I forget who said this or exactly what they said, but someone has pointed out that the more research humans conduct the more we find that animals and even plants are more complex, more intelligent and more sophisticated than we thought. It is worth keeping this in mind the next time someone tells you a small creature (perhaps a crustacean) cannot feel or think or do something that would mean we ought to be less cruel towards them.
Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
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Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#12I had a pet jumper in my first apartment. He would follow me and my wife from room to room, wave at us, and sit by the sink when he was thirsty. We gave him water and called him Steve.
Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#13Next time you see a jumping spider, interact with it. Try to coax it to you with slow repetitive movements. Get close to it. Tap and wiggle your fingers gently. You'll likely find that they come to you. They seem to be curious on a different level than any other spider that I've interacted with (which are all garden-variety spiders in north america). They do tend to freak out if you try to take their picture with a m…
They're one of the only insects that show hunting behavior, as in pattern recognition and path planning [1], with brains so large that their esophagus has to go through it, to fit, with one of the largest brain to body rations of any animal. And, they dance [2]! Easily my favorite little critter. 1. https://roundglasssustain.com/species/portia-spiders 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qkzwG2lLPc
I’m pretty sure my esophagus goes through my brain too… the way I think about food…
Edit: I can also jump!
Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#14Now if we only engineered a retrovirus to uplift them into complex social structures and intelligence... https://a.co/d/85Wwwhi
I just finished reading Children of Time and was indeed imagining that he was looking at earlier research on this subject, because the way he describes the spiders' initial thinking skills quite echos the article. It was very fun to read from that perspective!
Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#15I saw a bold jumper [1] a few months ago and it was truly beautiful. It was quite large, black and white, and had iridescent mouthparts. It really felt like coming across a shiny Pokemon IRL.
Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#16Earlier quoted context omitted.
They're one of the only insects that show hunting behavior, as in pattern recognition and path planning [1], with brains so large that their esophagus has to go through it, to fit, with one of the largest brain to body rations of any animal. And, they dance [2]! Easily my favorite little critter. 1. https://roundglasssustain.com/species/portia-spiders 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qkzwG2lLPc
I’m pretty sure my esophagus goes through my brain too… the way I think about food… Edit: I can also jump!
Yes, but does your esophagus get pulled out every time you shed? I think not!
And, you have simple fixed zoom balls for eyes, where they have muscles that point little telescopes [3], that pivot at the eye hole, each with two lenses, allowing control of focus and magnification.
Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#17...beautiful science: people spending a career on things like "how to surprise a [spider-eating, jumping] spider"
Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#18I forget who said this or exactly what they said, but someone has pointed out that the more research humans conduct the more we find that animals and even plants are more complex, more intelligent and more sophisticated than we thought. It is worth keeping this in mind the next time someone tells you a small creature (perhaps a crustacean) cannot feel or think or do something that would mean we ought to be less cruel…
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Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#19...beautiful science: people spending a career on things like "how to surprise a [spider-eating, jumping] spider"
Agreed. I genuinely find this so much more meaningful than working on the next software buzz to help companies that are too big make even more money by tracking users even more.
Re: Researchers find signs of intelligence among jumping spiders
#20Next time you see a jumping spider, interact with it. Try to coax it to you with slow repetitive movements. Get close to it. Tap and wiggle your fingers gently. You'll likely find that they come to you. They seem to be curious on a different level than any other spider that I've interacted with (which are all garden-variety spiders in north america). They do tend to freak out if you try to take their picture with a m…
The spiders are reacting the the infrared light used to focus the phone camera.