The ape experiment seems like it's been misinterpreted badly - including by the linked video. The kids are told they are "playing a game" whereas the apes are t

The ape experiment seems like it's been misinterpreted badly - including by the linked video. The kids are told they are "playing a game" whereas the apes are trying to pull the treat from the box. The children aren't being outsmarted by the apes, they are doing a different thing. Many toys and children's games involve arbitrary and pointless actions. The kids have been taught to do something, are told to do something, and then do it. If you told the children their goal was to remove the gummy bear from the box with as few actions as possible they too would skip messing with the mechanism on top. The apes are playing one game (get the treat) and the kids are playing another (manipulate this box the way I show you). Comparing their actions and drawing conclusions is silly. It's like saying someone playing chess is missing a lot of moves that a checkers player made.