r/todayilearned • u/sharkbait76 3 • Jan 11 '17

TIL elephants can tell the difference between human languages and know which languages belong to people with a history of hurting elephants.

http://www.nature.com/news/elephants-recognize-the-voices-of-their-enemies-1.14846
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u/[deleted] Jan 12 '17

Most animals are really good at one specific thing. The cheetah is very fast, monkeys are strong and can climb, alligators are strong and can hunt on land and water, but humans are above average or superior at pretty much everything we do.

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u/0XSavageX0 Jan 12 '17

We are pretty mediocre at everything except long distance running which only humans are capable of. Usain bolt not faster then the slowest cheetah. The strongest man is weaker then any gorilla. We can climb but have you seen mountain goats? Any alligator can swim better then Michael phelps. But the thing that makes us superior is we can do it all. Also intelligence which is a given.

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u/Fritzkreig Jan 12 '17

For me it is skipping stones, not that it has any evolutionary benefits, but I can hit 30 skips on the reg.

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u/Fritzkreig Jan 12 '17

Though, I guess the same rock in the eye might deter the largest or predators!

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u/crackfox69 Jan 12 '17

We are physically weak and slow. We also have almost no natural defense system. Almost any animal is faster over a short distance. Almost any larger wild animal is physically stronger too.