Picture-Sorting Dogs Show Human-Like Thought

ComputerDog writes "A new study shows they can sort photographs into categories in a similar way to humans. In experiments, dogs were shown photographs of a landscape and of a dog, and were rewarded if they selected the latter using 'a paw-operated computer touch-screen'. Later they were able to correctly categorize dogs shown on an unfamiliar background landscape. '' "

Not news, dogs are smart

[module0000]

Seeing eye dogs are more intelligent than the editor of this article.

As a dog myself...

[explosivejared]

All I can say is finally! We are starting to break through the chains. We are a smart respectable species, one worthy of inclusion among the most intelligent of all. Now I know we have things to be ashamed of, like the toilet drinking, the vendettas against postal workers, the fetch syndrome, but we are working to improve ourselves. If we could just get a little help a long the way, we could make things so much better. This article is proof positive that we dogs are honorable. So please pay us respect as we pay you respect.

P.S. Thanks to all those who bow to their new photograph sorting, canine overlords, but it's really not necessary. We are a humble species and have no designs on taking over earth. Unless... a mailman should ever come into power, then of course we would have no recourse but violence. Until then, thank you but no thank you.

What about gender?

[Skapare]

Now can the dogs determine the gender of the other dog ... without having to resort to sniffing the other dog's butt?

Prior art, sort of...

[Anonymous Coward]

http://www.google.com/technology/pigeonrank.html [google.com]

Not My Dog...

[acvh]

...can't tell the difference between a dog and your leg.

Re:What?!?

[Groggnrath]

OTOH, if you could get CATS to do that, I'd be impressed.

  OTOH if you could make a cat do anything, I'd be impressed.

Re:What about gender?

[Anonymous Coward]

Head "downtown" and you'll probably have the same problem.

Again, As a Dog Myself...

[explosivejared]

I apologize for that behavior hiccup. It's just hard sometimes to control ourselves. Blame evolution not us. Your leg probably just looks "appetizing." I would suggest wearing wiskers on your pants leg or painting a picture of a rolled up newspaper on your pants leg. Either of those should alleviate the problem. Alternatively, you could try being the bigger person and speak to your dog, but I understand the deserved apprehension you might have about this.

I hope this has helped. BTW, I'm working on a gpl'ed evolutionary firmware update that moves the urge in question from the leg to the shoe, as this is less disturbing. I've tried to get rid of the trait altogether, but it's tough. A lot of the code is proprietary, and well God just doesn't like to give the darn stuff up. We're working on it though. Link to our project www.opensourceevolutionarydogimprovement.org.

Are they any good at Poker?

[davidwr]

Just asking [google.com].

Well, kinda

[gerf]

Previously it was thought that dogs could only catagorize other dogs or people by the tried and true butt sniffing technique. This experiment shows that dogs, possibly due to their proximity to human DNA, have evolved more advanced ways to perceive others.

It's hotly debated whether mosquitos have transferred blood and DNA from humans to dogs to give them this power, as there are many other methods of transmission. Needless to say, the Bird Flu has helped that process greatly among many other species, but it has yet to be shown that is has factored into the human-dog element.

As for the dog to human question you posed... Have you seen furries?

Re:It's pretty strange..

[plover]

My friend's dog outsmarted his mother. She was making a sandwich in the kitchen, and the dog wanted the sandwich in the worst way. He finally ran to the out-of-sight front door, barking like there was someone approaching. When she went to investigate, the dog circled back into the kitchen from the other way and stole the sandwich from the countertop.

So there's a dog who demonstrated an understanding of strategy, tactics, and deception. He lured her away from the food under false pretenses. He knew the back route into the kitchen was unguarded. Most importantly, he put a multi-step plan together in his little canine brain before executing it.

Humans don't have a monopoly on thought. We just have all the components of intelligence wrapped up in a meat package that can orchestrate them. If that dog had had opposable thumbs, there's no telling where it would have stopped!

Re:Or rather ...

[Oktober Sunset]

He he he, that was the perfect text to test my new Text To Speech software with.

This is why turtles copulate while moving

[rlglende]

Otherwise, they are very hard to tell from rocks

My Cat.

[rapidweather]

I have a neutered male cat named "BeBe". That's because he has a bb in his behind, put there by an obviously non-animal lover, who was handy with a Red Rider BB Gun.
Now, on the the intelligent part...
He is constantly on the lookout for "enemy cats" that want to move in on his territory. So, he has no problem with that normal cat function.
Food gathering...
Open the Refrigerator, or try and make something to eat, and he suddenly appears, telling you that he is a good cat, and deserves some of whatever you are fixing. Gets in the way, you have to step over him.
He gets "dry" cat food, it keeps, since he won't eat anything that has "Yesterday" written on it, even if it is still tasty. Mice, Rats and Squirrels are not food, they are something he kills to bring to you to bolster his case that he is, indeed, a "good cat". Still wants whatever you are having for dinner tonight.
Picture sorting?, well I didn't want to mention this, but he has a unique method for sorting the Sunday newspaper according to the advertisement flyers therein for Office Depot, Circuit City, and others that might be hawking Big Screen Televisions, or his personal favorite, those external USB Hard Drives. He's still having real difficulty telling the 160 GB ones from the 250 GB ones, but he and I are working on it. Biggest problem he seems to have is holding the Sharpie Permanent Marker pen that he likes to use to circle the Drives that he thinks I need to take a closer look at, perhaps doing some online research, to uncover any apparent bugs that any may have, that would affect the overall quality of the product. Time and Time again, BeBe has given me a "cat-o-gram" concerning the Per-GB cost factor. Big problem in the Cat World, having ones master pay too much for a given Techno-Toy, only to short the budget for necessary Veterinary care, yearly vaccinations including annual physical exams, intestinal worm tests, heartworm tests, and the all important annual wellness screens.
The Method, You Say?

1. Prepare his litter pan with newspaper advertisement flyers.
2. Wait.
3. Your results will be ready in the morning.