Throughout history, humans have given a lot of thought to death. We’ve grappled with our mortality, created elaborate burial rituals, and contemplated how best to mourn the loss of a loved one.
But what about other animals? How do they understand death? Scientists have begun looking at this question more closely in the last two decades.
For example, chimpanzees have a wide variety of responses to death based in part on their relationship with the deceased. Possums put on elaborate displays to fake their own deaths. Ants can tell another ant is dead by the chemicals it omits, but have no concept of what death actually means.
SciFri producer Kathleen Davis talks with Dr. Susana Monsó, associate professor of philosophy at the National Distance Education University in Spain and author of Playing Possum: How Animals Understand Death.
Further Reading
- Listen to an audiobook preview of Dr. Monsó’s Playing Possum via Google Play Books on YouTube,
- Read another interview with Dr. Monsó about what animals know about death via The Guardian.
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Segment Guests
Susana Monsó
Dr. Susana Monsó is author of Playing Possum: How Animals Understand Death and an associate professor of Philosophy at the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED) in Madrid, Spain.
Segment Transcript
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About Shoshannah Buxbaum
@Shoshannah_BuxShoshannah Buxbaum is a producer for Science Friday. She’s particularly drawn to stories about health, psychology, and the environment. She’s a proud New Jersey native and will happily share her opinions on why the state is deserving of a little more love.
About Kathleen Davis
@katjacquelineKathleen Davis is a producer at Science Friday, which means she spends the week brainstorming, researching, and writing, typically in that order. She’s a big fan of stories related to strange animal facts and dystopian technology.