New research published in Royal Society: Open Science shows that it is possible to train sheep to distinguish between different human faces shown in photos. In fact, 8 out of 10 times, the sheep were able to choose the image they had been trained to recognize. According to study author Dr. Jenny Morton, “…sheep have advanced face-recognition abilities, comparable with those of humans and monkeys.” Because these animals are rather […]
Here is an interesting study of bonobos that explored their relationships with helpers and hinderers.
Sea snails (Conus asprella) produce a venom that paralyzes their prey. Scientists are working towards isolating compounds from sea snail venom that they hope may lead to the production of safer pain relievers to help combat the opioid crisis.
Like many medications, general anesthetics are not without side effects. Researchers at Dalhousie University in Canada were interested in studying the effects of inhaled anesthetics on the heart. Slowed heart rate (bradycardia) is a major adverse side effect of inhaled anesthetics that can lead to death for those undergoing procedures. Because bradycardia occurs in all species of vertebrates that have been studied thus far, the researchers decided to examine how […]
Chickens are notoriously chatty animals. Although most people may only associate clucking noises with chickens, the birds make quite a variety of sounds. Poultry scientists and engineers at the University of Georgia and Georgia Institute of Technology have teamed up with farmers to try to decode the so-called “fowl language” spoken by chickens. The goal is to help farmers better understand what their animals are communicating. They recorded chicken vocalizations […]
As a dog owner, it seems to me as if my canine pal understands when I am happy or mad. But, is that seeming awareness due to my facial expressions or the tone of my voice? In a new study published in Behavioural Processes, researchers at the University of Lincoln and University of Sao Paulo attempted to unravel this mystery of how angry or happy human facial expressions might make […]
When I think of rainbow trout, the first image that comes to mind is usually something like this: In the wild, they look more like this: …not as appetizing, but a lot more fascinating. When salmonid fish like rainbow trout are in environments with limited food or space, they form social hierarchies. In one study of limited food availability, Grobler et al., found that when they placed 4 rainbow trout […]
You would think that Thanksgiving is already over when visiting most stores as there are Christmas decorations and merchandise everywhere. Reds and greens are popular colors for Christmas decorations and dog toys. However, a new study suggests that your dog may be red-green color blind. The study examined the ability of dogs to detect colors by exposing animals to a colored image on a screen and measuring the eye, head […]
And the #1 blog entry published thus far in 2017 discussed whether there was an evolutionary advantage to being stupid: —- As I was looking through the scientific literature the other day, I came across an article published in 1973, “The Evolutionary Advantages of Being Stupid.” With a title like that, how could I not read it? In this article Dr. Eugene D. Robin discussed how larger and more complex brains are […]
The #3 post so far this year explored how zebra finches reward themselves for singing well: Dopamine is an important hormone released from neurons involved in reward pathways. Researchers at Cornell University wanted to know if dopamine signaling was involved in how birds learn songs. Their findings, recently published in Science, present evidence that neurons in the brain of zebra finches do in fact decrease dopamine signals when the birds hear an […]
Life Lines by Dr. Dolittle 