A clever border collie that can fetch at least 200 objects by name may be living proof that dogs truly understand human language, German scientists have reported
Published:
11 June 2004 y., Friday
A clever border collie that can fetch at least 200 objects by name may be living proof that dogs truly understand human language, German scientists have reported.
Rico can figure out which object his master wants even if he has never heard the word before, the researchers say.
The findings, reported in the journal Science, may not surprise many dog owners. But they are certain to re-ignite a debate over what language is and whether it is unique to humans.
Rico's abilities seem to follow a process called fast mapping, seen when young children start to learn to speak and understand language, they report.
Fast-mapping allows a child to form quick and rough hypotheses about the meaning of a new word the first time they hear or see it.
"(Rico) lives as a pet with his owners and was reported by them to know the labels of more than 200 items, mostly children's toys and balls, which he correctly retrieved upon request," Julia Fischer of the Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig and colleagues wrote.
His owners say "Rico, wo ist der (where is the) Banane (banana)," or "BigMac" or "Panda", and the dog searches, out of sight of the owner, until he finds the object.
Fischer and colleagues set up experiments to test the dog and are satisfied that he understands the words.
Šaltinis:
abc.net.au
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
A rare pink diamond sells for over 45 million dollars, making it the most expensive stone ever sold at auction.
more »
Clad in Santa suits, a family of penguins brings the holiday spirit to South Korean children.
more »
An Australian man cozies up to hundreds of spiders for three-weeks in his shop front.
more »
Two elephants in northeastern India fight a two-hour-long battle, injuring a local bus driver.
more »
A remote-controlled android makes its stage debut in Tokyo.
more »
Millions of Monarch butterflies arrive in Mexico's internationally renowned reserve as part of their annual migration to Mexico's forested mountains in Michoacan.
more »
Lingerie maker Triumph unveils a bra it hopes will welcome tourists to Japan, including leaders of the upcoming APEC summit.
more »
Kyrgyzstan Fashion Week brightens the capital Bishkek with colorful collections of mainly local designers as very few European countries dare to participate following recent violence.
more »
Daring Jetman loops the loop
The first man to fly with only a fuel powered wing in his back, performs his first loop, taking his quest to fly like a bird a step further
more »
India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani's new billion dollar home is raising concerns about the model of economic growth in a country where more than 400 million people live in abject poverty.
more »