arithmetic by tapping his right front hoof. So prodigious was Hanss ability
that the horses fame quickly spread throughout Europe in the early 1900s.
He became known as Clever Hans, the counting horse.
Herr von Osten taught Hans to do more than just add. Soon the horse
could subtract and divide. In time, Clever Hans even mastered the
multiplication tables. The horse became quite a phnomenon. Without his
owner uttering a single word, Hans could count out the size of his audience,
tap the number wearing glasses, or respond to any counting question they
asked him.
Finally, Hans achieved the ultimate ability that separates man from
animallanguage. Hans learned the alphabet. By tapping out hoof beats for
each letter, he answered any question about anthing humans had read in a
newspaper or heard on the radio. He could even answer common questions
about history, geography, and human biology.
Hans made headlines and was the main topic of discussion at dinner
parties throughout Europe. The human horse quickly attracted the attention
of scientists, psychology professors, veterinarians, even cavalry officers.
Naturally they were skeptical, so they established an official commission to
decide whether the horse was a case of clever trickery or equine genius.
Whatever their supicions, it was obvious to all, Hans was a very smart
horse. Copared to other horses, Hans was a Somebody.
Cut to today. Why is it when you talk with certain individals you just
know they are smarter than other peoplethat they are a Somebody? Often
theyre not discussing highfalutin subjects or using two-dollar words.
Nevertheless, everybody knows. Peple say, Shes smart as a whip, He doesnt
miss a trick, She picks up on everything, Hes got the right stuff, Shes got
horse sense. Which brings us back to Hans.
The day of the big test arrived. Everyone was convinced it must be a
trick orchestrated by Herr von Osten, Hanss owner. It was standing room
only in the auditorium filled with scientists, reporters, clairvoyants,
psychics, and horse lovers who eagerly awaited the answer. The canny
commission members were cofident this was the day they would expose
Hans as chicanery because they, too, had a trick up their sleeves. They were
going to bar von Osten from the hall and put his horse to the test all alone.
When the crowd was assembled, they told von Osten he must leave the
auditorium. The surprised owner departed, and Hans was stranded in an
auditorium with a suspicious and anxious audience.
ooja
(Ooja)
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