Monkeys Recognize Their Pals in Photos

[The Straight Story]

Monkeys Recognize Their Pals in Photos


FRIDAY, Dec. 4 (HealthDay News) -- Monkeys can recognize photographs of other monkeys they know, proving that they can both detect differences in faces and figure out if they've seen them before, researchers report.

The study also shows that capuchin monkeys can decipher the two-dimensional nature of a photograph, the scientists authors noted.

The findings, reported by researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center at Emory University in Atlanta, are published the week of Dec. 4 in the online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

In the study, the monkeys looked at four photos, including one of a monkey they knew. They also looked at another four monkey photos, including one of a monkey they didn't know.

"This required monkeys to look at similar-looking faces and use their personal knowledge of group mates to solve the task," lead researcher Jennifer Pokorny, said in a university news release. "They readily performed the task and continued to do well when shown new pictures in color and in grayscale, as well as when presented with individuals they had never before seen in pictures, though with whom they were personally familiar."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20091205/hl_hsn/monkeysrecognizetheirpalsinphotos

[Subdivisions]

1. Duh. How much did they spend to figure that out? n/t

[izquierdista]

2. I think it's a good study

They should replicate it with birthers and see if they can recognize one of their own.

[Subdivisions]

3. Lol! Of course there is some value to the study, but anyone who has

watched a little NatGeo or Animal Planet can readily see that monkeys recognize their buds and defend against encroaching strangers.

[SallyMander]

4. Science can't advance based on what people "readily see"

Hypotheses need to be tested with manipulative experimentation. Sometimes things turn out the way one might expect, sometimes not. In any case, it's a neat study, especially because these are little capuchins and not great apes.

[ClassWarrior]

8. But these aren't "their buds." They're abstract representations of their buds.

Says a lot about perception -- primate and human.

NGU.

[tblue37]

13. Yeah--but the other part of the study concerns the ability to recognize the faces in

2 dimensions, and to distinguish between 2 dimensions and 3. IOW, it adds to our knowledge.

[imdjh]

7. I find it interesting. This because my very intelligent dog never showed any interest in watching TV

I would turn on Animal Planet dog shows to see if she would watch the TV, and she showed no interest whatsoever. Even on Animal Cops where a dog was in distress, it might as well have been the weather channel. So either my dog is really smart, smart enough to know that TV is a waste of time, or she is simply not able to process what the TV is showing.

[rfranklin]

9. My cat perks up when she hears a bird on the TV...

There was a guy who made a tape for cats of birds and I think he sold about a million copies.

[closeupready]

16. When my cat was alive, as a kitten, he would sit in my lap and watch Nature,

and I recall one day a program about big cats came on, and he perked up, and started pawing at the screen. It was sooo cute, lol. :)

[TheCowsCameHome]

17. She knew you hid the clicker.

[juno jones]

18. We used to have a cat who would watch any nature show with meercats.

He would track their movements and when they darted offscreen he would go around to the back of the TV to look for them.

Yes, he was a very weird cat. :)

[tblue37]

14. One way that we learn about how the human brain works is by

studying where and how our brain function differs from that of other animals--especially animals closely relatd to us.

It's an important line of research.

[goclark]

5. I find this so interesting because

since GW made his exit ~ I am surprised on a daily basis by the breakthoughs in Science and Medicine that are reported.

Not to say they didn't happen before but with the new positive steps with stem cell and other major developments, it's as if the Scientific Community feels alive again.

Am I wrong?

[alfredo]

6. But Southern Baptist don't recognize friends in adult bookstores.

[Fumesucker]

11. Or in the liquor store either.. n/t

[nilram]

25. But that's a different kind of monkey. -nt

[alfredo]

27. It de-evolved.

[jesus_of_suburbia]

26. .

:rofl:


:yourock:



/grew up Southern Baptist

[Fumesucker]

10. My dogs can recognize me by sight from a considerable distance..

Their reaction to seeing me approach the car (in winter, I don't leave them in the car in the heat) from seeing anyone else is markedly different.

It wouldn't surprise me if you could train a dog to recognize a person or even another dog from a photograph.

[alfredo]

12. My birds and my cat knew the sound of my car. When I got

a new car it took them a short time to learn the new car.

[Fumesucker]

15. I remember reading about someone who raised catfish..

The catfish would react wildly to the sound of the truck that brought their food to the pond, ignore any other vehicle that drove up.

Animals are smarter than a lot of us think.

I had a friend once who had never been around a dog in his life really, he told me how stupid dogs were. His sister then got a dog and after about six months the guy is telling me how smart the dog was. :)

[alfredo]

19. Predators have to be smart. Prey is dumb but numerous.

[Flubadubya]

23. My Dachshund can recognize herself in videos...

My pup loves to watch video. She will stare at one endlessly with rapt attention. However, whenever a clip of her appears she goes ape-sh*t! She will jump and whine and carry on. So, what could that mean? Why is it only when she appears in the picture does she respond so adamantly? I am sure it is because she recognizes herself. Oh, I have a little chihuahua also and when he is in a clip alone she does not react.

Go figure... :shrug:

[3waygeek]

20. Wonder if they used this photo...

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_p64gWSK-Jug/SL2VA-heiXI/AAAAAAAAAH4/TA9BadYPKLY/s400/Bush+Monkey.jpg

[hayu_lol]

21. Don't know why this seems to be a surprise...

for years, gorillas and chimps have learned sign language and have the ability to type their answers and questions for researchers.

They just don't have the equipment for speech as we recognize it.

Yet another indicator that our roots far back are linked to the same species...DNA.

[surrealAmerican]

29. Gorillas and chimps are much more cognitively advanced than monkeys.

Monkeys have not shown this much ability to deal with abstract representations before.

[laststeamtrain]

22. Monkeys throw turds at people who pass their cages at zoos. Monkeys are alright.

[mike_c]

24. not surprising....

Primates generally are excellent visual pattern matchers and social primates are excellent facial expression recognizers.

[Canuckistanian]

28. Freepers can do it

So I see no reason why the more evolved capuchin monkey shouldn't be capable of it.

[Nikki Stone1]

30. A new market for the digital camera!

I wonder if Nikon can induce a camera habit in capuchin monkeys?

[undergroundpanther]

31. my cats know what a camera is

You don't have to get their attention,they see it, they pose.They see thier own pics too,and they know.