans are just as intelligent as animals, mainly because humans are animals, but I've met smart animals, and really dumb humans.

so you are telling me i am an animal because i don't have religion?

no, i don't have a religion either.

and also, yes, because all humans are primates > mammals > animals.

but I am also an animal, as are we all. at least from my perspective.

we are smarter, that is all.

that's debatable, as I've seen some smart animals, even one's that talk and can reason, and I've seen some dumb humans. i think it depends on the two individuals you are comparing.

What makes you think something does separate us?

Sure we can do some stuff slightly better then the average animal.
But in the end we rely on food shelter and sex just as much.

this is what I'm trying to get at. Personally, i don't think there is a separation in truth, only one that we perceive.

The belief that we're separate from other animals?

/snarksnarksnark

main word: belief.

I don't want to say "soul" because I don't think everyone believes in one, but, personally, that is one to me.

I'm going to have to go with the ability to stray from instinct and making certain decisions based on critical thinking.

Is this one of those "Dogs don't go to heaven" things?

Because I disagree strongly

yeah. i'm also going to disagree with joe on this one here because of what i belief a soul is. it's the consciousness which allows life and perception. they have this.

thuuuuuuuuumbs.

Also greed.

lemurs, monkeys and gorillas have thumbs, and one of my mother's dogs is EXTREMELY greedy, to the point she will attack the others for whatever she wants, and she's the smallest. the largest can imitate human speech using growls and whines to form phrases in English like:

"I want one." when we have food, and she's begging
"momma." when she's near my mom.
"treat."
in short, things a toddler would say.
we also had a cat that would say "outside" when he wanted out, and "inside" when he wanted in.

so animals can speak our languages, not well, but still, and can use it to show what they want.

If our superiority was only due to our opposable thumbs, then crabs would be the rulers of the Earth.

no, my favorite animal, and one of the most intelligent, otters, would eat the crabs, as shellfish are a large part of their diet, and seeing as they can use tools, would be much more likely of being the dominant species. however, this is hypothetical due to the fact we do have thumbs.

Good question. You do have to remember we are animals though. Unique animals but animals all the same.
Animals show compassion
know the difference between right and wrong
mourn
think logically
do things for fun
can learn
talk (just because their language isnt as sophisticated as ours it doesnt mean it doesnt happen)

if there is a difference its incredibly slight but there is one thing iv never seen an animal do and thats laugh. If anyone could explain that to me or give me an example of an animal that laughs at things it finds amusing please let me know!

this is why the title of the topic is "What do you think separates humans from other animals". also, they can speak our language, I've seen them do it. your right about the fun thing. actually, the only part you were wrong on was that they don't speak our language, as the do, well some are individuals.

I say it's vast intelligences and creativity. Yes animals like Dolphin and Chimpazee are intelligent and other annimal can built stuff but it's not like they can communicate us at a sophisticated level nor can they created anything complex like let say a car run on petrol.

that's because they don't need cars that run on petrol, and probably understand the harm it does to the environment, and indirectly to themselves.

We can ask ourselves this question.

Ape to another ape: "What separates us from humans?"

So

How complex our languages are. Combine that with the technology we created so we can ask this question to people on the other side of the world.

but they have there own language, and it works fine for them, and they survive without all our high-tech inventions because the don't need them. necessity is the mother of all invention, they have no need of that necessity, as they do just fine without it.

Nukes, certainly nukes.

yes, but take into mind that nuclear weapons are one of the dumbest inventions ever made because it will end the world if one goes off, because then someone thinks they're getting shot at and they launch the rest, and we end up like mars. I'm beginning to think that mars was inhabitable and was inhabited, until a nuclear war occurred, thousands of years ago. the storms could be caused by an ages old nuclear winter.

Quite honestly I don't like this question. Physically, as proven, we're not different at all. It's our ability of cognitive thought(which we're not actually meant to value in the way we've been doing, not saying it's a bad thing though) that's really unique compared to most other species alive today.
Out culture and all that jazz is of course very different as well, but we still, really, have about the same basic principles as most other more complex societies.

Gah, I don't really give a damn to be frank. Humans are animals, not all animals are humans, all animals differ, all individuals differ, etc etc etc.

this is exactly what I've been getting at. there isn't a difference. you put it quite well: "Humans are animals, not all animals are humans, all animals differ, all individuals differ, etc etc etc."

Lawyers, also proof that other animals are better than us

um, ah, i'm at a loss of, ah, words, i think...

Seriously, no trolling whatsoever yet?
Here goes my answer: Fences!

Sorry, couldn't bother with the effort and it looks like you have a couple of decent answers already

yes, because we don't mark our territory with urine, we use wood. clever troll is clever. good job sammul.

