Friday, May 1, 2009
Science News from the Animal Kingdom
Posted by Charles Mudede on Fri, May 1, 2009 at 9:59 AM
Humans lose yet another line of defense/distinction:
Researchers at Harvard University have found that humans aren’t the only ones who can groove to a beat — some other species can dance, too. The capability was previously believed to be specific to humans. The research team found that only species that can mimic sound seem to be able to keep a beat, implying an evolutionary link between the two capacities.After dancing, what's left for us to be us and not one of them? Meet you at the crossroads, Alex....Schachner and her colleagues closely studied Alex, a well-known African grey parrot who passed away shortly after the study, and Snowball, a sulphur-crested cockatoo whose humanlike dancing behavior has led to online fame.
“Our analyses showed that these birds’ movements were more lined up with the musical beat than we’d expect by chance,” says Schachner. “We found strong evidence that they were synchronizing with the beat, something that has not been seen before in other species.”
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2
see you at the crossroadscrossroadscrossroads
so you won't be loooooooooooooonelllyyyyyyyy
see you at the crossroadscrossroadscrossroads
so you won't be loooooooooooooonelllyyyyyyyy
see you at the crossroadscrossroadscrossroads
5
We is one of them.
Only diff is (a) we got the upper hand, that's all, and (b) we are fearful enough and smart enough to need and be able to make up a bunch of myths/lies to justify our dominance ... the belief we are unique....we use tools, we use language, we emote, we plan, we marry, we dance, whatever.
Only diff is (a) we got the upper hand, that's all, and (b) we are fearful enough and smart enough to need and be able to make up a bunch of myths/lies to justify our dominance ... the belief we are unique....we use tools, we use language, we emote, we plan, we marry, we dance, whatever.
6
As PC said, We are them.
We're humans, we're apes, we're monkeys, we're primates, we're mammals, we're vertabrates, we're animals, we're life. There's no meaningful definition of any of those terms that we do not fit.
We're humans, we're apes, we're monkeys, we're primates, we're mammals, we're vertabrates, we're animals, we're life. There's no meaningful definition of any of those terms that we do not fit.
8
This is news? What dumbfuck doesn't know other animals dig music?
We're not even the only animals that make music.
We're not even the only animals that make music.
10
The breakthrough, however, is that African Grey parrots are now proven to dance to bloghouse, which had been thoroughly rejected by the rest of the animal kingdom.
11
The most hilarious thing about Crossroads is that my sister's graduating class at her white trash high school used it as their theme song
lol
lol
12
I'm a big fan of Alex. He coined the term "corknut" for almond, which is pretty cool (because it's a nut that looks like a cork when it's in the shell).
But the real star of this story is Snowball:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/s…
But the real star of this story is Snowball:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/s…
15
Recursion and discrete infinity in language. That's it. check the first thing that comes up when you google chomsky hauser fitch
16
African Grays are sooo damn social and smart.
A bit too much so for captivity.
I wonder if Song & Dance is always just one stop past Despair.
A bit too much so for captivity.
I wonder if Song & Dance is always just one stop past Despair.
17
We have a parakeet named Fernando that goes apeshit whenever he hears Sympathy for the Devil.
We got him a new friend, and when we caged them together they stayed on opposite sides, eyeing each other suspiciously.
This went on for a few hours until I played the song. Fernando got a little excited. He chirped. The new bird chirped back. Before the end of the song, they were sitting next to each other making tons of noise. Now they're best buds.
We got him a new friend, and when we caged them together they stayed on opposite sides, eyeing each other suspiciously.
This went on for a few hours until I played the song. Fernando got a little excited. He chirped. The new bird chirped back. Before the end of the song, they were sitting next to each other making tons of noise. Now they're best buds.
21
Further evidence that the only real difference between "us" and "them" is our ability to contemplate our own mortality.
23
Thank you, Max, for not making me explain it. Having toured with both the Stones and Lou Reed, I can assure you that the Stones' colored girls do indeed go "woo woo;" Lou's colored girls go "doo de doo de doo, doo de doo doo." Cue the saxophone.
25
Once again, I have to call bullshit on the "no animal has ever been known to do this before". TONS of animals do rhythmic stuff, from bobbing to thumping to calling.
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