• Exploring the strategies of categorizati

    From ScienceDaily@1:317/3 to All on Thu Feb 3 21:30:42 2022
    Exploring the strategies of categorization

    Date:
    February 3, 2022
    Source:
    Ruhr-University Bochum
    Summary:
    Our mental ability to divide the complex world into categories makes
    our daily life much easier. But how do we categorize? What kind
    of stimulus properties do we assess? Researchers have come a step
    closer to answering these questions with the help of pigeons. They
    discovered that birds use different strategies to successfully learn
    categories. To gather data, the researchers used a novel research
    method. To this end, they combined so-called virtual phylogenesis,
    in which artificial stimuli are generated by computers, with a
    machine learning approach, namely an automated evaluation of the
    birds' pecking behavior.



    FULL STORY ==========================================================================
    Our mental ability to divide the complex world into categories makes
    our daily life much easier. But how do we categorize? What kind of
    stimulus properties do we assess? Researchers have come a step closer
    to answering these questions with the help of pigeons. They discovered
    that birds use different strategies to successfully learn categories. To
    gather data, the researchers used a novel research method. To this end,
    they combined so-called virtual phylogenesis, in which artificial stimuli
    are generated by computers, with a machine learning approach, namely an automated evaluation of the birds' pecking behavior.


    ========================================================================== Colloquially referred to as pigeonholing, categorisation learning
    often has a rather negative connotation in the public eye. Yet the
    basic cognitive ability to categorise offers a significant advantage:
    it condenses the flood of objects and events in our environment on the
    basis of commonalities and makes the knowledge that we have accumulated
    usable for new experiences.

    In the field of science, the aspects stimuli that determine the
    classification into a category have been the subject of controversial
    debate for a long time.

    The study conducted by the Bochum-based research team now offers insights
    into this question -- through a research approach using computer-generated stimuli in combination with a machine learning analysis of the pecking behaviour of pigeons. "We specialise in working with these animals,"
    points out Dr. Roland Pusch, lead author of the study. "Pigeons have
    a highly developed visual system and show excellent performance in
    behavioural tests. This makes them an excellent model system to tackle
    this question." Pigeons' specific pecking behaviour facilitates detailed analysis The biopsychologists trained the pigeons to distinguish between digitally produced images on the screen and divide them into categories
    by pecking at the monitor. "We precisely defined the properties of the
    image stimuli," as Pusch outlines the process. "Through so-called virtual phylogenesis, we created two object families with 20 members each on
    the computer. Based on its properties, each object clearly belonged
    to family X or family Y and could thus be categorised accordingly by
    the animals." "The trump card in our research series was the specific
    pecking behaviour of pigeons," adds project leader Professor Onur
    Gu"ntu"rku"n. "After training, pigeons use pecking to indicate whether
    an object belongs to a category or not. At the same time, they also mark exactly the spot on the object that was decisive for their categorisation choice." Based on the automated recording, the researchers pinpointed the locations on the objects that the pigeons touched when they made their
    choices on the monitor. "The pecking behaviour of individual animals
    was very consistent. This leads us to the conclusion that the animals
    attach importance to very specific characteristics of the stimuli,"
    says Pusch. "Interestingly enough, despite identical behaviour, these preferences are different in each individual; in other words, each pigeon
    has its very own specific characteristics that it considers important in
    the two families of objects. This suggests that categorisation learning
    is not limited to a single learning strategy." According to Pusch and Gu"ntu"rku"n, the combination of virtual phylogenesis and the machine
    learning approach offers a lot of potential for subsequent research in
    the field of categorisation learning. For example, the method opens up
    the possibility of studying species-specific behavioural strategies in comparative experiments in addition to its sensory basis. Beyond the behavioural analysis, neuronal processes that trigger categorisation
    learning in the brain could also be explored in detail.

    special promotion Explore the latest scientific research on sleep and
    dreams in this free online course from New Scientist -- Sign_up_now_>>> ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Ruhr-University_Bochum. Note:
    Content may be edited for style and length.


    ========================================================================== Journal Reference:
    1. Roland Pusch, Julian Packheiser, Charlotte Koenen, Fabrizio
    Iovine, Onur
    Gu"ntu"rku"n. Digital embryos: a novel technical approach
    to investigate perceptual categorization in pigeons (Columba
    livia) using machine learning. Animal Cognition, 2022; DOI:
    10.1007/s10071-021-01594-1 ==========================================================================

    Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220203103006.htm

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