Comparative Cognition and Managing a Chimpanzee Research Program with Dr. Ikuma Adachi

The PrimateCast

This is podcast #65 with Dr. Ikuma Adachi.
Before getting into the interview, I announce with great sadness the passing of Dr. Steve Ross, as announced by Lincoln Park Zoo. Steve was a formidable figure in chimpanzee conservation and animal welfare science in general, in addition to being an all around good person and key figure at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo. He will be missed.
This is also the first podcast released since the restructuring of the Primate Research Institute, which had an exceptional 55 year run as a leading primatological institute. I make a note of that as well before getting into the interview.
Now, Dr. Ikuma Adachi is no stranger to these parts, and he's been on the podcast twice before, way back in our second episode in April 2012, and again in March 2016 on Episode #20. Feel free to check those out in addition to listening to the current episode.
Ikuma is associate professor of Cogntiive Neuroscience at Kyoto University's new Center for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behavior (EHUB). He's also the new head of CICASP, assuming the role this month after a 5 year hiatus from being part of the center. But he's always had a big inlfuence on how we operate, so it was great getting him back in the studio.
In the interview, we discuss a range of topics, from internationaliation at Kyoto University to running a chimpanzee lab and managing the expectations of incoming students. We talk about his own experiences with chimpanzees and research in comparative cognitive science, and end with some speculations about the metaverse and humans in space...
yeah, you read that correctly!

The PrimateCast is hosted and produced by Andrew MacIntosh. Artwork by Chris Martin. Music by Andre Goncalves. Credits by Kasia Majewski.

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A podcast from Kyoto University and CICASP.