Dinosaur Intelligence, and How Its Measured

Dinosaur Intelligence, and How It's Measured Gary Larson framed the issue best in a famous Far Side cartoon. A Stegosaurus behind a podium addresses an audience of his fellow dinosaurs: The pictures pretty bleak, gentlemen. ..the worlds climates are changing, the mammals are taking over, and we all have a brain about the size of a walnut. (See a slideshow of the 10 smartest dinosaurs.) For over a century, that quote has pretty much summed up popular (and even professional) opinions about dinosaur intelligence. It didnt help that one of the earliest dinosaurs to be discovered and classified (the above-named Stegosaurus, in 1877) possessed an unusually small brain, about the size of, yes, a walnut (its brain was so small, in fact, that paleontologists once speculated that Stegosaurus had a supplementary brain in its butt). It also didnt help that dinosaurs are long extinct; wiped out by the famine and freezing temperatures in the wake of the K/T Extinction 65 million years ago. If only theyd been smarter, we like to think, some of them might have found a way to survive! One Measure of Dinosaur Intelligence: EQ Since theres no way to travel back in time and give an Iguanodon an IQ test, naturalists have developed an indirect means of evaluating the intelligence of extinct (as well as living) animals. The Encephalization Quotient, or EQ, measures the size of a creatures brain against the size of the rest of its body, and compares this ratio to that of other species of roughly the same size. Part of what makes us human beings smart is the enormous size of our brains compared to our bodies; our EQ measures a hefty 5. That may not seem like such a big number, so lets look at the EQs of some other mammals: on this scale, wildebeests weigh in at .68, African elephants at .63, and opossums at .39. As you might expect, monkeys have higher EQs: 1.5 for a red colobus, 2.5 for a capuchin. Dolphins are the only animals on the planet with EQs even close to those of humans; the bottlenose comes in at 3.6. (By the way, EQ scales vary considerably; some authorities set the average human EQ at about 8, with the EQ of other creatures scaled up proportionally.) As you might expect, the EQs of dinosaurs (based on the analysis of their fossil remains) are spread across the lower end of the spectrum. Triceratops weighs in at a scant .11 on the EQ scale, and it was the class valedictorian compared to lumbering sauropods like Brachiosaurus, which dont even come close to hitting the .1 mark. However, some of the swift, two-legged, feathered dinosaurs of the Mesozoic Era posted relatively high EQ scores- not quite as smart as modern wildebeests, but not that much dumber, either. How Smart Were Carnivorous Dinosaurs? One of the trickiest aspects of animal intelligence is that, as a rule, a creature only has to be smart enough to prosper in its given ecosystem and avoid being eaten. Since plant-eating sauropods and titanosaurs were so massively dumb, the predators that fed on them only needed to be marginally smarter- and most of the relative increase in the brain size of these carnivores can be attributed to their need for better smell, vision and muscular coordination, their tools for the hunt. (For that matter, one can argue that the reason sauropods were so dumb is because they only had to be marginally smarter than the giant ferns they munched on!) However, its possible to swing the pendulum too far in the other direction and exaggerate the intelligence of carnivorous dinosaurs. For example, the doorknob-turning, pack-hunting Velociraptors of Jurassic Park and Jurassic World are a complete fantasy- if you met a live Velociraptor today, it would probably strike you as slightly dumber (though a lot more dangerous) than a chicken. You certainly wouldnt be able to teach it tricks, since its EQ would be an order of magnitude below that of a dog or cat. (This is part of the reason why dinosaurs, as a general rule, dont make very good pets.) Could Dinosaurs Have Evolved Intelligence? Its easy, from our present-day perspective, to poke fun at the walnut-brained dinosaurs that lived tens of millions of years ago. However, you should bear in mind that the proto-humans of five or six million years ago werent exactly Einsteins, either- even though, as stated above, they were significantly smarter than the other mammals in their savannah ecosystems. In other words, if you managed to time-transport a five-year-old Neanderthal into the present day, she probably wouldnt do very well in kindergarten! This raises the question: what if at least some dinosaurs had survived the K/T Extinction 65 million years ago? Dale Russell, the one-time curator of vertebrate fossils at the National Museum of Canada, once caused a stir with his speculation that Troodon - a human-sized theropod dinosaur about as smart as an opossum- might eventually have evolved a human-sized level of intelligence if it had been left to evolve for another few million years. It should be noted, however, that Russell didnt propose this as a serious theory, which will come as a disappointment to those who still believe intelligent reptoids live among us.

