Some Super-Smart Dogs Can Learn New Words Just By Eavesdropping (npr.org) 51
An anonymous reader quotes a report from NPR: [I]t turns out that some genius dogs can learn a brand new word, like the name of an unfamiliar toy, by just overhearing brief interactions between two people. What's more, these "gifted" dogs can learn the name of a new toy even if they first hear this word when the toy is out of sight -- as long as their favorite human is looking at the spot where the toy is hidden. That's according to a new study in the journal Science. "What we found in this study is that the dogs are using social communication. They're using these social cues to understand what the owners are talking about," says cognitive scientist Shany Dror of Eotvos Lorand University and the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna. "This tells us that the ability to use social information is actually something that humans probably had before they had language," she says, "and language was kind of hitchhiking on these social abilities."
[...] "There's only a very small group of dogs that are able to learn this differentiation and then can learn that certain labels refer to specific objects," she says. "It's quite hard to train this and some dogs seem to just be able to do it." [...] To explore the various ways that these dogs are capable of learning new words, Dror and some colleagues conducted a study that involved two people interacting while their dog sat nearby and watched. One person would show the other a brand new toy and talk about it, with the toy's name embedded into sentences, such as "This is your armadillo. It has armadillo ears, little armadillo feet. It has a tail, like an armadillo tail." Even though none of this language was directed at the dogs, it turns out the super-learners registered the new toy's name and were later able to pick it out of a pile, at the owner's request.
To do this, the dogs had to go into a separate room where the pile was located, so the humans couldn't give them any hints. Dror says that as she watched the dogs on camera from the other room, she was "honestly surprised" because they seemed to have so much confidence. "Sometimes they just immediately went to the new toy, knowing what they're supposed to do," she says. "Their performance was really, really high." She and her colleagues wondered if what mattered was the dog being able to see the toy while its name was said aloud, even if the words weren't explicitly directed at the dog. So they did another experiment that created a delay between the dog seeing a new toy and hearing its name. The dogs got to see the unfamiliar toy and then the owner dropped the toy in a bucket, so it was out of sight. Then the owner would talk to the dog, and mention the toy's name, while glancing down at the bucket. While this was more difficult for dogs, overall they still could use this information to learn the name of the toy and later retrieve it when asked. "This shows us how flexible they are able to learn," says Dror. "They can use different mechanisms and learn under different conditions."
[...] "There's only a very small group of dogs that are able to learn this differentiation and then can learn that certain labels refer to specific objects," she says. "It's quite hard to train this and some dogs seem to just be able to do it." [...] To explore the various ways that these dogs are capable of learning new words, Dror and some colleagues conducted a study that involved two people interacting while their dog sat nearby and watched. One person would show the other a brand new toy and talk about it, with the toy's name embedded into sentences, such as "This is your armadillo. It has armadillo ears, little armadillo feet. It has a tail, like an armadillo tail." Even though none of this language was directed at the dogs, it turns out the super-learners registered the new toy's name and were later able to pick it out of a pile, at the owner's request.
To do this, the dogs had to go into a separate room where the pile was located, so the humans couldn't give them any hints. Dror says that as she watched the dogs on camera from the other room, she was "honestly surprised" because they seemed to have so much confidence. "Sometimes they just immediately went to the new toy, knowing what they're supposed to do," she says. "Their performance was really, really high." She and her colleagues wondered if what mattered was the dog being able to see the toy while its name was said aloud, even if the words weren't explicitly directed at the dog. So they did another experiment that created a delay between the dog seeing a new toy and hearing its name. The dogs got to see the unfamiliar toy and then the owner dropped the toy in a bucket, so it was out of sight. Then the owner would talk to the dog, and mention the toy's name, while glancing down at the bucket. While this was more difficult for dogs, overall they still could use this information to learn the name of the toy and later retrieve it when asked. "This shows us how flexible they are able to learn," says Dror. "They can use different mechanisms and learn under different conditions."
Dog intelligence (Score:3)
Re:Dog intelligence (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Dog intelligence (Score:5, Informative)
I found the quote attributed to a park ranger at Yosemite NP back in the 80s.
