Ducklings capable of abstract thought
Jul 16, 2016 17:10:24 GMT
Mr DAVID In Wisconsin, Mari-in-IN, and 1 more like this
Post by snoozy on Jul 16, 2016 17:10:24 GMT
So besides being the cutest little critters on the planet, they can perceive "same" and "different":
www.newscientist.com/article/2097527-meet-the-philosopher-ducklings-that-indulge-in-abstract-thought/
"There once was a brainy duckling. It could remember whether shapes or colours it saw just after hatching were the same as or different to each other.
The feat surprised the researchers, who were initially sceptical about whether the ducklings could grasp such complex concepts as “same” and “different”.
The fact that they could suggests the ability to think in an abstract way may be far more common in nature than expected, and not just restricted to humans and a handful of animals with big brains.
“We were completely surprised,” says Alex Kacelnik at the University of Oxford, who conducted the experiment along with his colleague Antone Martinho III.
Kacelnik and Martinho reasoned that ducklings might be able to grasp patterns relating to shape or colour as part of the array of sensory information they absorb soon after hatching. Doing so would allow them to recognise their mothers and siblings and distinguish them from all others – abilities vital for survival.
In ducklings, goslings and other species that depend for survival on following their mothers, newborns learn quickly – a process called filial imprinting.
Kacelnik wondered whether this would enable them to be tricked soon after hatching into “following” objects or colours instead of their natural mother, and recognising those same patterns in future...."
See the video and read more at the link above.
www.newscientist.com/article/2097527-meet-the-philosopher-ducklings-that-indulge-in-abstract-thought/
"There once was a brainy duckling. It could remember whether shapes or colours it saw just after hatching were the same as or different to each other.
The feat surprised the researchers, who were initially sceptical about whether the ducklings could grasp such complex concepts as “same” and “different”.
The fact that they could suggests the ability to think in an abstract way may be far more common in nature than expected, and not just restricted to humans and a handful of animals with big brains.
“We were completely surprised,” says Alex Kacelnik at the University of Oxford, who conducted the experiment along with his colleague Antone Martinho III.
Kacelnik and Martinho reasoned that ducklings might be able to grasp patterns relating to shape or colour as part of the array of sensory information they absorb soon after hatching. Doing so would allow them to recognise their mothers and siblings and distinguish them from all others – abilities vital for survival.
In ducklings, goslings and other species that depend for survival on following their mothers, newborns learn quickly – a process called filial imprinting.
Kacelnik wondered whether this would enable them to be tricked soon after hatching into “following” objects or colours instead of their natural mother, and recognising those same patterns in future...."
See the video and read more at the link above.
