scholarly journals Ant collective cognition allows for efficient navigation through disordered environments

eLife ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aviram Gelblum ◽  
Ehud Fonio ◽  
Yoav Rodeh ◽  
Amos Korman ◽  
Ofer Feinerman
Keyword(s):  
Percolation Theory ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Group Living ◽  
Disordered Media ◽  
Environmental Challenges ◽  
Sensing Range ◽  
Collective Cognition ◽  
Collective Navigation ◽  
Ant In A Labyrinth ◽  
Biological Organisms

The cognitive abilities of biological organisms only make sense in the context of their environment. Here, we study longhorn crazy ant collective navigation skills within the context of a semi-natural, randomized environment. Mapping this biological setting into the ‘Ant-in-a-Labyrinth’ framework which studies physical transport through disordered media allows us to formulate precise links between the statistics of environmental challenges and the ants’ collective navigation abilities. We show that, in this environment, the ants use their numbers to collectively extend their sensing range. Although this extension is moderate, it nevertheless allows for extremely fast traversal times that overshadow known physical solutions to the ‘Ant-in-a-Labyrinth’ problem. To explain this large payoff, we use percolation theory and prove that whenever the labyrinth is solvable, a logarithmically small sensing range suffices for extreme speedup. Overall, our work demonstrates the potential advantages of group living and collective cognition in increasing a species’ habitable range.

scholarly journals An intraspecific appraisal of the social intelligence hypothesis

2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1756) ◽  
pp. 20170288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin J. Ashton ◽  
Alex Thornton ◽  
Amanda R. Ridley
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Social Intelligence ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
Group Living ◽  
Cognitive Evolution ◽  
Theme Issue ◽  
Social Intelligence Hypothesis ◽  
Developmental Factors ◽  
Cognitive Research ◽  
The Social

The prevailing hypotheses for the evolution of cognition focus on either the demands associated with group living (the social intelligence hypothesis (SIH)) or ecological challenges such as finding food. Comparative studies testing these hypotheses have generated highly conflicting results; consequently, our understanding of the drivers of cognitive evolution remains limited. To understand how selection shapes cognition, research must incorporate an intraspecific approach, focusing on the causes and consequences of individual variation in cognition. Here, we review the findings of recent intraspecific cognitive research to investigate the predictions of the SIH. Extensive evidence from our own research on Australian magpies ( Cracticus tibicen dorsalis ), and a number of other taxa, suggests that individuals in larger social groups exhibit elevated cognitive performance and, in some cases, elevated reproductive fitness. Not only do these findings demonstrate how the social environment has the potential to shape cognitive evolution, but crucially, they demonstrate the importance of considering both genetic and developmental factors when attempting to explain the causes of cognitive variation. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Causes and consequences of individual differences in cognitive abilities’.

scholarly journals Exploring the quality of pre-service teachers’ critical analysis of cartoons within environmental contexts in the Life Sciences

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajendran P. Pillay ◽  
Samantha Govender
Keyword(s):  
Teaching Methods ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Life Sciences ◽  
Environmental Issues ◽  
Environmental Challenges ◽  
Case Study Design ◽  
Analytical Thinking ◽  
Residential University

The world is presently facing a myriad of environmental challenges. One way to address these challenges is through the development of cognitive abilities to analyse environmental issues and respond to them appropriately. There are a number of approaches used in education processes to develop the cognitive abilities of students; one of them is the use of conceptual or reasoning cartoons. This article reports on an exploratory study of the quality of pre-service teachers’ cognitive abilities in the analysis of three conceptual cartoons depicting real environmental challenges. The study was interpretivist in nature and followed a case study design. The participants were a convenient sample of students (n = 32) at year level three, at a Southern African residential university, doing a Life Science’s teaching methods module. Students were required to analyse three environmental cartoons which they had not previously seen or discussed. The responses were coded according to the basic analytical steps of critical thinking and analysed qualitatively and quantitatively. The results showed that most responses were framed as descriptions of the cartoon rather than higher order analytical thinking; most students were unable to follow a sequence of analytical thinking; presentation of cognition was textual; and most pre-service teachers’ responses were phrased in a way that made it seem as if they were not part of the environmental issue. It is recommended that Life Sciences’ methodology pre-service teachers be categorically developed in analytical thinking of environmental issues, as they have a crucial role to play as future citizens.

