Amateur Ornithology - Part Two: Problem-Solving Crows and Other Animals
Alrighty then, where were we? Oh yeah, we were talking about stuffing the most stuff (maxima) in a fixed area or volume, (including a crow's beak)... Let's take another look
at the crow with the efficiently-stored french fries...
Without drowning in the "Sea of Epistemology" (the philosophy of thought), it's important to understand the difference between instinctual behavior and genuine thinking. An example of instinctual behavior would be that of baby robins clamoring for a worm from mom. Those who fight for the worm get the worm, grow up, breed, and pass along the "fight for the worm when you're a chick" gene; those young who don't fight for the worm die in the nest. That's classic Darwinian "survival of the fittest" instinct, and not "thinking per se". The hallmark of thinking is the ability for a mind (organic or inorganic) to be repeatedly faced with a wholly new class or flavor of problem and solve that problem in a reasonable and timely fashion. The crow with the french fries is clearly solving a problem with great order and speed... Ditto for the one below, who is trying to find/make the largest hunk of pizza that he can get airborne. (It's hilarious to watch the crows hopping up and down, testing their load before finally taking wing!)
So what are the repercussions of thinking crows? Well, two spooky ones come to mind.
See you by those Mensa feeders,
CapeCodAlan
Without drowning in the "Sea of Epistemology" (the philosophy of thought), it's important to understand the difference between instinctual behavior and genuine thinking. An example of instinctual behavior would be that of baby robins clamoring for a worm from mom. Those who fight for the worm get the worm, grow up, breed, and pass along the "fight for the worm when you're a chick" gene; those young who don't fight for the worm die in the nest. That's classic Darwinian "survival of the fittest" instinct, and not "thinking per se". The hallmark of thinking is the ability for a mind (organic or inorganic) to be repeatedly faced with a wholly new class or flavor of problem and solve that problem in a reasonable and timely fashion. The crow with the french fries is clearly solving a problem with great order and speed... Ditto for the one below, who is trying to find/make the largest hunk of pizza that he can get airborne. (It's hilarious to watch the crows hopping up and down, testing their load before finally taking wing!)
So what are the repercussions of thinking crows? Well, two spooky ones come to mind.
- The first has to do with how crows swipe popcorn. Initially, they scatter it out, and then they study it. Finally, they carefully "pack" it into their beaks. The weird part is that popcorn is pretty much a randomly shaped cargo, and still crows are very adept at storing the most "bang for the beak" if you will. And that leads into the voodoo world of "fuzzy sets and fuzzy logic" in which complex problems are the stuff of the vague.
- The second spooky repercussion has to do with the possible personality behind such intellects... Consider Toby, our cat.
Let's just say that Toby is... Ahhh... Ummm... Well... Toby is both "cognitively and courageously challenged". (He runs into things repeatedly, refuses to eat seafood but likes to eat string, and Mrs. CapeCodAlan's sneezes scare the snot out of him. After three years of practice, he still struggles to open a door that has been left ajar.) Given that as a backdrop, Toby does something that makes absolutely no Darwinian sense. When the wife sneezes, the cat initially starts to run away, but skulks back. There isn't a reason on earth for Toby to do this... (Suzie isn't the male alpha in the house... The situation is threatening to him... It's clearly not an issue of curiosity, but rather that of concern...) In short, Toby chooses to do an unselfish and loving thing. So, if Toby has the character and personality to do that... What about clever birds like crows?
See you by those Mensa feeders,
CapeCodAlan
Comments
There is too a reason Toby runs when Suz sneezes!! I'd run too for fear of getting flying green boogies all over me! =) Good boy Toby! He sure knows what he's doing and is the smart one there!
Posted by: Jen | August 13, 2007 10:32 AM
Jen: you've obviously never experienced a Mrs. CCA sneeze! It is the most refined, whisper of a sneeze ever! More physical than audible. That it would startle, much less alarm, Toby -- or anyone else -- is quite astonishing.
Posted by: Kathy | August 13, 2007 3:26 PM
My name is Kaitlin and I work for NowPublic.com. I'm adding photos to a story one of our members posted about experiments performed on crows to gauge their intelligence that found the crows showed similar intelligence levels to apes. I'd like to use your photo of crows to help add context to this story.
NowPublic is a news sharing community that relies on stories, photos, & videos from people like you.
Would you be interested in sharing your work with our members? If so, or to learn more about this request please click the link below.
Thanks,
Kaitlin
{CCA here... Parts of Kaitlin's comment has been removed to protect her privacy, and that of her company as well...
My reply to Kaitlin follows...
Hi Kaitlin,
Great to hear from you!
I checked out www.nowpublic.com... By all means, use the photos.
While the number of pictures that I've put on Flickr creeps towards 1,500, there are others that I haven't put up... Currently, there are 212 crow pics available on Flickr.
If I can be of help, just shout... I'm very fortunate to have the NovaBird automatic remote camera system (which allows for a 15" focal length). Also, I have a 2-year degree in Psych (focus on Adolescent Behavior and Communication) and a 4-year degree in Engineering (Computer). (Put another way, experiments and cognitive functioning "gun my motor".)
Anyway,
Keep me posted,
Alan Speakman (aka CapeCodAlan)
capecodalan@ebirdseed.com
}
Posted by: Kaitlin | August 16, 2007 11:46 PM