of Troy I think you are underestimating the cognitive skills of at least some of the great apes. You would enjoy Jane Goodall's wonderful books about her study of chimpanzees, In the Shadow of Man and Through a Window. The chimps have some impressive abilities that I was unaware of until I read those books. You will have no doubt that they are able to not only think about the future, but also conceive of solutions to problems and then carry them out. They are also aware of the past and grieve over the deaths of loved ones.