Prader-Willi Syndrome and its Linkage to Genetics Essay

Prader-Willi Syndrome and its Linkage to Genetics - Essay Example Diagnosis and Treatment of Prader-Willis Syndrome†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.9 7. Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦10 8. References†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..12 Prader-Willi Syndrome and its Linkage to Genetics Prader-Willi Syndrome, moreover referred to as PWS, is a genetically linked disorder that afflicts various parts of the human anatomy. The disorder presents as hypotonia during infancy, coupled to delayed physical development, stunted growth, and difficulties in feeding. The carrier begins to develop an unusually high appetite beginning in childhood, which results in hyperphagia or continuous over-eating, as well as overweight and obesity (Cassidy & Driscoll 2009). For individuals carrying the defective genes that cause PWS, especially those afflicted by obesity, a high prevalence of Diabetes Mellitus II exists. The genetic disorder was first characterized by Heinrich Willi and Andrea Prader before research by Guido Fanconi, Andrew Ziegler, and Alexis Labhart provided more information on the disorder. Prader-Willi Syndrome, as a genetic disorder, involves alterations on chromosome 15(q11-13), whereby seven genes on this chromosome are deleted (Goldstone 2009). Alternatively, the 15q chromosome is not expressed because of a partial deletion on the paternally derived chromosomes. This disorder is prevalent in between 1 in 10,000 and 1 in 25,000 of the population. The origin of the defective genes from paternal chromosomes is especially important since the region of the chromosome involved is affected by imprinting from parent origin. This means that only a single gene copy undergoes expression with the other corresponding gene being silenced via imprinting. For those genes that are affected in PWS, the gene that normally undergoes silencing or imprinting is the maternal copy with the expression of the paternal gene copy going ahead (Goldstone 2009). The result of this is that, the carrier only has one working copy of this gene and these PWS carriers possess one silenced copy and one copy that does not work. Prader-Willi Syndrome has a sister syndrome that is known as Angelman Syndrome, which involves maternally-derived genetic material at the same exact genetic location as PWS. While Prader-Willi Syndrome is considered as a rare genetic disorder, it occurs commonly in a majority of genetic clinics, being obesity’s most common genetic cause as identified to date. Prader-Willi Syndrome is prevalent in people of all races, ethnic backgrounds, and gender (Cassidy & Driscoll 2009). Phenotypic Features Associated With the Disease The basis for most of the symptoms presenting in PWS may be due to the brain’s hypothalamic region’s dysfunction (Gelehrter 2008) . The hypothalamic region of the fetus is vital during child labor and its deregulation may help to explain the high number of post-mature or pre-mature births for children later diagnosed with PWS. Abnormal release of Luteinizing Hormone is thought to cause the decreased amount of sex hormones that result in testes not descending, small sized gonads, insufficient growth over puberty, and amenorrhea. Hypothalamic deregulation causes deficiency of growth hormone that contributes to reduced energy expenditure due to a deficit in lean body mass and excessive body fat. Disturbance of hypothalamus action also leads to daytime hyper-somnolence and aberrant body temperature control. Hyperphagia and insatiable hunger

