Even bacteria are not the simple automata portrayed here; other researchers describe bacterial behaviours in the language of cognition. The structure of a progression from the seemingly simple minds of bacteria and amoebas to the complex ones of primates makes narrative sense, but recalls the outdated image of evolution with humans at the apex. Our minds do excel in certain respects, most obviously in developing language and complex culture — but in dexterity, vision, navigation and more, other species eclipse us.