The study of cognition in animals other than humans.
7
votes
5answers
205 views
Does an exceptional working memory inhibit intelligence?
According to the Fox News article "Chimps Smarter Than Humans in Memory Test" chimps were able to significantly outperform humans in a simple working memory task. I quote one part of the article in ...
4
votes
1answer
82 views
Does empathy extend to animals?
I've read that humans are able to empathize with other humans, to feel as another person does, through mirror neurons. I'm guessing that they're able to empathize with primates too, as they share ...
2
votes
0answers
45 views
What are the most well-understood vocal animal languages?
There are many examples of animal language that involve vocal pattens or "grammar".
For example, there is the the Bee dance, bird songs, whale songs, dogs.
Bird vocalization includes both bird calls ...
7
votes
1answer
87 views
Does introducing an element of play, hunt, or competition make feeding more rewarding?
I have limited experience feeding wildlife, and while it's fun to watch and I'm sure fun for the wildlife too, I'm interested in just how much fun. Is there's any noticeable difference in the ...
5
votes
1answer
75 views
Which type of stimulus results in an optimal learning curve for rats and mice?
When using operant conditioning to train mice or rats, what type of stimulus is most effective? For example, does a negative reinforcement of a loud noise have a more profound effect than a negative ...
8
votes
1answer
92 views
Does teaching a bird an artificial task like eating from a feeder hurt its performance in the wild?
Can training a wild animal through operant conditioning somehow cause the animal to forget or be unable to perform tasks which it had perviously learned?
Is it likely that training wild animals ...
7
votes
0answers
89 views
What research has been done on attachment types in other primates?
The most canonical experimental paradigm for studying human attachment styles is the Strange Situation leading to classifications such as Secure, Insecure-avoidant, and so on.
What are the equivalent ...
12
votes
1answer
183 views
Do only humans spend a lot of time daydreaming (or having “stimulus-independent thoughts”)?
A paper
Killingsworth et al., A Wandering Mind Is an Unhappy Mind, Science 12 November 2010: 932 (or a free pdf) starts with the following statement:
Unlike other animals, human beings spend
a ...
2
votes
0answers
154 views
Does the ability to manipulate your environment affect the type of intelligence?
There are several animals on earth that show certain kinds of intelligence. Some animals have extensions to manipulate their environment and some do not. Think of humans and squids (hand/extension ...
8
votes
1answer
125 views
Are there additional animal studies about superstitions?
In one particular case, Skinner decided to go random on his hungry
pigeons. He dropped food into the box at completely random times,
independent of any behavior on the part of the pigeons. But ...
7
votes
0answers
278 views
How does goal-tracking and sign-tracking behaviour vary across species?
In Pavlonian (Classical) Conditioning, conditioned responses of an animal may vary. Some animals focus on the unconditioned stimulus (ie. food / location of food) while others may focus on the ...
7
votes
1answer
211 views
How do animals recognize other animals of their own species?
My motivation for this question is dog-based, but I suppose it would apply equally well to humans. How do animals recognize their own kind, particularly where there is large variation in appearance?
...
8
votes
3answers
199 views
Is it possible to measure the working memory of a non-human animal?
Is it possible to measure the working memory of a non-human animal? And if so, have there been any studies that have quantified the working memory of animals, and that have compared that to the ...
3
votes
3answers
143 views
What are the effects of implanting electrodes into the brains of monkeys?
If one implants electrodes into a monkey's brain in order to allow the monkey to control a mechanical arm, then is the monkeys able to move both it's natural and it's mechanical arms at once?
What ...
8
votes
2answers
296 views
What do the super-large brains of whales and elephants map to?
Elephants and whales have brains that are much larger than those of humans. It is presumed that much of their brain is used up for their larger bodies (after all, there is a allometric scaling between ...
