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WellBeing International

Cognition

2011

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Cerebral Lateralization Determines Hand Preferences In Australian Parrots, Culum Brown, Maria Magat Aug 2011

Cerebral Lateralization Determines Hand Preferences In Australian Parrots, Culum Brown, Maria Magat

Sentience Collection

Individual preference for the use of one limb over the other to explore the environment or manipulate objects is common trait among vertebrates. Here, we explore the hypothesis that limb preference is determined by the engagement of a particular cerebral hemisphere to analyse certain stimuli. We recorded the eye and foot preferences of 322 individuals from 16 species of Australian parrots while investigating potential food items. Across all species, eye preferences explained 99 per cent of the variation in foot use in Australian parrots. The vast majority of species showed significant relationships between eye and foot preferences at the population …


Pantomime In Great Apes: Evidence And Implications, Ann E. Russon, Kristin Andrews Jan 2011

Pantomime In Great Apes: Evidence And Implications, Ann E. Russon, Kristin Andrews

Sentience Collection

We recently demonstrated, by mining observational data, that forest-living orangutans can communicate using gestures that qualify as Pantomime. Pantomimes, like other iconic gestures, physically resemble their referents. More elaborately, pantomimes involve enacting their referents. Holding thumb and finger together at the lips and blowing between them to mean balloon is one example. Here we sketch evidence of pantomime in other great apes, methodological concerns, and sophisticated cognitive capabilities that great ape pantomimes suggest.


The Canine Sand Maze: An Appetitive Spatial Memory Paradigm Sensitive To Age-Related Change In Dogs, Hannah Salvin, Paul D. Mcgreevy, Perminder S. Sachdev, Michael Valenzuela Jan 2011

The Canine Sand Maze: An Appetitive Spatial Memory Paradigm Sensitive To Age-Related Change In Dogs, Hannah Salvin, Paul D. Mcgreevy, Perminder S. Sachdev, Michael Valenzuela

Spatial Cognition Collection

Aged dogs exhibit a spectrum of cognitive abilities including a syndrome similar to Alzheimer's disease. A major impediment to research so far has been the lack of a quick and accurate test of visuospatial memory appropriate for community-based animals. We therefore report on the development and validation of the Canine Sand Maze. A 4.5-m-diameter circular pool was filled with a sand and powdered food reward mix to a depth of 10 cm. Dogs were given 4 habituation and 16 learning trials which alternated a food reward being half (control trials) or fully-buried (acquisition trials) in a fixed location. After a …