AssetID: 53205135
Headline: UNCAPTIONED: Study Finds Evidence For Animals Having Imaginations
Caption: Study Finds Evidence For Animals Having Imaginations. A new study suggests that rats may possess the capacity for imaginative thought. 'The Guardian' reports that researchers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Janelia Research Campus claim their study is the first to show that animals can imagine. "This is a fundamental building block of a specific type of imagination, one that enables us to project ourselves into the past or future, within a certain scenario.", Chongxi Lai, First author of the study, via 'The Guardian' . The team found that rats could navigate a space they had previously explored with just their thoughts. The study used a brain-machine interface that involved surgically implanting electrodes into the brains of rats. Those rats were trained to run a virtual maze on a 360 degree treadmill. When the team took away the treadmill, the rats were still able to navigate the puzzle with just their brain activity. Rats were also reportedly able to solve "Jedi tasks," which tasked them with directing an on-screen object to a goal with only their mind. Professor Tim Harris, study co-author, points out that both imagination and memory recall are tied to the hippocampus. "To this end, it is fair to say the rats do imagine.", Professor Tim Harris, Study co-author, via 'The Guardian’ . THIS VIDEO MUST NOT BE EDITED FOR LENGTH TO COMBINE WITH OTHER CONTENT
Keywords: study,finds,evidence,animals,imaginations,have,possess,capacity,thoughts,ideas,research,natural world,co-author,rats,memory,recall,hippocampus
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