Dear Friend,
In the above video clip, we share a preview of our new Koko Digital Archive project (KokoArc), whose objective is to preserve nearly 50 years of mutimedia interspecies communication research-and-care data, based on Project Koko, involving gorillas Koko, Michael and Ndume.
We hope you enjoy these short video glimpses of the development of gorillas Koko, Michael and Ndume, as part of an ongoing process of preserving and analyzing a vast amount of multimedia data, for the benefit of both captive gorillas worldwide, and critically endangered free-living gorillas in Africa.
Video Overview: "Young Koko and Penny Play Hide-and-Seek"
We raised Koko in a language-rich environment where language use (American Sign Language and spoken English) was naturally incorporated into daily activities, which for a young gorilla, included lots of play.
In the above video I initiate a game of “hide and seek” with Koko. First I hide behind a large wooden platform and Koko positions herself on the other side before peeking around the side at me.
This is a demonstration of Koko’s ability to understand my (i.e., another person's) perspective — a complex cognitive feat. Koko knows my viewpoint is different than her own, and figures out how she needs to position herself so that I am unable to see her.
Video Credits
This is a clip from Video 454 of our KokoArc database, filmed when Koko was just 3 years old. Our co-founder and resident videographer Dr. Ron Cohn filmed the vast majority of videos in our archive. This is the first in a series of non-chronological video previews from KokoArc, which covers nearly 50 years of interspecies communication research and care with gorillas Koko, Michael and Ndume.
What's Next?
Thanks for watching and stay tuned for more glimpses into the hearts and minds of gorillas. As we continue to preserve and analyze the Project Koko video archive (KokoArc), we expect to learn more and more about how to apply interspecies communication for the benefit of gorillas worldwide. And we will be sharing it all with you!
Sincerely, |
