Scientists Are Skeptical that Intelligence in Homo naledi “Erases Human Exceptionalism”

ABC News, archaeologists, Archaeology, Associated Press, Australia, bioRxiv, burial, cave art, chimpanzees, fire use, Germany, Gibraltar, Griffith University, hominids, Homo naledi, human exceptionalism, Human Origins, intelligence, Kenya, Lee Berger, María Martinón-Torres, Maxime Aubert, Michael Petraglia, National Research Center on Human Evolution, Natural History Museum, Neanderthals, New York Times, Newsweek, paleontology, Phys.org, preprint papers, Rising Star Cave, Science News, Silvia Bello, skeletons, Spain, The Conversation, Wall Street Journal
Berger et al.’s claims about the species have been disputed and their idea that it lived 2-3 million years ago was exaggerated by a factor of 10. Source
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For AI, Human Hands Are Exceptional…For Now

Artificial Intelligence, Becca Rothfeld, ChatGPT, computers, copyright, critical thinking, DALL-E, digital art, Gary Smith, human exceptionalism, human form, human hands, images, intelligence, Intelligent Design, Jean Paul, job infringement, Kyle Chayka, Midjourney, Neuroscience & Mind, novels, The Point, visual arts, writing
In many artificially contrived images, the hands come up gnarled, disfigured, or otherwise anatomically incorrect. Source
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Yes, Extraordinary Claims Require Extraordinary Evidence — Let’s Hear Some for Darwinian Evolution

Carl Sagan, chemical processes, computers, Cosmos (series), Evidence, Evolution, Evolution News, fossils, human brains, intelligence, Intelligent Design, iPhones, Irreducible Complexity, Michael Behe, natural causes, natural selection, origin of life, physics, Second Law of Thermodynamics, self-replicating machines, Technology, tornado, unintelligent forces
Carl Sagan famously said, “I believe that the extraordinary should be pursued. But extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.” Source
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Long Story Short: The Origin of Replication and the Information Sequence Problem

biochemical language, Chemistry, Discovering Intelligent Design, Evolution, information, information sequence problem, intelligence, Intelligent Design, Jack Szostak, Long Story Short, machines, molecular machines, Nobel Prize, origin of information, origin of life, programming code, proteins, replication, RNA, RNA world, Scientific American, self-replicating molecule, specified information, Stanley Miller, transcription, translation, UC San Diego
As an undergraduate at UC San Diego, I attended a seminar taught by Stanley Miller, the famous chemist who put origin-of-life research on the map. Source
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Can a Dog Be Bred to Be as Smart as a Human?

Albert Einstein, American Kennel Club, anatomy, Border Collie, brain, Charles Fawole, consciousness, Dogs, Flynn Effect, humans, intelligence, Jean Marie Bauhaus, Kurt Gödel, Marilyn vos Savant, neurological capability, neuroscience, Neuroscience & Mind, Payton Pearson, Psychology Today, science, Stanley Coren, University of British Columbia
An enterprising electrical engineer, Payton Pearson, thinks it can be done. There are reasons for doubt. Source
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MicroRNAs: A New Clue About Octopus Intelligence?

apes, biology, brain, central brain, cognitive abilities, Cris Niell, crows, cuttlefish, Dogs, dolphins, elephants, Grygoriy Zolotarov, intelligence, MicroRNAs, miRNAs, nervous system, neuroscience, Neuroscience & Mind, neurotransmitters, Nikolaus Rajewsky, octopus, Oregon, RNA, science, squid, vertebrates, whales, William Rainey Harper
While octopus brains are very different from vertebrate brains, they share with vertebrates, a huge number of microRNAs. Source
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