>
> This list is full of false statements. Almost all of them are false. Here
> are some big ones:
>
> Natural selection completely determines the traits of animals (but not
> humans, because of culture). (FALSE -- see cultural variation among
> chimpanzees)
I dunno about this, but I'd be suspicious.
>
>
> Natural selection doesn’t endow animals with superfluous traits. (FALSE.
> Male nipple, anyone?)
Badly stated, I'll grant. But I think he means that they tend not to be endowed with traits which would be regressive to their evolution. The male nipple may be a "hangover", but its not regressive.
Also, although he doesn't go into this. If we allow for humans' consciousness to have physiological effects over their bodies but not animals (since they are purported not to have consciousness) then humans would be exempt from this rule anyway.
>
>
> Arguments 4-6 seem to depend on the clearly false assumption that animals
> do not have memory (!!!!)
>
>
>
I think he means "memory" in the human sense of the term. The idea here is
that animals have something akin to computer or machine memory whereas human
memory is more like that exemplified by Freud and Proust. Multi layered,
temporalised and far from mechanical.