Back in the 1980s, Yosemite National Park was having a serious problem with bears: They would wander into campgrounds and break into the garbage bins. This put both bears and people at risk. So the Park Service started installing armored garbage cans that were tricky to open—you had to swing a latch, align two bits of handle, that sort of thing. But it turns out it’s actually quite tricky to get the design of these cans just right. Make it too complex and people can’t get them open to put away their garbage in the first place. Said one park ranger, "There is considerable overlap between the intelligence of the smartest bears and the dumbest tourists."
https://www.schneier.com/blog/... [schneier.com]
Thank you (Score:2)
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Yes. Scheier on Security (already linked by CaptQuark). I use that in my IT Security lectures to illustrate human limitations, together with the Dunning-Kruger effect (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect), the "shooting the messenger" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_the_messenger) extreme management failure, and the Peter Principle (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle).
Together with greed, maliciousness and arrogance, these explains maybe 95% of all the problems of
Re: Dog intelligence (Score:2)
How do you define maliciousness?
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You have the Internet and a browser. Use it. Or ask an Artificial Idiot if that is too hard for you.
Re: Dog intelligence (Score:2)
No need to antagonise me, I was asking a genuine question. I think we all have some definition for it, you were using the word in a very precise context, and it seems to me with a very precise idea of what it means to you, therefore I am curious about your definition.
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I am not antagonizing you. I am telling you how to get the information you lack. "Maliciousness" is not a term with a largely variable definition.
So, I am pretty much convinced you are asking in bad faith now (and yes, NOW I am antagonizing you), but here is a starting point: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
Re: Dog intelligence (Score:2)
Thanks for the link. I don't believe that intention to harm people is a frequent cause of problems, even though the rest of what you wrote a few posts above makes sense to me. I think problems are more often caused when people don't care whether what they do will harm others or not, or don't care to ask themselves whether it will. So something that I'd rather call neglect. For example and using that definition of "intention to harm", if a drone strikes a wedding to kill 1 terrorist, and in that process kill
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It's why the current state of bear resistant trash cans relies on something a bear doesn't have - an opposable thumb. Otherwise bears just figure it all out. And yes, they test with actual bears who literally destroy test trash bins - it's not always the lid the bear gets through - sometimes they just bash the sides until it breaks wide open.
As for dogs, most get cause and effect pretty rapidly. Most can learn that "vet" means a scary car ride instead of a normal car ride (dogs are especially good a picking
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Well, yes and no. No, the world model of a dog is a lot simpler than even that of a not very smart human. And yes, smart dogs will navigate their world model a lot more competent than not very smart humans (which unfortunately is the majority).
The funny thing about LLMs we (well, the smart ones of us) are finding out is that while LLMs do not and cannot be AGI, a lot of humans seem to not have or only have tiny amounts of General Intelligence. And hence they mistake LLMs for "smart".
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Unfortunately those same people are still allowed to vote.
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Yep. But that little problem with democracy is as old as democracy itself.
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Unfortunately those same people are still allowed to vote.
It's worse than that. In places without compulsory voting. Those people are the ones encouraged to, and more likely to vote.
New toy bias (Score:2)
Well, MY Golden Retriever is super-smart! (Score:5, Insightful)
Problem is, she also has the attention span of an ADHD toddler.
... Unless there's something you don't want her doing. Then she's seemingly able to focus for hours or even days.
Re: Well, MY Golden Retriever is super-smart! (Score:2)
I know that feeling.
Loves to go out for a walk, but don't want the harness that the leash goes on.
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Worth it.
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The Golden Retriever I mentioned above does a funny thing. When she wants to play, she'll take a toy in her mouth and poke it at you. If she can get to your face (if you're bending over for example), she'll poke it at your mouth - obviously expecting you to grab it the same way she does. Otherwise she'll poke it at your hand. It's pretty hilarious.
Our other dog (half Bernese Mountain Dog and half Golden Retriever, for whatever that's worth) doesn't do it. He'll just hold the toy in his mouth and look at you
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I have a dog (Score:2)
I have a dog that is as dumb as nine rocks. I love him mind you. But just .. so .. dumb.
