Ai, a chimpanzee who could recognize Chinese hieroglyphs and the English alphabet and was called a “genius” in the scientific world, has died at the age of 49. Kyoto University of Japan announced that Ai died on Friday due to multiple organ failure related to old age.
Elchi.az reports that Ai, which means “love” in Japanese, was brought to Japan from West Africa in 1977. During research conducted by primatologist Tetsuro Matsuzawa, Ai amazed the world with her cognitive abilities.
Ai’s academic achievements were not limited to languages:
— She recognized more than 100 Chinese hieroglyphs and the entire English alphabet.
— She could distinguish Arabic numerals from 0 to 9 and 11 different colors.
— When she saw a “pink” sign on the computer screen, she would choose the pink square from among the options. When she saw an apple, she could draw a “virtual apple” using geometric figures on the screen.
Researchers at Kyoto University said that Ai was extremely curious and actively participated in research, revealing previously unknown aspects of chimpanzee intelligence for the first time.
The results achieved during Ai’s life have been published in prestigious scientific journals such as Nature and have been the subject of numerous documentaries.
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