Baby Chicks Have Innate Mathematical Skills 184
Hugh Pickens writes "Chicks can add and subtract small numbers shortly after hatching, says Rosa Rugani at the University of Trento. Rugani reared chicks with five plastic containers of the kind found inside Kinder chocolate eggs. This meant the chicks bonded with the capsules, much as they do with their mother, making them want to be near the containers as they grew up. In one test, the researchers moved the containers back and forth behind two screens while the chicks watched. When the chicks were released into the enclosure, they headed for the screen obscuring the most containers, suggesting they had been able to keep track of the number of capsules behind each by adding and subtracting them as they moved. It is already known that many non-human primates and monkeys can count, and even domestic dogs have been found to be capable of simple additions but this is the first time the ability has been seen in such young animals, and with no prior training in problem solving of any kind."
Who would have thought (Score:5, Funny)
Chic(k) computing (Score:4, Funny)
If these guys were programmers, in 6 months we'd have a baby chick Turing machine up and running.
Don't forget. (Score:2, Funny)
What the researchers fail to consider is this experiment's youtube Adorability Factor.
That's nothing (Score:5, Funny)
We have duck called Mersenne that quacks in primes.
This calls for something. (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Chic(k) computing (Score:5, Funny)
Yah, like geeks can get any type of chick, Turing or otherwise, turned on.
Re:Chic(k) computing, oblig (Score:5, Funny)
Imagine a bewolf cluster of these.
And if you need more power, you just need to pick up more chicks.
Hot chicks are good at math? (Score:5, Funny)
I knew you Slashdot guys were cool...
cool, but... (Score:5, Funny)
can they count before they're hatched?
Interesting (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Chic(k) computing (Score:5, Funny)
http://xkcd.com/537/ [xkcd.com]
Next experiment... (Score:5, Funny)
Convince the chicks to put the containers in the incinerator.
News flash (Score:5, Funny)
Chicks dig math. Slashdot rejoices until they RTFA.
Re:This calls for something. (Score:5, Funny)
!News (Score:5, Funny)
Re:News flash (Score:5, Funny)
Slashdot rejoices until they RTFA.
So... the rejoicing continued indefinitely?
Now, for the rest of the story... (Score:2, Funny)
...but what about baby dudes?
Re:Alternate hypothesis (Score:3, Funny)
Yeah? Well vultures have great senses of smell. Maybe these were vulture chicks. I bet the scientists didn't think of that! I'm so smart.
Re:Alternate hypothesis (Score:5, Funny)
You have to get the ones that were abducted (but not eaten) by aliens which have been upgraded.