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Anonymous
For lack of a better way to word this question, do insects possess an IQ?

Because I heard somewhere that insects are driven entirely by instinct and instinct only, meaning they're essentially nature's robots. But I find this hard to believe. Certainly any creature with a brain is capable of some modicum of problem solving, no?

Someone knowledegable enlighten me on this, please.
>> Anonymous
They're animals. They're smart enough to do what they do. You can't use a human measurement of intelligence on an animal.
>> Anonymous
>>108218
Im not even going to bother going into the ways in which you are wrong....
(one would be your arbitrary and sweeping lumping of all measures of intelligence together)
>> Anonymous
only smart animal = chimp
>> Anonymous
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>>108229
I CONCUR
>> Anonymous
Only smart animal = human LOL.
>> Anonymous
Well, I think pretty much everyone pretty much everyone ignores the "IQ" concept these days.

But beyond that cognitive science is beginning to get interested in insects.

Go search for something called the "mushroom body", the part of the insect brain that apparantly handles all the thinking stuff.

People are even doing some intelligence tests with honeybees which as far as I understand are inconclusive, but not entirely dismissive.

And it has been proved that grasshoppers have a long term memory.
>> A.r. !!1J3JRobqN2a
I've read that M. rhinoceros (Giant Australian Burrowing Cockroaches) have been trained to come to a noise.
>> Anonymous
Now I feel bad (worse) about pulling off their heads and putting them on other grasshoppers' bodies.
>> Anonymous
>>108285
The Pavlov experiment has been successfully done on roaches as well. Instead of a bell, they used an aroma trigger. (Yes, the roaches started to 'drool') While this might not be related to intelligence as most people acknowledge it, it's another proof of insects learning stuff.

Also, a lot of scientists are starting to think the whole concept of instinct is outdated and it's becoming increasingly difficult to separate the so-called intelligence from instinct.
>> Anonymous
>>108238
GTFO OF MY /an/ FAGGOT.
>> Anonymous
>Certainly any creature with a brain is capable of some modicum of problem solving, no?

Insect brains don't compare to brains like the kind mammals have. Most of them don't even have a memory, and they definitely aren't capable of anything resembling abstract thought.
They make up for it by breeding much faster.
>> Anonymous
>>108445

This is a stupid reason to dismiss the potential intelligence of any member of an entire phylum.

Yes, Insect brains are organised completely different than those of vertebrates since they have evolved seperately. This doesn't in any way prevent them from having co-evolved similar functionality.

Hell, back in the day the scientific community was completely sure that no member of the bird family was capable of higher reasoning simply because they had very small forebrains (the region associated with intelligence in mammals). All despite mounting evidence of fairly advanced problem solving abilities amongst corvids and parrots.

It all lasted until someone got the idea of trying to measure the brain activity of birds solving problems, and lo and behold, it was an entirely different region of the brain lighting up with activity.

While I don't believe insects got much to show regarding intellect we shouldn't dismiss them simply because their brains look different.
>> Anonymous
A bug is basically just a tiny complex robot that stings.
>> Anonymous
Any animal is a nature robot (even you) but some of them are much more complex than others...
>> Ark
>>108470
This made me wonder. What are the chances of two species from different parts of the world, evolving on thier own in similar environments, evolving into similar creatures. In terms of ecological niche and basic body layout. They dont have to be almost the same creature, but similar enough that when they switch places, they could survive with little problem. They could be wired differently, and take different approaches to solve the problems associated with living in thier environment.

And to extend this, what are the chances of finding intelligent life based on the question posed above. Given the number of planets and the distances seperating us. Is there a chance we will find life. Not only that but that it will be something we will recognize?
>> Anonymous
>>108470
Birds, however, do have comparatively large brains. In fact corvids have an encephalization quotient comparable to some apes. Although you can't deduce an animal's intelligence straight from it's EQ, it's pretty obvious that the more complex the behavior the animal, the more brainpower it requires.
>> Anonymous
>>108490
Logically we would recognize it as life. As for anything else, that depends. If it was carbon-based life on an earth-like planet, chances are we'd be able to tell which of the things are animals and which are plants or fungi. It's more likely that the alien plants would look familiar than the animals, though.
>> te-kun !H.C.nOOtsU
>>108504
Why do you think that in another planet there will be plants? Algaes (they are classified as protozoa), other protozoas, bacteria, etc can produce food, a creature may use heterotroph and autotroph as a way to survive (like many others in earth)

Slime mould is a macroscopic protist that looks like mold but it locomotes.

The division of life in kingdons is just to make more easy to humans to study the world.
>> Anonymous
>>108216
Can they complete and IQ test? No?
There's your answer.
>> Anonymous
Insects have a ladder-shaped nervous system. Two strands on the sides, and "knots" between them. One is the "brain", but there are other "knots" further down. This is also the reason why the mantis male can continue consuming marriage, while the female is consuming his head.

Random Alice Cooper quote:
"Isn't she delicious? And i hope he was."
>> Anonymous
Someone knowledegable enlighten me on this, please.............DUH OP! DID U JUST CALL ANONYMOUS KNOWLEDGEAB- o wait, anon knows more than galactus in the library at alexandria...........nvm,aidslolz!
>> Anonymous
>>108515
If it's multicellular and photosynthesizes, it's a plant. If it's multicellular, digests other organisms and moves, it's an animal or fungus. You don't need to be all anally techical about these things.
>> Anonymous
>>108561
In before protists or whatever the biology community is calling them these days.
>> te-kun !H.C.nOOtsU
>>108561
Algae can be multicelular and are not plants (are you in basic school?)
Some plants are parasites (don't make photossintesis), some coral and sponges can photosintesis by a symbiotic relationship with algaes, Lichens are symbiotic associations of a fungus (the mycobiont) with a photosynthetic partner (the photobiont also known as the phycobiont) that can produce food for the lichen from sunlight.

Your definition of life division is the one that we taught to little kids
>> Meh Anonymous
IQ test is measure of human intellect. Insects do not, and can not, count. End of story.

This doesn't mean there isn't intelligence there, or reasoning skills - just that OP's question was already presupposing human-like measurements of intelligence.

Now, quoting:
Although you can't deduce an animal's intelligence straight from it's EQ

> However, there are times where you may be able to deduce an organism's intelligence from the typographical errors it makes. Sorry, couldn't resist.
>> Anonymous
>>108608

IQ is bullshit, even when applied to humans.

But I took the initial question as an indicator that OP did not really know the theory behind the term IQ.
>> Gunlord !.YMO7aNBcQ
>>108490
Isn't that called "convergent evolution?" I can't remember any examples off the top of my head, but I think they definitely do exist. Man, I wish I didn't sell my old bio textbook...:(
>> Anonymous
>>108656
hawkmoth
>Some hawk moths, like the hummingbird hawk moth, hover in midair while they feed on nectar from flowers and are sometimes mistaken for hummingbirds. This hovering capability has evolved only three times in nectar feeders: in hummingbirds, certain bats, and these sphingids (Kitching, 2002).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawk_moth
>> sage Anonymous
hm, octopi can learn to open mason jars to get things they want, (i.e. the tasty shrimp inside the jar)
>> Anonymous
the brain inside that mantis pic must be pretty tiny. prob the size of a ball off lint.

i once had a high res pic of a housefly with its brain and nervous system xrayed. was tiny brained but its vision center was incredible.
>> Anonymous
in before brundlefly