After the many reports of sucess in cloning Monkeys four Months ago.
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Science/2007/11/12/scientists_report_cloning_monkey_embryos/2455/It seems the Chinese not to be out done, have assembled a Medical team, to work with a group inside China, to operated on a monkeys voice box, with a view to getting a Monkey to talk.
A Howler Monkey was chosen, since they have enlarged throats, easily holding the largest voice box in the Monkey kingdom. They are also intelligent though somewhat lazy.
The 'operation entailed stretching the Howlers vocal chords slightly, to lower its voice by about an octave.
A very simple procedure in a Howler, done to stop their voice sounding like a gramophone horn.
See:- >Keeping in touch<, below:-
http://www.bristolzoo.org.uk/learning/animals/mammals/howler-monkeyAmazingly this Howler just three weeks after its operation started to 'throat', recognisable Chinese words.
Spurred on by success, the Chinese scientists decided that all that was needed to increase its intelligibility was a slight tightening of its muscles in what we would call its larynx, with a simple operation.
To the delight of the Chinese Medical team, the Howler, now named "Tee-Jay"
is now speaking perfect Chinese, just three months later, and a few English words as well.Having produced the only animal in the world with the power of proper speech.Their intention is to create as much world publicity as possible, shortly.
One of the ideas, according to a European doctor on the Medical team, is to get "Tee-Jay" to make a public announcement, possibly at at the start of the Olympics in Beijing this July.
Xinhua News (Google,April 2008)
