Nim Chimpsky and Columbia’s Fraught History with Animal Experimentation

In this archival episode of The Ear, reporter Alicia Theologides Rodriguez commemorates the 50th anniversary of a controversial Columbia study that explored whether chimps possess the cognitive capacity to learn sign language. While the Nim project ultimately failed to prove its hypothesis, it revealed much more about the ethical precarity of anthropomorphizing animals in experimental settings. By contrasting Nim’s fate with that of other animals in Columbia’s care, this episode explores the unique privileges and perils that Nim encountered because of the way he was humanized. ​​Credits: • Edited by Claire Schnatterbeck and Sophia Cordoba • Produced by Julia Hay • Music by Christina Li • Illustration by Lizzie Melashvili • Voice Acting by Claire Schnatterbeck, Jorge Hernandez, Vasily Tselioudis, Donovan Barcelona, and August Phillips Follow us on Instagram @SpectatorPodcasts and check out our other episodes!