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Why Koko (Probably) Couldn't Talk (Sorry) | The Deep Dive

Soup Emporium · 3.8M views · 2021-05-05 · 49:12

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Overview

A long video essay arguing that Koko the gorilla probably could not actually use sign language. It examines the cherry-picked data and the lack of transparency behind the claims, drawing on published critiques.

On Hacker News

Recommended as a thorough debunking of Koko's supposed language ability in threads about animal communication.

Recommended by 4 HN people across 4 months · HN mentions 2021–2026

Topics

Animals & natureScientific method & science communication
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kokogorillasign languagedebunkinganimal cognition

What people said

gf000 · 2026-03 · Recommendation

You may want to watch this video: [VIDEO] Human language is way above what communication animals show. We don't really know what's the exact boundary, but again, the difference is significant and not just "scaled up".

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dlcarrier · 2025-02 · Recommendation

Here's a great video about the extreme cherry picking and lack of transparency it takes to argue that Koko had any better of an understanding of language than a well trained dog: [VIDEO]

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expensive_news · 2022-04 · Recommendation

I’m skeptical of this. This sounds similar to the way Koko “learned” sign language. While this video is long, it explains the controversy very well: [VIDEO]

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Sources

Video by Soup Emporium, played through YouTube.

Data and selection notes

HN summaries and labels may contain AI errors. HN dates refer to discussions, not video publication.

HN Library: HackerTube export (2026-10-31) and open-index/hacker-news. Upstream summaries and classifications may contain AI errors.

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