News
Study shows baboons capable of remembering images
The star of a study by the cognition psychologists Robert Cook (Tufts University in Medford) and Joël Fagot (University of Marseille) was Baboon No. 9. He and others of his species proved in a study lasting five years that apes have a highly developed memory that can store and call up several thousand images over a long period. Pigeons were also studied and also showed they had a remarkably good memory, although not as good as the baboons.
The animals were shown a picture with a cross or a circle and used a joystick to indicate whether or not they had seen it before. The number of images was increased as time went on, with Baboon No. 9 achieving a success rate of 80% with regard to the 6,180 he was shown. The two researchers believe it could have been higher but the project was discontinued after five years.
As always, in studies like this the really interesting questions are not answered. How many images can an average human being remember. Would a text editor who runs the picture desk at the same time many more? Would a baboons be a better picture editor and, if so, how much would its monthly salary cost? Would it also be worthwhile for small daily newspapers or picture agencies to employ one?
The study was published in PNAS on 6 November. Click here to view the published report or visit www.pnas.org.
Stefan Hartmann, VISUELL
Posted in: News, Stock Photo Companies
