Finally Proof!

[Phyllis]

I have always said ratties are smarter than dog, well here is some proof, now my Hubby doesn't want to pay up on or bet it's not that i don't like doggies, it just I have had them both for pets, & I know which one is cleaner, cuter, & way smarter just being them selves, not including all these trained dogs, Tee Hee i Hope no one gets mad at me!

Rats Are Really Smart
- If you had any doubts about it...
By: Vlad Tarko, Senior Editor, Sci-Tech News

Rats are a bunch of intelligent creatures. For one thing, you can see it on their face. But if you want a more objective proof now it's available. Scientists managed to demonstrate that rats understand causal relations and that they cannot be fooled by a mere coincidence of events.

Scientists believed for a long time that the ability of understanding causality was specific only to humans and maybe also to some of the higher
primates. Anthony Dickinson, an experimental psychologist at the University of Cambridge, U.K., said that the mainstream view is that "causal reasoning is restricted to humans and possibly dependent upon language." The mainstream belief was that animals are capable only of making associations between events but that they were unable to see if such an association is necessary of simply accidental.

In a famous experiment, Pavlov taught dogs to associate dinner with the sound of a bell. The dogs would salivate whenever a bell rang regardless of whether food was given to them. This indicates that a dog considers a simple association of events happening closely in time to be necessary.

In the new experiment, the rats were also taught to associate a sound with food. But then, instead of just listening to the sound, they were allowed to provoke the sound themselves. The researchers found that when the rats produced the sound themselves they didn't go to look for food. Thus, it is clear that they understood that food is not necessarily associated with the sound. And if they had caused the sound, it was obvious to them that food would not be available - because they weren't the cause behind the distribution of food.

 

[lindsayfawn]

that's kinda neat

 

[Bronwyn]

I totally agree that rats are intelligent and this is likely my very very tired mind not working after a long day but...did the researchers ever theorize that the rats didn't go looking for food because they simply didn't get it? I'm just curious how that proves their intelligence is all. I've read a few impressive stories so I'm not trying to say they aren't smart at all, just to be clear. I just don't follow that logic...it's like the people were fitting in one of many possible reasons to fit their own wants.

I don't think that made sense, heh, sorry.

 

[SQ]

Then again, they probably didn't go looking for food because they were waiting for it to be served :lol:

 

[jorats]

Rats are super smart!!
I agree with SQ, that's cause they know we are their slaves. lol

 

[Phyllis]

Now I said no one be mad at me, but, the ratties realized when they rang the bell which they were smart enough to ring the bell themslves realized just the ring of the bell dosen't mean they will get food the bell must be rang by the care takers to get thier food, the dogs were not that smart, they first of all didn't know how to ring the bell by them selves, but ever time it rang they thought it meant food, the ratties have the edge!

 

[mamarat]

They sure do, Phyllis. My Wildthings don't want the big Hand to pick them up, so when I tell them to go home, they go back to the cage on their own. They are so fun to watch.