Alex the African grey parrot
grrlscientist | December 1, 2008tags: animal cognition, animal communication, animal behavior, birds, parrots, Alex and me, Irene Pepperberg, book review
He was not ours, he was not mine.
Thank you for sharing him with us.
He brought us much joy. We loved him well.
-- Irene Pepperberg (p. 226), modified from Karen Blixen's
eulogy for Denys Finch-Hatton in Out of Africa.
As a scientist who studies, lives with, and even breeds and hand-feeds parrots, it is easy for me to empathize with Irene Pepperberg, the author of the long-awaited book with the awkward title, Alex and Me: How a Scientist and a Parrot Uncovered a Hidden…
grrlscientist | November 2, 2008tags: Irene Pepperberg, Alex, Alex the African grey parrot, talking parrot, cognition, behavior, streaming video
Tonight, I will attend Irene Pepperberg's reading where she will read from her new book about her friend and colleague, Alex the African grey parrot. Below is an interesting video showing some of what Alex was capable of doing, and it also provides a small glimpse into the relationship between Alex and Irene [2:06]
grrlscientist | September 12, 2007tags: Alex, African grey parrot, Psittacus erithacus, cognition, learning, speech disabilities, Irene Pepperberg
Alex, the African grey parrot, Psittacus erithacus,
who worked with Irene Pepperberg for more than 30 years.
Image: Brandeis University.
Alex, the African grey parrot who worked with Irene Pepperberg, has managed something that most of us never will: his obituary is in today's LATimes (even more remarkable, it was in yesterday's NYTimes);
Some scientists have questioned whether Alex was as smart as he seemed. African grey parrots are very social birds, and some scientists…
grrlscientist | September 11, 2007I promised that I would post the link to the interview with Irene Pepperberg by All Things Considered, so here it is. It also includes a streaming version [3:53]
grrlscientist | September 11, 2007tags: Alex, African grey parrot, Psittacus erithacus, cognition, learning, speech disabilities, Irene Pepperberg
Alex, the African grey parrot, Psittacus erithacus,
who worked with Irene Pepperberg for more than 30 years.
Image: Mike Lovett/Brandeis University [larger size]
Alex, the African grey parrot who worked with Irene Pepperberg, has managed something that most of us never will: his obituary is in today's NYTimes;
Scientists have long debated whether any other species can develop the ability to learn human language. Alex's language facility was, in some ways, more surprising than…
grrlscientist | September 10, 2007tags: Alex, African grey parrot, Irene Pepperberg, streaming video
"Alex is actually THINKING!"
Well, of course animals think. They're constantly making decisions based on information available to them. What was special about Alex, the African grey parrot who worked with Irene Pepperberg, was his ability to communicate his thoughts, giving us insight into how his mind works. Rest in peace, little guy. [0:34]
grrlscientist | September 10, 2007tags: Alex, African grey parrot, Psittacus erithacus, cognition, learning, speech disabilities, Irene Pepperberg, interview
For those of you who are grieving the sad loss of Alex, the African grey parrot who worked with researcher, Irene Pepperberg, you should know that when you awaken tomorrow morning,there will be an interview on National Public Radio's All Things Considered. This interview was just taped this evening. I will provide a streaming link tomorrow after the show airs.