New Books in Psychology Justin Gregg, "If Nietzsche Were a Narwhal: What Animal Intelligence Reveals About Human Stupidity" (Little, Brown, 2022)
Jan 18, 2026
In a captivating conversation, Justin Gregg, a senior research associate with the Dolphin Communication Project, explores the paradox of human intelligence. He questions whether our cognitive abilities are more of a curse than a blessing, linking them to existential crises and environmental chaos. Gregg skillfully compares human morality and deception with animal behavior, revealing profound insights about our species. He also discusses the idea of 'prognostic myopia,' and whether we might be happier without our complex intellect, all while emphasizing that other animals thrive without it.
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Question Human Exceptionalism
- Justin Gregg reframes the debate by asking whether human-like intelligence is actually beneficial rather than assuming it is superior.
- He proposes comparing animal cognition to human cognition to reveal costs of our intelligence.
Why-Driven Cognition Is Double-Edged
- Human causal inference enables science, engineering, medicine, and spaceflight by asking "why" instead of only learning associations.
- That same capacity also produces weapons and large-scale violence, so it's a double-edged sword.
Humans Lie About Beliefs
- Deception exists widely in nature, from Venus flytraps to cuttlefish, but human lying often targets beliefs via theory of mind.
- Humans uniquely manipulate others' beliefs intentionally, elevating lying to a different cognitive level.
