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Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
81–90 of 139 posts
Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#82A bunch of anecdotal evidence follows: There's this popular notion that humans are fundamentally different beings to everything else, which I believe is just a form of narcissism. If intelligence is used to navigate the world, then it is derived FROM the world, and your role is to be able to use those facts in your mind to change the world. I'm sure a wolf is as, or more, intelligent at surviving in the wild, with th…
In the same vein, I always wondered if
* the vast majority (including me) are not really very intelligent. We have a lot of "state" that's transferred from generation to generation. Once in a while, a very small percentage of people make advances and they filter through society and improves (or maybe just changes) the state. We collectively gives humans credit for these improvements but it's not the species but those specific people who created that jump in capabilities.
* this notion of inherited pride or inherited achievement is very common. This leads to being proud of membership in a group (country, religion, tribe, corporation, university etc.) and also of instinctively rejecting ideas put forth by others (e.g. see the amount of derision vegetarians and especially vegans attract).
* achievement/progress is also time-scale dependent. While we get smug about our progress, if it ends up destroying the one planet we have, it will be incredibly stupid. Humans fundamentally are not capable of thinking long-term.
Everything around me was not made by me. I don't even understand how I would potentially make most of these from scratch without using machines made by other people or knowledge acquired over time (see first bullet above). Within the framework provided to me, I can convince myself to reason and act but the framework itself is my operating system. Of course, I like to think I am intelligent and reasoning but it's all in a box. I feel this describes almost everyone I know except for a few outstanding scientists I have worked with.
Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#83When I think of insects, I see them as tiny microcontrollers. In my head bees have a little shift register to measure time. While ants have control over each limb, they mostly move by rotating two tripods one at a time. It's like they turn on an output for three legs, turn off the output, and then turn on the output for the other three legs. Ants can walk backward, though, so perhaps it is more like a half-bridge rec…
I don't know much about insects, but spiders at least seem to be much more than mere automatons. The way jumping spiders are aware of their environment makes them feel much closer to a dog than to a microcontroller.
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Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#84Earlier quoted context omitted.
You can play it in a browser: https://archive.org/details/msdos_SimAnt_-_The_Electronic_An...
Oh cool! I am doing the tutorial and it told me to click on "MAP" which I did, and then nothing happened. :( Any ideas?
Did it say to click on map or Window menu -> map?
Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#85Earlier quoted context omitted.
Growing up on a farm taught me that animals are absolutely able to think and learn. Not in the same way as humans, but I'm fully convinced there are degrees of consciousness. Watching new calves play in spring meadows is one of the most purely joyful things you can ever see. They have best friends and will avoid playing with other calves until their friend comes to play with them.
There’s a part of me that speculates that the kashrut laws are meant to rule out eating the most intelligent animals (pigs, cetaceans, cephalopods).
Interesting! I'd never thought of that.
Still, though... bivalves?
Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#86I think it's a bit of a stretch to say flashing lights are a stimulus bees have never seen before. Branches, leaves etc swing in the wind and oscillate letting sunlight through at intervals this causing the perception of flashing lights.
Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#87Earlier quoted context omitted.
Oh cool! I am doing the tutorial and it told me to click on "MAP" which I did, and then nothing happened. :( Any ideas?
Did it say to click on map or Window menu -> map? https://i.imgur.com/LbCx8jQ.png
Window menu -> MAP, so I assumed it was "MAP". Where is the "Window menu" exactly?
Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#88Cats know to wait too. So they must have some concept of time.
Yep, we have a timed feeder; they go to it a few minutes before it dispenses and ten stare at it; never at another time.
Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#89Earlier quoted context omitted.
Did it say to click on map or Window menu -> map? https://i.imgur.com/LbCx8jQ.png
Window menu -> MAP, so I assumed it was "MAP". Where is the "Window menu" exactly?
It's at the top of the game window: https://i.imgur.com/xqh2rrY.png
Re: Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects
#90Earlier quoted context omitted.
There’s a part of me that speculates that the kashrut laws are meant to rule out eating the most intelligent animals (pigs, cetaceans, cephalopods).
Interesting! I'd never thought of that. Still, though... bivalves?
I think shellfish was more unambiguously a food safety thing