Opportunity Journal Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Opportunity Journal - Assignment Example ne app can be very useful in reducing customer complaints because with its regularly updated information, the tourists can understand their destination well before hand and avoid being exploited by the locals. Proposed solution: Provide free smart tags such as reboundTAG services to all travelers. A smart tag or reboundTAG is a microchip tag that can be embedded in a customer’s baggage making it easily traceable. This is a very good way of tracking baggage, avoiding losses and delays, since the system notifies the passenger when their baggage is found. Since it is a third party service most passengers may not be able to access its beneficial features, however if the services are incorporated as part of the airline services this can lead to more satisfaction from customers and reduce the number of complaints. Proposed solution: Provide a cell phone signal booster for all office and home buildings. Cell phone boosters are used to amplify weak signals into strong signals that can bypass obstructions and provide the people within the area with a strong and reliable signal. If this is mandated for all residential and office buildings, it can save many people the stress of poor services as well as save carrier companies the cost of putting up more cell towers Problem: The main reason for printers being used widely in homes and offices is that as time moves on more portable and cheaper printers are being produced. However, the main problem with most printers is that their ink cartridges or toners are too expensive. The prices for a set of cartridges or toner can end up costing more than the initial price of the printer. Sometimes it becomes more difficult because each manufacturer have their own unique cartridges Proposed solution: Make it a policy for printer manufacturer companies to have standard refillable ink cartridges that can be bought and used by printer from any manufacturer. With a refillable ink, it will be cheaper for users to buy ink and refill their

Introduction to Web 2.0 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Introduction to Web 2.0 - Essay Example There are many examples of web 2.0 technologies being used today, from blogs and Wikipedia to Facebook and other social media platforms where users interact with one another via a centralized website on a daily basis. However, in addition to simply changing the way websites operate, web 2.0 has also drastically changed how advertising works on the Internet. As recruitment is a form of advertising, the rest of this memorandum will focus on two ways web 2.0-based advertising can be used to attract management-level employees. These methods take advantage of the way that social networking sites work to â€Å"bring [users’] real identity information with them wherever they go on the Web† (Martin). As users are far more involved in content creation, there is far more information available on specific users, and ads can be targeted with greater efficiency than ever before. II. Facebook Facebook is arguably the biggest social networking site on the web. ... Using Facebook in this way it is possible to create not only a place to inform potential management-level employees about new postings, but to enhance brand loyalty and further keep consumers informed about your company and its products. For informing candidates about job postings, the page can be used to announce new openings, which will automatically be distributed to anyone subscribing to the Facebook page. These announcements can be descriptions of the openings, or just links to where candidates can go to apply. As users will sign up to follow your Page, they will do the outreach work for you. The other way Facebook can be used to find potential employees is through the use of its advertisement system. Unlike creating a Page, this option is not free. However, it is more effective than most online advertising because the advertisement can be custom-tailored based on information on people's Facebook profiles. For instance, you could have the job ad only show up on the profiles of p eople who are actually qualified for the job, ensuring that only those who would be able to do the job well would apply. If a Facebook Page was created, ads could also link to that page instead of directly to a job posting, allowing one ad to work for all available job postings. Facebook is accessible at http://www.facebook.com. To create a Facebook page, go to http://www.facebook.com/Pages. Facebook advertisements can be purchased at http://www.facebook.com/advertising. III. Twitter An alternative method to Facebook—or one that could be effectively used in conjunction with it—is Twitter. Twitter is a website which allows users to post short statements about their lives. Much like blogging, Twitter is popular amongst

Andrew Jackson Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Andrew Jackson - Essay Example He chose John C. Calhoun as his vice president and after a fall out Calhoun resigned in 1832 and Martin Van Buren became vice president in 1833. As president, he was very passionate about upholding popular democracy and individual liberty and pleaded to the congress to amend the constitution to allow for democracy. As a result, he recommended for abolishment of the Electoral College so that the president and vice president could be elected by the people and for them to serve a single term. Adams was also against the second national bank and thus abolished it when he became president. He cleared all the federal debts before vetoing renewal of its charter (Mintz 639). In politics, he also initiated the spoils system thus rotation of political appointments so as to do away with bureaucracy. He also initiated the removal of Indians or Native Americans from America to the west in areas like Arkansas and west of Mississippi River. Some of the controversies during his time were Indian Removal Act which was seen as an ethnic cleansing strategy thus not popular. He also through the spoils system replaced many federal employees with political opponents from his party who had no experience (Mintz 638). Another challenge was the nullification crisis. Some states were calling for secession due to disagreements over tariffs which were unfavourable to the South planters. This was the cause of fallout with his deputy Calhoun as he supported the southerners. Jackson used every opportunity to praise union or a strong federal government although he also advocated for state rights (Ogg 164). He also had to deal with a severe depression in 1837 due to his insistence on paying government land in terms of gold or silver rather than cash. This led to collapse of many banks as they did not have such

