It is important to remember that humans, unlike all other species, are able to use complex language. This is a huge confounding factor, when we try to compare the intelligence of humans and animals. It is obviously very powerful to be able to exchange complex ideas, and build up knowledge intergenerationally. This would probably be enough to give humans a very large advantage, even if our intelligence was otherwise exactly the same as that of other primates.
Communication is an aspect of intelligence. It takes place in the brain not the kidneys. Now you could argue that communication is a special extra boost above and beyond the normal gains of intelligence, that humans are near the top of the communication sigmoid, and that there are no other special extra boosts out there.
Do monkeys have a mind capable of understanding calculus internally and just lack any language capable of learning it? (Such that a monkey given perfect communication but no other increases in intelligence would be able to learn calculus.)
I am not convinced the question is meaningful. I doubt that “communication” is a clear boundary on the neurochemical level, with a sharp divide between communication neurons and other neurons.
Communication is an aspect of intelligence. It takes place in the brain not the kidneys. Now you could argue that communication is a special extra boost above and beyond the normal gains of intelligence, that humans are near the top of the communication sigmoid, and that there are no other special extra boosts out there.
Do monkeys have a mind capable of understanding calculus internally and just lack any language capable of learning it? (Such that a monkey given perfect communication but no other increases in intelligence would be able to learn calculus.)
I am not convinced the question is meaningful. I doubt that “communication” is a clear boundary on the neurochemical level, with a sharp divide between communication neurons and other neurons.