scholarly journals Individual Learning Phenotypes Drive Collective Cognition

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chelsea N. Cook ◽  
Natalie J. Lemanski ◽  
Thiago Mosqueiro ◽  
Cahit Ozturk ◽  
Jürgen Gadau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Cognitive Task ◽  
Learning Behavior ◽  
Collective Cognition ◽  
Individual Cognition ◽  
Collective Foraging ◽  
Familiar Stimuli ◽  
Bee Colonies

AbstractVariation in cognition can influence how individuals respond to and communicate about their environment, which may scale to shape how a collective solves a cognitive task. However, few empirical examples of variation in collective cognition emerges from variation in individual cognition exist. Here, we show that interactions among individuals that differ in the performance of a cognitive task drives collective foraging behavior in honey bee colonies by utilizing a naturally variable and heritable learning behavior called latent inhibition (LI). We artificially selected two distinct phenotypes: high LI bees that are better at ignoring previously unrewarding familiar stimuli, and low LI bees that can learn previously unrewarding and novel stimuli equally well. We then provided colonies composed of these distinct phenotypes with a choice between a familiar feeder or a novel feeder. Colonies of high LI individuals preferred to visit familiar food locations, while low LI colonies visited novel and familiar food locations equally. However, in colonies of mixed learning phenotypes, the low LI bees showed a preference to visiting familiar feeders, which contrasts with their behavior when in a uniform low LI group. We show that the shift in feeder preference of low LI bees is driven by foragers of the high LI phenotype dancing more intensely and attracting more followers. Our results reveal that cognitive abilities of individuals and their interactions drive emergent collective outcomes.Significance StatementVariation in individual cognition affects how animals perceive their environment and which information they share with others. Here we provide empirical evidence that how individual honey bees learn contributes to collective cognition of a colony. By creating colonies of distinct learning phenotypes, we evaluated how bees make foraging choices in the field. Colonies containing individuals that learn to ignore unimportant information preferred familiar food locations, however colonies of individuals that are unable to ignore familiar information visit novel and familiar feeders equally. A 50/50 mix of these phenotypes prefer familiar food locations, because individuals who learn the familiar location recruit nestmates by dancing more intensely. Our results reveal that variation in individual cognition scales non-linearly to shape collective outcomes.

scholarly journals Wild acorn woodpeckers recognize associations between individuals in other groups

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1882) ◽  
pp. 20181017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A. Pardo ◽  
Emilee A. Sparks ◽  
Tejal S. Kuray ◽  
Natasha D. Hagemeyer ◽  
Eric L. Walters ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Social Intelligence ◽  
Group Living ◽  
Substantial Effect ◽  
Social Intelligence Hypothesis ◽  
The Social ◽  
Melanerpes Formicivorus ◽  
Acorn Woodpeckers

According to the social intelligence hypothesis, understanding the cognitive demands of the social environment is key to understanding the evolution of intelligence. Many important socio-cognitive abilities, however, have primarily been studied in a narrow subset of the social environment—within-group social interactions—despite the fact that between-group social interactions often have a substantial effect on fitness. In particular, triadic awareness (knowledge about the relationships and associations between others) is critical for navigating many types of complex social interactions, yet no existing study has investigated whether wild animals can track associations between members of other social groups. We investigated inter-group triadic awareness in wild acorn woodpeckers ( Melanerpes formicivorus ), a socially complex group-living bird. We presented woodpeckers with socially incongruous playbacks that simulated two outsiders from different groups calling together, and socially congruous playbacks that simulated two outsiders from the same group calling together. Subjects responded more quickly to the incongruous playbacks, suggesting that they were aware that the callers belonged to two different groups. This study provides the first demonstration that animals can recognize associations between members of other groups under natural circumstances, and highlights the importance of considering how inter-group social selection pressures may influence the evolution of cognition.

