Think Like a Goat

"Crows that recognize human faces. Octopuses that make themselves look like other animals to avoid predators. Goats that can solve puzzles. No, these aren't scenes from a science fiction movie -- they're real behaviors of these very smart creatures! Humans think we're pretty smart -- maybe the smartest species on the planet. But are we really? It turns out there are tons of other animals challenging us for the prize. Electric fish send signals to each other to communicate, ants use algorithms to work together, and elephants grieve when another elephant dies. These are just some of the wildly smart animals readers will learn about in this book. Covering four broad categories of intelligence (communication, social learning and cooperation, problem solving and memory, and emotional intelligence), Think Like a Goat explains and celebrates all the ways in which different animals intelligently navigate the world. Along the way, readers will learn about essential STEM concepts such as evolution and natural selection, ethology, and instinct vs. learning, all investigated through accessible, fun text and quirky illustrations full of personality. We can learn a lot from all kinds of animals. Yes, even goats!"--