![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/Roger_S._Fouts.jpg/220px-Roger_S._Fouts.jpg)
Roger S. Fouts (born June 8, 1943) is a retired American primate researcher. He was co-founder and co-director of the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute (CHCI) in Washington, and a professor of psychology at the Central Washington University. He is best known for his role in teaching Washoe the chimpanzee to communicate using a set of signs taken from American sign language.[1]
Fouts is an animal rights advocate, citing the New Zealand Animal Welfare Act as a model for legal rights for the Great Apes (Hominidae),[1] and campaigning with British primatologist Jane Goodall for improved conditions for chimpanzees. He has written on animal law and on the ethics of animal testing.[2] He is also an adviser to the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics.[3]
He is married to Deborah Fouts, who was the co-director and co-founder of CHCI.
Early life
Fouts was born in Sacramento, California. He received his B.A. in child psychology from the college that became California State University, Long Beach a few years later. In 1964, he married Deborah Harris, who [4] became his life-time collaborator. Fouts earned his Ph.D. from the University of Nevada, Reno.
Career
In 1967, Fouts' career took a decisive turn after it was almost derailed by a disastrous job interview with Dr. Allen Gardner in Reno, Nevada. However, Washoe, a chimpanzee, took an immediate liking to Roger, and leapt into his arms. A few days later he was told he had got the job.[5] In 1970 the project with Washoe and the Gardners relocated to the Institute of Primate Studies in Norman, Oklahoma.
The Gardners and Fouts taught the chimpanzees signs from American Sign Language (ASL) by modeling (demonstration and getting the chimps to imitate) and physical prompting (directly manipulating the chimpanzees' hands into the required shapes). As the studies progressed, they found that the animals used ASL to communicate with each other. The apes created phrases from combinations of signs to denote new things that were brought into their environment. Loulis, Washoe's adopted son, learned basic ASL and over 70 signs directly from Washoe, without human involvement.[1]
Fouts has been a consultant or adviser on four movies, including Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984).[6]
See also
- Animal testing
- International primate trade
- List of animal rights advocates
- Non-human primate experiments
Notes
- ^ a b c FAQ, The Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute, Central Washington University.
- ^ Fouts, Roger S.; Fouts, Deborah H. & Waters, G. (2002) "The ethics and efficacy of biomedical research in chimpanzees with special regard to HIV research" in A. Fuentes & L. Wolfe, Primates face to face: Conservation implications of human-nonhuman primate interconnections, Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 45-60.
- ^ "Advisers" Archived 2012-06-05 at the Wayback Machine, Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics, accessed 25 May 2012.
- ^ Lynch, Kristin. "Roger Fouts", Muskingum College.
- ^ "September, 1967 - Roger Fouts joins Project Washoe - University of Nevada in Reno, Nevada", Friends of Washoe.
- ^ IMDB
Further reading
- Roger Fouts at Central Washington University
- The Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute
- Biography at Muskingum College History of Psychology Archives
- Fouts, Roger S. & Mills, Stephen Tukel (1997) Next of Kin: My Conversations with Chimpanzees, William Morrow. ISBN 0-688-14862-X
- Fouts, Roger S. (1973) "Acquisition and testing of gestural signs in four young chimpanzees", 180 Science, pp. 978–980.
Languages taught to non-human apes | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Non-human apes taught simple languages |
| ||||||||
Researchers | |||||||||
Research centers | |||||||||
Media |
| ||||||||
Related |
Language families[a] |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
By region[a] |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ASL | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Extinct languages | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Linguistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fingerspelling | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Writing | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Language contact |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Media | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Persons | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Organisations | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Miscellaneous | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
^a Sign-language names reflect the region of origin. Natural sign languages are not related to the spoken language used in the same region. For example, French Sign Language originated in France, but is not related to French. Conversely, ASL and BSL both originated in English-speaking countries but are not related to each other; ASL however is related to French Sign Language.
^b Denotes the number (if known) of languages within the family. No further information is given on these languages. ^c Italics indicate extinct languages. |
International | |
---|---|
National | |
Academics | |
Other |
-
Annuals36
-
Bulbs, Corms & Tubers41
-
Ferns27
-
Fruits3
-
Garden Plants23
-
Grasses26
-
Herb17
-
Insects1
-
Mammals1
-
Midwest Native Plants0
-
Northeast Native Plants112
-
Perennials123
-
Rose1
-
Shrubs47
-
Trees112
-
Tropical Plants53
-
Upland Birds5
-
Vines18
-
Viola Tricolor1
-
Water Gardening & Plants9
-
Waterfowl0
-
Wetland Birds0
-
Wetland Plants4
-
Wildbirds172
-
Wildflowers1
-
Woodland Plants29
Recent Comments