BOHA - 16

Question 1

what is corvidae?

Answer 1

crow family

Question 2

what is an example of physical cognition?

Answer 2

tool using

Question 3

what is the definition of tool using?

Answer 3

the use of an external object as a functional extension of mouth or beak, hand or claw, in the attainment of an immediate goal?

Question 4

does tool use equal intelligence?

Answer 4

no but can can be revealing about physical cognition

Question 5

chimpanzees are well known for using tools, what sets them apart from other tool users?

Answer 5

1) can use a wide diversity of tools
2) a variety of tool sets
3) can manufacture tool
4) have a tool culture - teach each other how to use toolds

Question 6

what group of birds are well known for their tool use and where?

Answer 6

New caledonian crows in tropical, dense forest

Question 7

what are the advantages and disadvantages of captive studies?

Answer 7

advantages = controlled study of behaviour
disadvantages = ecological validity may be compromised
- low sample size

Question 8

what is folk physics?

Answer 8

common understanding of how things happen in the natural world

Question 9

it wasnt until 1996 New caledonian crows tool use came to light, how is their tool use similar to chimps?

Answer 9

• population - wide use and manufacture
• diversity of tool types
• tool culture - passing it on through the generations

Question 10

in the crow studies how many were used?

Answer 10

20 - 16 wild caught and 4 hand reared

Question 11

what were the 5 questions asked in the experiment about crows tool use?

Answer 11

1) are crows capable of planning their actions in advance?
2) how did tool use develop in young crows?
3) are the crows flexible in their behaviour?
4) can they learn about tool use?
5) is there any evidence in insightful problem solving

Question 12

when questioning the development of tool use is it genetically or environmentally determined?

Answer 12

strong genetic influence - however tuition is important in refining the behaviour

Question 13

what did experiments show about crows planning their behaviour?

Answer 13

they have the ability to use a sequence of tools in order to complete process - first time this was seen in birds

Question 14

did investigations show crows to be capable of creative problem solving and what other types of learning were ruled out?

Answer 14

yes - could rule out it being innate, observational learning or associative learning

Question 15

what errors were there in the crow experiment meaning it couldn’t be concluded crows were capable of creative problem solving?

Answer 15

only one crow completed the task and not all of the hooks made were suitable to be used

Question 16

what 4 things did the experiments on crows find out?

Answer 16

1) they have a genetic predisposition to tool behaviour however it does need some refining through learning
2) can use spontaneous creative problem solving
3) can use a sequence of tools
4) they have a knowledge of force

Question 17

what is social cognition?

Answer 17

the cognitive adaptations that might benefit animals that live in groups, it concerns knowledge of relationships and dominance hierarchies

Question 18

what is caching food a good system for?

Answer 18

good to examine memory and social cognition

Question 19

what is semantic memory and episodic memory?

Answer 19

Semantic = fact - learning 
Episodic = unique recollection, conscious

Question 20

what did the investigation on western scrub jays show about food caching behaviour?

Answer 20

that they have the ability to remember where, when and what they cached = episodic like memory

Question 21

what is Bischof - Kohlers hypothesis?

Answer 21

non- human animals are bound to their current motivational state and cant plan for the future

Question 22

did western scrub jay tests prove of disprove Bischof - Kohlers hypothesis?

Answer 22

it disproved it - they showed evidence of planning

Question 23

how do the western scrub jays deal with cache thievery?

Answer 23

1) scattering their hoards rather than one large hoard

2) active protection

Question 24

when being watched what were the scrub jays cache protection strategies?

Answer 24

1) cache behind barriers
2) cache in shade
3) re cache more items to confuse the other bird - cache then dig up and re cache in different place
- this protection happens more if they have had their cache stolen from them before - use own experience

Question 25

what were the 3 things proved by the western scrub jay experiments?

Answer 25

1) episodic like memory
2) future planning
3) flexible cache protection

Question 26

what type of evolution is thought to have occurred between birds and apes cognitive abilities?

Answer 26

convergent evolution