Chimpanzees are Better at Mechanics, but Orangs Excel at Optics!

Abstract

Koehler's description of the beleaguered female orangutan, Catalina, reveals much about the investigator and his times: A modern investigator would be unlikely, for example, to describe an individual of one species as ". . . without doubt 'finer,' 'more decent,' 'more reliable' . . ." than individuals of another species, as Koehler does in comparing the orangutan to the chimpanzee! On the other hand, a modern investigator would be equally unlikely to give as much attention to the temperamental and emotional factors in problem solving as Koehler does, let alone to contrast species along these dimensions.