[natty6]

I just read an article about memory research performed on fruit flies. The subject was creating memories synthetically in flies but I found some interesting side facts.<br><br>
Fruit flies have individual unlearned preferences in smells they prefer and choose to fly primarily in the air with that smell.<br>
Fruit flies learn whether smells lead to reward, punishment, or neither.<br>
Fruit flies retain memories for at least three hours.<br><br>
These are rather small but I never think of fruit flies as thinking, learning, deciding, or remembering. It makes it pretty impossible for people to argue that cows and chickens don't think when even fruit flies do.<br><br>
Source:<br>
Writing memories with light-addressable reinforcement circuitry<br>
Adam Claridge-Chang, Robert D. Roorda, Eleftheria Vrontou

 

[Werewolf Girl]

That is crazy! It seems like the more we learn about other species the more respect we realize we should have for them.

 

[Ewe Nanny]

<p>I also read in an article that they respond to peer pressure when choosing a mate, although I can't find it at the moment. I don't think the size of an animal is relevant to their intelligence; bees and ants are intelligent but compare their size to pigs, humans, dolphins and elephants!</p>

 

[LedBoots]

That is really cool information!