Kyoto University center launches memorial website for 'genius' chimpanzee

Kyoto University center launches memorial website for'genius' chimpanzee Ai, a chimpanzee known as a genius for her cognitive abilities, died on Jan. 9 at Kyoto University's Center for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behavior. Ai was a research partner who taught me many things about the minds and existence of chimpanzees, as well as about humans, said Ikuma Adachi, 47, associate professor at the university, who worked with the chimpanzee for 18 years. Born in Africa, Ai arrived at the center in Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture, in 1977 at the age of 1. Adachi said she was curious and adapted well to a human-made environment. The Ai Project started in 1978 to investigate chimpanzees' thinking and language abilities. In 1985, a paper on Ai was published in the British scientific journal Nature. In 1989, she left the center using a key found nearby, drawing public attention.