Short Wave The "Barcodes" Powering These Tiny Songbirds' Memories May Also Help Human Memory
Apr 5, 2024
Explore the remarkable memory skills of tiny black-capped chickadees, who use neural patterns like barcodes to remember food stash locations. Researchers draw fascinating parallels between avian and human memory. The lively hosts also discuss emotion-predicting robots and their quirky connections to poetry, revealing a world where science meets creativity. Plus, they highlight an annual haiku challenge centered around often-overlooked arthropods, inviting listeners to appreciate the beauty and diversity of nature.
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Chickadee Memory
- Black-capped chickadees have remarkable memories, hiding seeds in numerous locations and retrieving them later.
- Their brain activity in the hippocampus, crucial for memory, fires in unique patterns, likened to barcodes, for each hiding spot.
Smiling Robot
- Emo, a robotic face, uses AI to learn and anticipate human smiles.
- It observes hours of YouTube footage and its own reflection, aiming to bridge the "uncanny valley" in human-robot interaction.
Insects in Haiku
- Haiku often feature insects, with butterflies and moths being the most common subjects.
- A study analyzed haikus referencing arthropods, finding aquatic insects underrepresented despite their ecological importance.