Difficulty: Summiteer (Level 3)
On January 9, Ai the chimpanzee died of old age and organ failure, according to the Japanese institute that studied her. The female primate was known for her ability to recognise letters, numbers and colours. She was 49.
Ai was born in western Africa in 1976. She arrived at Kyoto University’s Centre for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behaviour the following year.
Researchers gave Ai a special keyboard linked to a computer when she was 18 months old. They used it to study her memory and learning.
At five years old, she could count from one to six and name colours and objects. She could point to the kanji character for “green” after seeing a picture of something green.
In 1989, Ai escaped from a cage with another chimpanzee. Researchers observed her opening a padlock with a key.
In 2000, she gave birth to a son, Ayumu, who is also known for his memory skills.
