Planning for the Future : Do Animals Have a Time-Relative Interest in Continuing to Live? / Felicitas Selter

Are animals mentally stuck in the present, unable to think beyond the here and now, or are they mental time travelers, capable of planning ahead in time? And why should this matter to us? "Planning for the Future" provides a thorough conceptual clarification of the most important but ambig...

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Year of Publication:2020
Edition:1st ed.
Language:English
Physical Description:1 online resource.
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Summary:Are animals mentally stuck in the present, unable to think beyond the here and now, or are they mental time travelers, capable of planning ahead in time? And why should this matter to us? "Planning for the Future" provides a thorough conceptual clarification of the most important but ambiguously used concepts in the debate and differentiates between two types of planning. In analyzing several influential studies with birds and apes, the book concludes that there is indeed evidence for anticipatory planning in some animals, but not for strategic planning so far. In a chapter of its own, ethical consequences regarding the wrongness of killing animals from utilitarian and animal rights perspectives are laid out. Do at least some animals have a strong interest in continuing to live? Should they even be ascribed with a right not to be killed? And why might the awareness of our own mortality hinder us in finding answers?
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references (pages [251]-263).
ISBN:3957437369
Hierarchical level:Monograph
Statement of Responsibility: Felicitas Selter