Frans de Waal

Chimps don't have language. Humans actively instruct others about how things should be done. Chimpanzees probably pick up cultural traditions by observation.

Human morality is unthinkable without empathy.

A chimpanzee who is really gearing up for a fight doesn't waste time with gestures but just goes ahead and attacks.

Octopuses have hundreds of suckers, each one equipped with its own ganglion with thousands of neurons. These 'mini-brains' are interconnected, making for a widely distributed nervous system. That is why a severed octopus arm may crawl on its own and even pick up food.

If you look at national economies today, for example, the American economy, the European economy, the Indians, the Chinese, we're all tied together. If one of them sinks, the rest are going to sink with them and if one floats, the rest are lifted up. I find that very interesting.

Experiments with animals have long been handicapped by our anthropocentric attitude: We often test them in ways that work fine with humans but not so well with other species.

People want to work with somebody who feels shame, who worries about the perceptions of others. Dishonesty is something we don't like in others.

Future benefits rarely figure in the minds of animals.

There is little evidence that other animals judge the appropriateness of actions that do not directly affect themselves.

We need to separate the process of evolution - which is, indeed, a self-serving process - and the actual motivations of animals.