How might real dogs react to robotic dogs? The Sony Corporation has been investigating. Researchers at its Computer Science Laboratory in Paris, which “… engages in fundamental research in cutting edge areas of science that are relevant for pushing the state of the art in computing.” tested the ground by exposing real dogs to AIBO […]
Tag: Dogs
Prize-winning dog-washing machine
Lavakan de Aste, the Spanish company that invented a washing machine for cats and dogs, has a promotional video. They also have a promotional brochure. They also have an Ig Nobel Prize, awarded to them in 2002 for inventing this machine.
Mudi breeders
“What could be that force, which makes particular people like maniacs, to deal with things which are worthless, ignored in the eyes of the majority of others?” This question kicks off a 2003 essay by Dr. Péter Pongrácz (Professor of Ethology, at the Institute of Biology, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary) regarding enthusiasts of the […]
Barking in Budapest
“ Although it is one of the most conspicuous features of dog behaviour, barking has received little attention from ethologists or from an applied perspective.” This lack of attention has been remedied by new research from the Institute of Biology, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary. A team from the university’s Department of Ethology, finds, in […]
Petting pets, inviting immunity
Ig-Nobel-winning work, in some cases, is just one step in pursuing an idea down a long path. “Effect of Petting a Dog on Immune System Function,” C.J. Charnetski, S. Riggers, and F.X. Brennan, Psychological Reports, vol. 95, no. 3, part 2, December 2004, pp. 1087–91 [AIR 15:4]. Charnetski and Brennan, who shared the 1997 Ig […]
Basenji reaction video
In this experiment, a group of basenjis react to a stimulus: Thanks to investigator Stephanie Kornfeld for bringing this to our attention.)
Dogs on the brain
Several labs are doing research about what dogs might have in mind (and what they might not). Some of the more prominent: The Canine Cognition Lab at Harvard University, USA, which says “In the Canine Cognition Lab, we run non-invasive behavioral experiments to better understand how your dog solves problems, recognizes patterns of sound, reflects […]
Archaeology: Old tricks for new dogs?
In Fornvännen 2007:3, husband & wife historians of archaeology Drs Åsa Gillberg and Ola W. Jensen note that there are currently ongoing attempts to train dogs to sniff out archaeology, much like they have proved capable of finding illegal drugs, recently buried murder victims, even cancerous tumours. Results so far are inconclusive. The point of […]