TEXT ANALYZE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

TEXT ANALYZE - Essay Example se of the logical argument they present, against Bastedo and Vedder’s argument that presents an ethical argument (ethos) on the weaknesses of the rating system. Thesis statement: The government should grade rate colleges because its bases are not clear. Bastedo’s argument is most effective among the four authors because it touches on quality of education against the rating policy. Joseph B. Moore advances his credibility by thrusting an ethically correct argument. According to Moore, higher learning institutes have different rates of graduation and graduation success. After pointing this fact out, Moore fails to question this difference. This question is crucial for an administration attempting to rate colleges and universities and connected them to federal aid (Moore 2014). Richard Vedder says the Obama administration does not deserve the people’s attention since graduation and performance outcomes of higher learning institutes are problems caused by Obamacare. However, this is an unethical approach to the problem since Vedder implies state governments should determine rating systems of colleges and universities. Vedder does not consider the fact that state authorities have no experience in handling rating systems for the education sector (Vedder 2014). Michael Bastedo argues for the exchange of student assessment for government assessment. One finds that the ethics of this approach are not new. The government tried this approach nearly a decade ago and the quality of education dropped. Afterwards, the government institutionalizes this deteriorated nature of education slowly because of the implementation of Bastedo’s argument (Bastedo 2014). Lastly, Jose L. Cruz points out the heterogeneous nature of higher learning and skills grasped by alumni in a given discipline. There is poor understanding by accrediting powers that led to higher learning institutes releasing immense numbers of students unqualified for high-grossing jobs (Cruz 2014). Cruz uses the

Article Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Article Critique - Essay Example The central attributes of this disposable literature, such as portability, inexpensiveness, simplicity, anonymity, especially its powerful role in the political and commercial spheres, make it indispensable in the contemporary period. In order to clearly explain his thesis, the author structured the discussion in a chronological manner, beginning from the history of disposable literature, particularly as regards the role it played in earlier political and commercial organizations, to the current uses of disposable literature, particularly its attributes that contribute to its eternal existence. Summary It is a common assumption that technological advances will replace traditional practices. Human history has witnessed how technology evolved from simple to complex. One of the most revolutionary technology advances is the digital media. It tremendously expanded the reaches of business, political organizations, nonprofit groups, advocacy campaigns, and so on (Gomez 13). It made possible worldwide communications. The author discusses how the digital revolution, which is significantly affecting traditional print media, has paradoxically strengthened the value of disposable literature to the contemporary period. ... The author analyzes both the dictionary definitions and the subjective meanings assigned to this form of print communication. What the author discovers is that the definitions are somewhat similar to one another, especially in terms of their uses: to disseminate information in a cheap, but effective manner. Flyers, leaflets, and pamphlets were used by different political organizations to inform the people about their programs, ideologies, and upcoming activities. Because of the inexpensiveness of this form of print communication, different types of organizations were able to reach as many audiences as possible, even without the help of electronic media. The author afterwards talks about the major characteristics of disposable literature that facilitated its durability. He sums up the power of print communication in this way: â€Å"Print offers a one-way medium and an individual, solitary experience for the reader, even if a message is intended to exert an effect on a group or a gran d scale, as it communicates the message(s) of the individual, group or organization that has produced it† (Pimlott 520). In short, this disposable literature creates an individualized experience, as though it is talking purposefully with the individual sentiments of its readers. He also includes an analysis of the other key attributes of disposable literature, such as â€Å"portability, anonymity (and extra-legality), cost, simplicity and accessibility of and speed in production and distribution† (Pimlott 527). Due to the durability of ephemeral print media forms, the author suggests greater focus on disposable literature, particularly with regard to their strength as