Bridging the gap: Dynamics as a unified view of cognition

2001 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek Harter ◽  
Arthur C. Graesser ◽  
Stan Franklin
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Gap Dynamics ◽  
Dynamical Models ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Computational Approaches ◽  
Unified View ◽  
The One ◽  
Biological Organisms

Top-down dynamical models of cognitive processes, such as the one presented by Thelen et al., are important pieces in understanding the development of cognitive abilities in humans and biological organisms. Unlike standard symbolic computational approaches to cognition, such dynamical models offer the hope that they can be connected with more bottom-up, neurologically inspired dynamical models to provide a complete view of cognition at all levels. We raise some questions about the details of their simulation and about potential limitations of top-down dynamical models.

scholarly journals No evidence for larger brains in cooperatively breeding cichlid fishes

2016 ◽  
Vol 94 (5) ◽  
pp. 373-378 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam R. Reddon ◽  
Constance M. O’Connor ◽  
Isaac Y. Ligocki ◽  
Jennifer K. Hellmann ◽  
Susan E. Marsh-Rollo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Cooperative Breeding ◽  
Group Living ◽  
Cognitive Capacity ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Brain Mass ◽  
Cichlid Species ◽  
Multiple Group ◽  
The Social ◽  
Cooperatively Breeding

The social brain hypothesis posits that frequent social interactions, characteristic of group living species, select for greater socio-cognitive abilities and the requisite neural machinery. An extension of the social brains hypothesis, known as the cooperative breeding brain hypothesis, postulates that cooperatively breeding species, which live in stable social groups and provide allocare, face particularly pronounced cognitive demands because they must recognize, remember, and differentially respond to multiple group members. These socio-cognitive challenges are thought to have selected for increased cognitive capacity, supported by a bigger brain. To test the prediction that cooperative breeders have larger brains, we performed a phylogenetically controlled comparison of the whole brain masses of adult fish from 16 closely related species of cooperatively and independently breeding lamprologine cichlid species from Lake Tanganyika. We collected data on brain mass from males of eight species of lamprologine cichlids and added this to brain mass data from eight more species found in the published literature. Controlling for body size and phylogeny, we found that cooperative breeding species did not have larger brains, and this was true of for both our field-collected data set and the expanded data set including published values. This study adds to a growing body of literature from other taxa that cast doubt on the cooperative breeding brain hypothesis.

Affiliative Contact Calls during Group Travel: Chirp and Wail Vocalization Use in the Male Ring-Tailed Lemur (Lemur catta)

2020 ◽  
Vol 91 (6) ◽  
pp. 575-594
Author(s):  
Laura M. Bolt
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Dominance Rank ◽  
Group Living ◽  
Lemur Catta ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Social Lives ◽  
Spatial Cohesion ◽  
Contact Calls ◽  
Insight Into

Affiliative vocalizations occur across primate taxa and may be used to maintain spatial cohesion and/or to regulate social interactions in group-living species. For gregarious strepsirhines like the ring-tailed lemur (<i>Lemur catta</i>), with large vocal repertoires and several distinct affiliative vocalizations including the chirp and wail, it is important to understand behavioural usage of these vocalizations to gain insight into their social interactions. To determine whether chirp and wail vocalizations facilitate group cohesion, regulate interactions to achieve socially positive outcomes, and are correlated with differences in individual characteristics such as dominance rank and age, I collected 565 h of focal data on 31 males aged ≥1 year at Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar, from March to July 2010. I found that chirp and wail vocalizations occurred at the highest rates during group-wide travel compared to other behaviours. Although nearest neighbour distance did not influence calling rate, focal animals maintained the same distance or were located closer to nearest neighbours after calling. Both chirp and wail calls were heard in behavioural contexts without agonism rather than agonistic contexts. No relationship was found between male calling rate and dominance rank or age, although the chirp showed a non-significant tendency to be produced at higher rates by younger males. Overall, my results indicated that ring-tailed lemur males of all ages and dominance ranks used both chirp and wail vocalizations as contact calls during group-wide travel events, helping individuals maintain proximity to other group members during movement. Chirp and wail vocalizations may additionally help regulate the caller’s social interactions and promote increased tolerance from conspecifics. These findings add to our understanding of the breadth of communication behaviour in wild lemurs, thus furthering our knowledge of the social lives and cognitive abilities of strepsirhines. Through examining the complexity of vocalization use by a living lemur species with a communication system much like early social primates, we gain broad insight into the evolution of primate sociality.

scholarly journals Перколяционный переход в углеродном композите на основе фуллеренов и терморасширенного графита

2018 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 202
Author(s):  
В.И. Берёзкин ◽  
В.В. Попов
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Percolation Theory ◽  
Adsorption Process ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Carbon Composite ◽  
Relative Content ◽  
Exfoliated Graphite ◽  
Disordered Media ◽  
Sharp Transition ◽  
Conductive State

