Russian scientists are currently training macaques to solve puzzles and use a joystick for a planned 2017 trip to Mars:
Each day a team, led by Inessa Kozlovskaya, trains the monkeys to control a joystick and hit a target highlighted by a cursor.
When they complete the task successfully they are rewarded with a sip of juice.
Once they have mastered this task the macaques will be trained to solve simple mathematical tasks and puzzles.
At the end of their training the creatures should be capable of completing a daily schedule of tasks on their own.
[...] Macaques typically have a lifespan of around 25 years, so it is hoped there is enough time to train them properly and for them to survive the six-month trip to Mars, added the team.
(Score: 2) by AndyTheAbsurd on Thursday October 29 2015, @07:23PM
While I agree with most of your post, the point of sending monkeys ahead of humans would be to prove that the trip is survivable by vertebrates.
What I don't get is why they'd want to land the monkeys on Mars. It would make far more sense to bring them back for further study Earthside.
Please note my username before responding. You may have been trolled.