terrorist-tracking crows

One of the most extraordinary stories I read this week:

The United States military funded research into using networks of 'spy crows' to locate soldiers who are missing in action, and extended the work to see if the birds might be useful in helping them to find Osama bin Laden. The idea may seem far-fetched, but unlike some military research programs it is actually based on sound science.

Apparently crows can recognise and remember human faces. Who knew? The story of the experiments behind the science is absolutely fascinating (warning: it involves Dick Cheney masks). Neurophilosophy has it.