That is such a (I don't know word to express my feelings...) "offensive"?, "humano-centric"? "hubris filled"? title. And exemplifies and perpetuates humankind's atrocious relationship with our fellow earthlings.
Dolphins are not turning out to be brighter. They were/are as bright as they always have been. Humans are the ones changing, losing a bit more of our ignorance and hubris.
This is still so pervasive that most people don't even recognize that as an "issue". Just like people hundreds of years ago wouldn't be phazed by the title "Negroid race is turning out to not be savage sub-humans after all".
I read the title as "The more we study dolphins, the brighter we realize they are." Perhaps it's a regional usage that's encouraging a different interpretation for you.
I think the term you're looking for is "anthropocentrism" [0],
though I don't see how you can construe this article to take an anthropocentric point of view.
If anything, it's implicitly acknowledging that we're not as exceptional as we'd like to think.
The title doesn't even indicate that the dolphins' brightness is changing, but rather that we're increasingly perceiving them as bright.
Dolphins are not turning out to be brighter. They were/are as bright as they always have been. Humans are the ones changing, losing a bit more of our ignorance and hubris.
This is still so pervasive that most people don't even recognize that as an "issue". Just like people hundreds of years ago wouldn't be phazed by the title "Negroid race is turning out to not be savage sub-humans after all".