Gorilla Koko who mastered sign language dies
New York, June 22 : Koko the gorilla, who appeared on National Geographic magazine cover, could chat, tease and even argue with scientists using more than 1,000 hand signs, has died in California at the age of 46.
Koko -- the primary ambassador for her endangered species, who redrew the lines of animal-human communication -- passed away on Tuesday in her sleep, a Gorilla Foundation press release said.
At birth, she was named Hanabi-ko -- Japanese for "fireworks child", because she was born at the San Francisco Zoo on July 4 in 1971. She was a western lowland gorilla.
"Her impact has been profound and what she has taught us about the emotional capacity of gorillas and their cognitive abilities will continue to shape the world," the Gorilla Foundation said.
Throughout her life, Koko's abilities made headlines. After she began communicating with humans through American Sign Language, she was featured by National Geographic - and she took her own picture (in a mirror) for the magazine's cover.
That cover came out in 1978, seven years after Koko was chosen as an infant to work on a language research project with the psychologist Francine "Penny" Patterson.
In 1985, the magazine profiled the affectionate relationship between the gorilla and her kitten: Koko and All Ball.
Koko, who also apparently understood some spoken English. Instructors taught her a version of American Sign Language and say she used it to convey thoughts and feelings, the BBC reported.
She adopted and named pets, including her kitten, All Ball.
Some scientists have cast doubt on the extent of the gorilla's communicative skills. However, she was the subject of many documentaries.
When her tailless tabby kitten All Ball escaped and was killed by a car in 1984, Dr Patterson wrote that she had displayed grief.
Koko lived most of her life at the Gorilla Foundation in California. She was filmed meeting the late actor Robin Williams in 2001.
Koko amazed scientists in 2012, when she showed she could learn to play the recorder. The feat revealed mental acuity but also, crucially, that primates can learn to intricately control their breathing - something that had been assumed to be beyond their abilities.
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Govt floats tender for new Shivaji Maharaj statue in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg
Mumbai (PTI): In the wake of collapse of the Shivaji Maharaj statue in Sindhudurg, the Maharashtra government has issued a tender for the construction of a new 60-foot-tall statue there, nearly twice the size of the previous one, officials said on Wednesday.
The statue will be built at a cost of Rs 20 crore and the government has set a six-month timeframe for the completion of the work, they said.
A 35-foot-tall statue of the 17th century Maratha empire founder, unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Rajkot fort in Malvan tehsil of Sindhudurg district on December 4 (Navy Day) last year, collapsed on August 26 amid strong winds.
The statue's sculptor, Jaydeep Apte, was later arrested.
The government has faced flak as the opposition parties alleged the decision to install the statue in Sindhudurg was taken haphazardly, which resulted in poor quality of work.
Maharashtra Public Works Department (PWD) had flagged concerns over rust gathering on Shivaji Maharaj’s statue and suggested permanent measures in a letter sent to a Naval official just six days before the structure collapsed.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had said the statue was designed and constructed by the Indian Navy.
He claimed winds were blowing at 45 km per hour when the statue collapsed.
A tender has been issued for the construction of a new statue and its height would be 60 feet, a PWD official said.
"The total cost would now be Rs 20 crore, including its engineering, installation and maintenance. The government has given six months to complete the work. The height of the statue would be 60 feet," the official said.
