Genius Corvids and Neandertals, Again

"Ravens and crows have long had a folkloric reputation for craftiness, and scientists are confirming what many cultures have observed for ages; these birds and their cousins in the Corvidae family—including rooks, magpies, and nutcrackers—have remarkable cognitive abilities. Last year, magpies demonstrated a sense of self-awareness previously thought to be unique to a few species of mammals. Now, two new corvid studies show that the birds can use tools for complex problem solving. In one study, crows were able to use three tools in sequence spontaneously in order to obtain a meal, a skill until now observed only in humans. In another study, thirsty rooks dropped stones into a glass of water in order to raise the level of liquid inside, a story straight out of one of Aesop's fables."
From Sb Weekly, 8/12: "Bloggers are Getting Fit and Crows are Getting Smart."

And from Scientific American, August, 2009: "Later this year researchers led by Svante Paablo of the Max Planck Institute for Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, are expected to publish a rough draft of the Neandertal genome. The work has prompted speculation that scientists might one day be able to bring back this extinct human."

BIG shout out to Jasper Fforde, the best author you never heard of, and his Neandertal clones.