Tell me when the chimpanzee's have got one too. Until then, I'm rather content with this one.

chimps did beat us into outer space, and i think the first astronaut was a Russian dog.

denial, on the most basic level we are all the same

denial, on the most basic level we are all the same

these two points work hand in hand. however, have we ever asked other species if they feel the same way, or have tried to resist their instincts?

Humans are separated from other animals by our inability to create fertile offspring with them.

donkey + horse = mule; mules are infertile.
lion + tiger = liger; ligers are infertile.
x + y (assuming x != y) = hybrid; hybrids are infertile.

this applies to all species in ability to produce fertile offspring with others. that's what species means. organisms that can produce fertile offspring with each other.

I'm really interested in this topic. There's so many ways I can express how we're different from animals yet we're the same in one way or another.

I'll compare myself with my cat, using the similarities and differences for you to observe.

What my cat does daily:
- Sleeps over 11 hours a day
- Cleans herself
- Eats a few times each day
- Uses the litter box once a day
- meditates under some furniture (meditates as in just sitting there, time passing by)

What I tend to do everyday:
- Sleep only 5 or 6 hours a day
- Cleans myself every day or two
- Draw on the computer by using my tablet
- Visiting The Escapist and posting in topics
- Eats junk food or warms up fast food 3x a day
- Listen to my MP3 as I jog
- Use the bathroom 4x or more a day
- Play Skyrim
- Now and then go out and do an activity
- Chores like cleaning the rooms, taking out trash, ect.
- Attending College to become more educated.

Now here's the thing.. even though me and my cat both eat, sleep, use the restroom, and amuse ourselves.. my cat doesn't do much. However, I have to educate myself and work in order to live. Humans have to live by rules established by man, an order that most animals do not follow by (even in packs or groups, animals tend to just look out for each other. In society, humans can act however they wish but must follow the rules written on paper.)

Humans are different because they understand depth more then any animal could imagine. It's like if I showed you a picture of World War II where the Holocaust happened. Your emotions would obviously show and you can imagine all the events that took place. You'll feel anger, cry, or disturbed. Show a picture of a dog being beaten by it's owner to another dog and the dog will just mindlessly wonder off without care. Even though intelligence is one major difference, we have a very complex mindset to take things into heart unlike animals. I believe in souls, but for everyone to understand.. I think it's a 6th sense we have that animals don't have (yet). Animals feel pain, can express themselves to be sad but they will never feel the emotions we've embraced. That's my take on it.

yes, but you do all this because you have to. as for myself, I'm on par with your cat, as i don't have to do all that, seeing as i have sustained a way of income without having to work, as i made a few investments when i was a teenager. so has your cat, that income would be yours, as you pay for everything the cat owns, therefore it realizes it doesn't have to work, else it would go out mousing all day to feed itself.

Abstract thought.

I.E, being able to make art, music, houses/other structures, languages, religion, basically everything that isn't instinct.
...
Yes, I mean games as well. Don't think anybody will be seeing a video game playing cow for a while (because animals don't have abstract thought).

my family dogs watch tv. not the best argument, but it is a fact.

I'm not sure if anyone has said this, but after seeing this thread and reading the first few comments (assuming it would be so obvious the first handful would have said it) I want to throw my hat in the ring:

In my opinion, among other things, the one BIG thing that separates us humans from other beings is religion.

sir, religion was in my first post, the original post.

 

[Grouchy Imp_v1legacy]

The belief that we're separate from other animals?

/snarksnarksnark

main word: belief.

EDIT - Please disregard - brainfart moment.

 

[bro1667]

to differate the diffrences between right and wrong

 

[xvbones]

Creativity and in some cases, sentience. But I've never really seen a solid definition for sentience. Some people tell me it's self-awareness, others tell me it's having a subjective experience.

sen·tience (snshns, -sh-ns)
n.
1. The quality or state of being sentient; consciousness.
2. Feeling as distinguished from perception or thought.

sen·tient (snshnt, -sh-nt)
adj.
1. Having sense perception; conscious: "The living knew themselves just sentient puppets on God's stage" (T.E. Lawrence).
2. Experiencing sensation or feeling.

 

[DaJoW]

I believe there is a hormone regulating the growth of the brain which other primates have, but we have lost, making human children completely useless far longer than other animals. I can't find a source for this though, so it's all just hearsay.

 

[FarleShadow]

I believe there is a hormone regulating the growth of the brain which other primates have, but we have lost, making human children completely useless far longer than other animals. I can't find a source for this though, so it's all just hearsay.

actually, the only reason human children are completely useless for a long time isn't due to a hormone, its due to our glorious brain.

Booting it up takes ages. Then it runs like shit for acouple years. Then it cheats on you with your best friend at his stag do. That dick.