Planet of the Apes?

[LongBlade]

At least temporarily.

Monkeys paved the way for us to reach the moon and now Russian scientists are hoping the animals will be key to getting a human colony to Mars.

Experts from the Russian Academy Of Science are training four rhesus macaques to travel into space and land on the red planet.

This training, which includes using a joystick and solving puzzles, should make them capable to man a mission within the next two years.

Unfortunately (for the monkeys), the history of monkeys in space usually does not end well. Any bets as to how proud the Russians will be about the fate of these critters once (if) they arrive?

The first primate to go to space was Albert I in June 1948 on a US military V-2 rocket.

He suffocated and died during the flight.

A year later, almost to the day, a second V-2 took Albert II to an altitude of 438,250ft (83 miles), the rocket returned but Albert II died on impact.

In December that year, Albert IV was sent into space wired up to machines that monitored his health.

He suffered no ill effects while in space but, like Albert II, he died on impact.

source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3291456/Monkeys-heading-MARS-Russian-scientists-training-macaques-solve-puzzles-travel-space-2017.html

[bbmike]

The dialog from Deep Space Homer (Simpson) comes to mind:

Stillwater: People, we're in danger of losing our funding. America isn't interested in space exploration anymore.
Babcock: Maybe we should finally tell them the big secret, that all the chimps we sent into space came back super intelligent.
[A chair swivels around, revealing a chimp in a suit, wearing glasses, and smoking a pipe.]
Chimp: [English accent] No, I don't think we'll be telling them that.

[JasonPratt]

Unfortunately (for the monkeys), the history of monkeys in space usually does not end well. Any bets as to how proud the Russians will be about the fate of these critters once (if) they arrive?

The fate of any humans arriving there is only marginally better than that of monkeys -- one way or another, those humans aren't coming back -- but my mind is boggling meanwhile at the idea that some joystick operation and simple problem-solving skills will be enough for monkeys to make it to Mars alive.

[mirth]

The dialog from Deep Space Homer (Simpson) comes to mind:

Stillwater: People, we're in danger of losing our funding. America isn't interested in space exploration anymore.
Babcock: Maybe we should finally tell them the big secret, that all the chimps we sent into space came back super intelligent.
[A chair swivels around, revealing a chimp in a suit, wearing glasses, and smoking a pipe.]
Chimp: [English accent] No, I don't think we'll be telling them that.

One of my all-time favorite Simpsons episodes!

[LongBlade]

but my mind is boggling meanwhile at the idea that some joystick operation and simple problem-solving skills will be enough for monkeys to make it to Mars alive.

I would speculate that the lever pulling and button pushing is to keep the monkeys' attention occupied.

Kinda like running Keeping Up with the Kardashians but without the carcinogenic side-effects.