AbstractThe electrical conductivity of a carbon composite on the basis of C_60 fullerenes and exfoliated graphite is investigated in the range of relative contents of components from 0 to 100%. The samples are obtained by the thermal treatment of the initial dispersed mixtures in vacuum in the diffusion–adsorption process and their further cold pressing. The resistivity of the samples gradually increases with an increase in the fraction of fullerenes, and a sharp transition from the conductive state to the dielectric one is observed after achieving certain concentrations of C_60. The interpretation of the results within the percolation theory makes it possible to evaluate the percolation threshold (expressed as a relative content of graphite) as equal to 4.45 wt % and the critical conductivity index as equal to 1.85 (which is typical for three-dimensional twocomponent disordered media including those having pores).

scholarly journals RAVENO SPALVOTŲ PROGRESUOJANČIŲ MATRICŲ STANDARTIZACIJA LIETUVOJE

Psichologija ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 32 ◽  
pp. 22-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gražina Gintilienė ◽  
Dovilė Butkienė
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Item Analysis ◽  
Age Factors ◽  
Group Living ◽  
Progressive Increase ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Place Of Residence ◽  
Factors Affecting

J. C. Raveno 1947 metais sukurtos Spalvotos progresuojančios matricos (Coloured Progressive Matrices, toliau CPM) plačiai taikomos pasaulyje 5–11 metų vaikų neverbaliniams arba produktyviesiems gebėjimams vertinti. Šiame straipsnyje, remdamosi 2004 metais atlikto reprezentacinės 6–11 metų Lietuvos vaikų imties (n = 1067) tyrimo rezultatais, pirmą kartą pristatome lietuviškąsias CPM normas, kurios skiriasi nuo britiškų bei amerikietiškų. Atliekant CPM standartizaciją dalijimo pusiau ir vidinio suderinamumo metodu buvo patvirtintas CPM patikimumas ir turinio validumas. Įvertindamos veiksnius, galėjusius turėti įtakos CPM rezultatams, nustatėme, kad aplinkos veiksniai (vaiko gyvenamoji vieta ir tėvų išsilavinimas) yra kur kas reikšmingesni vaiko neverbalinių gebėjimų raidai nei biologinis lyties veiksnys. Straipsnyje pristatomi rezultatai leidžia teigti, kad sudarytas CPM normas galima naudoti vaiko neverbaliniams gebėjimams vertinti formalizuotos atrankos tikslais.Pagrindiniai žodžiai: spalvotos progresuojančios matricos, neverbaliniai gebėjimai, Lietuvos vaikai, aplinkos veiksniai, lytis. A LITHUANIAN STANDARTIZATION OF THE RAVEN’S COLOURED PROGRESSIVE MATRICESGražina Gintilienė, Dovilė Butkienė SummaryThis study established for the first time a Lithuanian standardisation of the Raven’s Coloured Progressive Matrices (CPM) a nonverbal instrument widely used in the world to assess productive abilities of young children. A representative sample of 1067 Lithuanian children between ages six and eleventh was tested after selecting a stratified sample of schools/kindergartens by place of residence and language of instruction in year 2004. Within schools, sampling was carried out randomly within age and gender groups including special needs children receiving education services within mainstream schools. The sample for age 6 included children who were not attending school as well as those who were at school or in kindergartens. Social demographic and academic information on children was gathered using parents questionnaire. Means and Standard deviations were generated at half a year intervals between age 5 years and 9 months to 11 years 2 months. Based on these calculations, smoothed percentile scores by age were derived. Data analysis based on methods of internal consistency, item analysis and comparison of data between different groups of children showed adequate psychometric properties of the Raven’s CPM. The variables of gender, age and SES were used for the data analysis. The gender differences in CPM scores were minimal and not significant. The significant correlation between age and CPM means confirmed expectation that raw scores of children should increase with age. Factors affecting CPM results were place of residence and level of parent’s education. The means of CPM scores of children groups living in different areas showed that rural children were lower than the group living in the big towns. A progressive increase in CPM score means according to parents educational level was obtained. These data suggest looking at SES variables in home and school environment that may affect the opportunity to develop child’s cognitive abilities. Using current data the CPM appears to be reliable and valid instrument for use in screening Lithuanian children.Keywords: Coloured, Progressive Matrices, nonverbal abilities, Lithuanian children, environmental factors, gender. 

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