In the recent Pixar movie Up, a group of dogs wear collars that translates their barks into humans words. Such a device is no longer just the stuff of animation: One is about to be, er, unleashed by a Japanese company that claims its collar can give humans a glimpse into Fido’s emotions.
But although the device would certainly be useful—wouldn’t it be helpful to know how your pup is feeling?—most experts are skeptical about whether the collar, called Bowlingual Voice, actually works. ABC reports:
The device includes a microphone worn around a dog’s neck and a separate digital reader that — the company says — translates barks into one of six emotional states: happy, sad, frustrated, threatening, needy or assertive…. [The developers] provided “research and development and consulting as well as aiding speech, acoustics and radio waves” for the Bowlingual Voice’s creation….
“It’s a cute idea,” said [organismic and evolutionary biologist] Kathryn Lord… “But it’s hard to see the world or feel the world like [dogs] do. When we say a dog feels something, it’s probably not exactly that.”
A consensus of experts agrees that while many humans have long yearned for the ability to communicate with animals, the concept is a myth that is both “crude” and “simplistic.” Still, that likely won’t keep pet-lovers from trying…
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Image: flickr / TheGiantVermin
If you love your furry pet and can’t envision a world without Fido, Misty or Max, now there’s an alternative to getting it stuffed—or cloned. Just yank some fur from your pet’s hide and send it to DNA2Diamonds, where a team will literally turn your dog’s carbon matter into a wearable diamond.
According to the company’s ad, they remove your pet’s “unique DNA carbon” from a submitted fur sample, then turn it into a diamond seed, which starts the growth of your diamond. Over a few days, more carbon gathers on the seed, forming a man-made diamond. The jewels come in cognac, red and yellow-green, take 70 days or fewer to make, and cost between $2,000 and $18,000.
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We know that whales fall in love, horses feel pride, and primates can even become embarrassed and envious. And now it appears that dogs get jealous, too. A new study out of the University of Vienna is the first time scientists have observed and documented envy in a non-primate species, though people who own dogs may have already seen it in action.
The research team asked 14 trained dogs to “shake” in a series of experiments. To test for jealousy, the researchers put the dogs in a room alone, or put them in the company of another familiar dog (either an acquaintance or another dog from the same household). And while the researchers didn’t offer the dogs a bone, they did give one or the other of the dogs either sausage or bread when they wanted to reward the dogs for performing the task. When the hungry dogs realized they were doing the same work but not getting any food in return, they became jealous of their companion, who was getting fed.
In fact, the dogs who were denied treat would eventually stop shaking the researcher’s hand entirely, and would look away from the researcher and even scratch, yawn, and lick their mouths.
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Those who say men are dogs may have it all wrong. Male puppies are particularly chivalrous when playing with female puppies, putting themselves in vulnerable positions just to keep the game going, reports a new study in Animal Behavior [pdf]. The young males may be getting a primer in female behavior, which could translate to higher reproductive success later in life.
Researchers videotaped four litters of puppies from different breeds (shepherd mix, Labrador retriever, Doberman pincher and malamute) at play. Even in puppies only a few weeks old, they found a noticeable gender-split in play etiquette. Female puppies mostly sought out other females as play partners. Male puppies, meanwhile, showed less interest in palling around with other males but were especially eager to initiate play with the girls.
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Ig Nobel Prize winners don’t get a photo-op with the King of Sweden, or their own petition for Obama, but their discoveries are worth a good laugh and some serious consideration. Here’s some of the wackiest science honored by this year’s Ig Nobel Prizes. The full list of winners, announced last week by the Annals of Improbable Research (AIR), can be found here.
Biology: Fleas living on dogs jump higher than fleas living on cats. Three French scientists measured fleas jumping out of plastic pipes; the dog fleas outjumped the cat fleas by an average of 2.3 centimeters.
Physics: “String theory” agrees with Murphy’s Law. Two Americans tumbled string in a make-shift clothes dryer and identified all the different knots that came out by their Jones polynomial. They mathematically proved that if you shake up a bunch of loose strings (or hair or shoelaces or headphone cords) they will inevitably get tangled.
Chemistry: Coca-Cola may or may not be bad for your sperm. Three researchers at Harvard Medical School reported that Coke significantly reduces sperm motility and that Diet Coke just about wipes them out. Two years later, Taiwanese researchers reported that Coke has little effect on sperm motility. Both teams shared the prize.
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