Post: I was reading about how chimps, gorillas, and even bonobos have been taught sign language for decades — and some of them got pretty good at it. Like, Washoe the chimp signed “water bird” when she saw a swan. That’s pretty poetic for a little furball.

But here’s the wild part: none of them have ever asked a single question. Not once. No “what’s that?” No “where’d you go?” No “why is the sky blue?” Ever. They can answer questions. They can express wants or feelings. But they don’t seem to get curious.

And that got me wondering… what if they’re just missing the spark? Like, what if they need a little nudge? Something to break the mental filter.

...Like magic mushrooms?

Hear me out — there’s that whole Stoned Ape Theory, right? Where early humans supposedly evolved higher consciousness (language, art, curiosity) after eating psilocybin mushrooms in the wild. What if that same stuff could unlock whatever’s keeping apes from asking questions?

I’m not saying we should go dosing gorillas (ethics, obviously), but imagine if one of them had a safe, low-dose trip and suddenly signed:

“Why are you here?” “Where do I go when I sleep?” “Who made the bananas?”

That would shake science (and probably religion) to its core. I know it’s all theoretical and speculative, but still — kind of a trippy thought, yeah?