Crazy pill science, adding new knowledge every day
Humans have been trying to understand the various confusing behaviors of cats, and recently, is a study of cats and optical illusions.
We all know that cats like some enclosed spaces, such as cardboard boxes, and even if the dimension is reduced, as long as you draw a square on the ground, they will sit in it:
But if the square on the ground is "fake" Woolen cloth?
(Image courtesy of Gabriella Smith M.A.)
The funny thing is, some cats may be tempted to sit on the ground even if there is no real square pattern on the ground, apparently confused by optical illusions:
Void cat trap? After reading it, some netizens have begun to figure out that Wu Song did not use a sliding shovel to fight a tiger, but a circle.
The study comes from cognitive animal behaviorist Gabriella Smith of the City University of New York and her colleagues. During the epidemic last year, these cat-loving researchers recruited a large number of netizens on the Internet to carry out this research. The name of the activity is "IF I FITS I SITS".
Related findings have been published in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science.
This study was inspired by a 2017 post titled #catsquares, cat squares.
In that year, netizen Danielle Matheson marked a square with tape on the floor of the house, and then the cat at home got into it, which made other onlookers feel amazing.
In fact, almost every once in a while, the confusing behavior of cats is discussed.
Inspired by these internet hits, the researchers wanted to see if kittens were also affected by the illusion graphics, to see if they could perceive virtual squares that could provide a deeper understanding of animal vision.
So, how did this experiment work?
The researchers first published the test requirements on the Internet. They sent some material templates to the participants, which could create three patterns, one is a normal square:
One is the core material of this research, the well-known Kanizsa square, That is, the following pattern:
There is also a control group, that is, the Kanizsa square is reversed:
If you have not noticed the subtleties of the Kanizsa square, Kuang Wan can remind you.
looks like there are only four Pac-Man in this pattern, but you can actually observe a square inside.
(image source from netizen Ben Balas)
This optical illusion is called the illusion outline. The arrangement of the Pac-Man pattern evokes your perception of the edge, even if there is no line, it can be made up by the brain.
is better known as the Kanizsa triangle, feel it:
After understanding the test principle, the next step is to see if the cat can be seduced by it.
(image sourced from @BenWolfeVision)
netizens need to print the material online, cut it, put it on the floor at home, and then record the cat's behavior through a smart device. Each test takes 5 minutes and upload the results.
Of course, the owner is not allowed to guide the cat during this period, and even the owner is required to wear sunglasses, avoid interacting with their pet, and give it any hints.
And the results showed that the cats chose the Kanizsa squares and the normal squares with the same frequency, and more often than the control group.
Not only does this mean that cats do like squares, but, like humans, they can perceive virtual outlines.
(see the circle in the middle)
actually had a similar study many years ago. At that time, it also used Kanizsa blocks to confuse cats, and came to a similar conclusion, but only two cats participated in the experiment. .
Unfortunately, although there are more samples in this study, the loss is also very serious. Although 500 cats were ready to participate in the study, only 30 actually completed all the challenges.
In addition, as far as the test site is concerned, whether it is at home or in the laboratory, it is difficult to be called sufficiently rigorous and ideal, so further research is needed for more accurate conclusions.
(the picture comes from Alessandro Nai, came in, but not fully)
But what is interesting is that in the test of netizens, some cats in may also put their heads on other types of optical illusion pictures.
For example, the well-known optical illusion graphic "spinning snake" below.The interesting thing about it is that it is obviously a static picture, but you will feel that every little snake seems to be turning:
Some kittens are directly stunned, and their claws keep pulling:
The irritable point directly tore the picture It's too thin, and it's all raised:
can only say, cat, the water of optical illusion is too deep, you and I can't grasp it.
Talking about it here, let us return to the original question:
Why do cats like to stay in the square pattern on the ground?
(picture from Julie Ross)
According to previous research, there are several possibilities in the current speculation.
One is the curiosity of cats , pet cats are the real "owners" in the home, they are very sensitive to their own environment.
There are new water glasses on the table, and they will all go to see and dig.
New patterns appear on the ground, which may also be attracted to them.
(Image sourced from @SngrLittle)
Another point of
is that, in the eyes of cats, the two-dimensional square on the ground of may look a lot like a box . Some previous studies of
have pointed out that out of some instinctive reactions, cats always have a great interest in boxes, whether it is because of the need for hiding or keeping warm. to feel safe.
And some cat behavior experts believe that the cat's eyesight is not ideal when observed at close range, so it is possible to make a two-dimensional pattern brain into a box with a very low edge, sitting on the pattern feels like sitting in a "box". "inside.
Therefore, the kitten was successfully attracted.
(Who am I? Why am I here?)
Of course, the shape doesn't have to be square.
netizen Admancb has shared some pictures. In the picture, the kitten at home can not only be attracted by a round wire:
The heptagon pattern made with tape can also let it enter:
If the big heptagon and the Putting a small hexagon together, how does the cat choose:
It chooses a small pattern that looks better in terms of space tightness:
However, it doesn't matter what the result is, anyway, Wei has died several times.
Of course, This is not to say that all cats are fooled by similar traps , and there are a lot of exception kittens.
After all, cats are experts in confusing behavior. Many times they don't bother to care about what the hell is painted on the ground, and this may be the mystery that fascinates humans and can't guess.
Oh, unmoved, I even want to lick my ass
