Interpretations of the role of learning

Reference no: EM13756228

Question 1:

When conducting laboratory studies on animal learning, what sorts of precautions should you take to ensure that your interpretations of the role of learning in animal system are accurate? If you were not studying learning, why should you remain cognizant of the learning abilities of your study organism?

Question 2:

Under what parental investment conditions should females and males have equal ability to learn? When should females exhibit greater learning abilities than males? When should males exhibit greater learning abilities than females?

Question 3:

Read the paper by Kotrschal and colleagues (2013), "Artificial Selection on Relative Brain Size in the Guppy Reveals Costs and Benefits of Evolving a Larger Brain" (Current Biology, 23, 1- 4). Describe the artificial selection procedure and the major behavioral and morphological differences between the small-brained and large-brained guppy lines. How do these data relate to the "expensive-tissue hypothesis"? Expand upon why it is important to consider functional trade-offs when studying the evolution of learning.

Kotrschal A, Rogell B, Bundsen A, Svensson B, Zajitschek S, Brannstrom I, Immler S, Maklakov AA, Kolm N. 2013. Artificial Selection on Relative Brain Size in the Guppy Reveals Costs and Benefits of Evolving a Larger Brain. Current Biology 23:1-4.
Kotrschal - artificial selection on guppy brain size - Curr Bio 2013.pdf (100.56 KB)

Question 4:

What types of environments would be conducive to natural selection favoring the ability to learn? Support your answers from peer-reviewed literature.

Question 5:

Don't like any of these questions? Ask your own.

Question 6:

Suppose I run an experiment in which I take a bird (the observer) and let it view another bird (the demonstrator) opening a sealed cup by pecking at a circle on the cover of the cup. I then test the observer and see that it now opens the cup by pecking at the circle. What can I infer about social learning here? What other critical treatment is missing from this experiment?

Reference no: EM13756228

Questions Cloud

Identify and describe a potential ethical dilemma : Identify and describe a potential ethical dilemma that a marketer might face when segmenting. How might this concern be appropriately addressed given the need to satisfy often conflicting stakeholders? Identify and describe key identifying characteri..

Provide an example of how company culture : Provide an example of how company culture can impact the project cost estimate and how cost estimation is impacted by project risk?

Describe and explain the idea of network neutrality. : Describe and explain the idea of network neutrality. Are you in favor of network neutrality? Why or why not

Create a magazine special issue on the atomic bomb : create a magazine special issue on the atomic bomb. You must have 5-6 articles in your magazine and it should also include pictures.

Interpretations of the role of learning : What sorts of precautions should you take to ensure that your interpretations of the role of learning in your animal system are accurate - what parental investment conditions should females and males have equal ability to learn?

Difference between a data warehouse and a data mart : The difference between a data warehouse and a data mart is, Which of the following is not an example of the emerging mobile computing platforms

Write a research paper on korean war and vietnam war : Write a research paper on Korean War, Rise of Communism in China, Rise of Communism in Cuba, Vietnam War, Cuban Missile Crisis, Nixon/ China, Afghanistan and The Arms Race.

List and describe three main capabilities or tools of a dbms : List and describe three main capabilities or tools of a DBMS. Describe the effect of cloud computing on traditional IT infrastructure

Calculate the weighted average cost for the han corp : Given the following information, calculate the weighted average cost for the Han Corp.

User Account

All Pages