Birthright

It chose the blue and the red in order the next two times, and Consuela turned to Tanayoka.

“By now it should know which one is loaded,” she said. “Let's start switching them around.” After thirty tries, the alien had chosen the blue box twenty-seven times. “Some of us were just born dumb,” commented Tanayoka. “Not so,” said Consuela. “An unthinking animal would get the right box fifty percent of the time, probably even more. Take my word for it, our friend knows the difference.” “Then why did it purposely shock itself almost every time?” “Maybe it feels good. This isn't a human physiology we're dealing with.” “So is it intelligent?”

“More than a laboratory mouse,” said Consuela. “That's all I can tell you today. Let's cool the room off and give it something to eat.”

They left the brig area, and Consuela asked to be taken to the mining site once again. “I'm having a little difficulty understanding why the aliens took no action against the miners the whole time they were extracting and refining the minerals,” she said, her eyes scanning the landscape. “It would seem more sensible for them to attack the moment the miners began stripping the mountains.” “Maybe they wanted to make sure the ore was being removed before they committed themselves,” suggested Tanayoka.

She shook her head. “There's no sign of any technology on this planet. They couldn't know what a refining operation was for, so why did they wait?” “Does it make that much of a difference?” asked Tanayoka. “Certainly. If I can come up with a reason as to why they didn't mind raw materials being taken but objected to refined ore, that would prove they were intelligent.” “In what way?”

“Because, having no experience with refined ore, they would have had to extrapolate, by abstract thought, the uses to which it might be put.” “But why would they disapprove?”

“It doesn't matter. The mere fact that they could form a chain of reasoning that would lead to disapproval would be sufficient to prove they were sentient. Don't ask me to psychoanalyze their racial consciousness in twenty days. If I can show you they're intelligent, that ought to be enough to keep the Republic from annihilating them.”

She walked from the refining site to the foot of the nearest mountain, then back again.