11-05-2023, 04:40 PM
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023...n-research
Whether dreaming of a white Christmas or simply pondering how best to rearrange the furniture, humans are able to conjure up myriad situations that are not in front of us. Now it seems rats may be able to do something similar.
Researchers have found that rats can navigate their way through a space they have previously explored using their thoughts alone, suggesting the rodents have some sort of imagination.
Chongxi Lai, the first author of the study from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Janelia Research Campus, said the study was the first to show animals can, at will, flexibly activate the brain’s representations of places that are distant from where they currently are.
Wow . Even if this is only for visualising geographical locations, and it isn't as deep as a human imagination, it's still rather impressive!
I wonder if they can imagine anything else?
Whether dreaming of a white Christmas or simply pondering how best to rearrange the furniture, humans are able to conjure up myriad situations that are not in front of us. Now it seems rats may be able to do something similar.
Researchers have found that rats can navigate their way through a space they have previously explored using their thoughts alone, suggesting the rodents have some sort of imagination.
Chongxi Lai, the first author of the study from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Janelia Research Campus, said the study was the first to show animals can, at will, flexibly activate the brain’s representations of places that are distant from where they currently are.
Wow . Even if this is only for visualising geographical locations, and it isn't as deep as a human imagination, it's still rather impressive!
I wonder if they can imagine anything else?
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