R.I.P. Koko the Gorilla

[Homerboy]

https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/21/health/koko-gorilla-death-trnd/index.html

oko, the gorilla who mastered sign language and showed the world what great apes can do, has died.

She died Tuesday in her sleep at age 46, The Gorilla Foundation said in a statement.
"Koko touched the lives of millions as an ambassador for all gorillas and an icon for interspecies communication and empathy," the release said. "She was beloved and will be deeply missed."
The western lowland gorilla was born at the San Francisco Zoo in 1971 and began to learn sign language early in life. She was said to have understood some 2,000 words of spoken English.
Researchers moved her to Stanford in 1974 and established The Gorilla Foundation, a non-profit organization that works to preserve and protect gorillas. Koko and The Gorilla Foundation then moved to Santa Cruz Mountains.
The foundation says she has taught the world a profound amount about the emotional capacity and cognitive abilities of gorillas.
Koko appeared in several documentaries and twice on the cover of National Geographic. The first cover featured a photo she'd taken of herself in a mirror, the foundation said.
She was widely promoted through appearances and the release of a picture book about her and a kitten that lived with her.
She has also been exhibited as a painter.
The foundation will continue its work on conservation and preservation of gorillas with continued projects, including a sign language application featuring Koko.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Smarter than some people. RIP, Koko.

 

[ElFenix]

RIP

 

[zinfamous]

RIP

At least it wasn't Koko the Monkey, though

 

[SKORPI0]

RIP Koko, hopefully you meet Robin Williams in the afterlife...

 

[Perknose]

At the risk of offending certain Simians here, I will say that Koko was demonstrably smarter and most certainly better behaved than our current sitting President. She will be missed.

"The Gorilla Foundation is sad to announce the passing of our beloved Koko," the research center says, informing the world about the death of a gorilla who fascinated and elated millions of people with her facility for language.

Koko, who was 46, died in her sleep Tuesday morning, the Gorilla Foundation said. At birth, she was named Hanabi-ko — Japanese for "fireworks child," because she was born at the San Francisco Zoo on the Fourth of July 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.

 

[Thebobo]

yes it's amazing what she could do, and she did look good with williams glasses on.

 

[SKORPI0]

Repost...

https://forums.anandtech.com/threads/r-i-p-koko-the-gorilla.2549219/

 

[highland145]

Koko gets 3 threads (now combined) and Vader only got 1 with 1 reply.

Vader could have taken him. :colbert;