Some Terriers Lean Words Quickly (Score:5, Interesting)
I know from experience. I had a Jack Russel Terrier mix who on his own (not taught) learned a couple of hundred words I estimate. The word "vet" would make him dash off and hide. Any word for a food he liked he would learn quickly -- if we said it he would bark loudly. Also words about going outside. We began spelling food words or using euphemisms ("canine doctor"). Not quite as impressive as the dogs described here, but then he was never tested like that so maybe he could have done it.
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My folks had a miniature Schnauzer like that. For example, we had to spell the name of the nearby park otherwise he would go crazy.
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Also border collies. I have no experience training dogs and I was staying with a friend for a couple of weeks. I dog sat a bit when she was at work and accidentally taught the dog a new word. Fortunately it was a useful one!
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We had some lab mixes over the years that could learn the names of specific toys. They had a big box full of toys, and you could say, "Go get the dragon," or, "Go get the rope," or "Go get the big ball" and they'd get it right every time. They also knew enough words to sometimes try to mimic them with their growls and barks, which got pretty funny at times.
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I've seen dogs trying to say a word or two in videos but never in real life where one can interact. Seems incredibly entertaining.
Re:Some Terriers Lean Words Quickly (Score:4, Funny)
I've seen dogs trying to say a word or two in videos but never in real life where one can interact. Seems incredibly entertaining.
There was a time someone came home way earlier than normal and one of our dogs launched into a whole speech that ended with a *VERY* distinct "doing home?" It was hysterical to the person it happened to, and nobody but the people that lived in the house and had gotten similar lectures from that dog believed.
Definitely had one dog that could say "Fuck you" perfectly clearly. That got hard to explain to the neighbors.
Is this surprising? (Score:3, Insightful)
Our dog knows the names of family members and friends, which nobody has ever taught him, and is an 11 pound dog with a similarly tiny brain. Dogs are able to do all kinds of things. This article is a bit "duh".
Re:Is this surprising? (Score:5, Insightful)
Maybe the article was written by people who never owned dogs... /s
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The scientist is a dog and animal trainer. Sometimes experts get a system that works and then see everything through that system, missing things right under those noses.
If my mom calls and I put on the speaker phone, my dog recognizes her voice and gets super excited because he thinks it means her dog will be visiting.
In my classroom, my dog has paid enough attention to the classroom that when I say words to close a lesson, he gets up before the kids do.
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Sometimes experts get a system that works and then see everything through that system, missing things right under those noses.
Or, it's actually really really hard to prove that the animal in question is genuinely responding to what you expect rather than an external cue.
If my mom calls and I put on the speaker phone, my dog recognizes her voice and gets super excited because he thinks it means her dog will be visiting.
How do you know he's not recognising some subtle cue from you, like Clever Hans? Can you p
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I use to have a dog that got up when movie credits started. Didn't matter what time I was watching the movie (I never did it with any consistency), how long the movie was, etc.; she knew that the credits meant I would soon be getting up to do something else.
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Down your logical path lies solipsism.
Beyond a reasonable doubt, I know things about this being who I spend countless hours with.
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Yeah if you go all the way. I think the counter to don't anthropomorphize is don't assume humans are uniquely special.
You say beyond reasonable doubt, bit I don't know you. Everyone thinks their own kids are really smart too, where really most of them must be average. And clever Hans owner was convinced the horse could count.
It is hard to prove, and historically, e.g. with people have reached the wrong conclusions.
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I only got as far in that comment as "The scientist is a dog."
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There was a case on a television series, where two trainers were planning for a dog to do a complex stunt. They worked it all out, and then, when the dog was going to be trained for the stunt, it did it unprompted, leading to the trainers thinking the dog was telepathic. I have wondered whether the dog had simply overheard the trainers planning the stunt and acted accordingly.
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"Serious" scientists are still hung up on the idea that anything other than humans is running on pure instinct, with no higher brain function at all, so they get shocked and amazed when they see proof themselves that there's something more there than reactive instinct. Meanwhile, those of us that have lived with animals our entire lives knew there was way more going on in their heads than there is in the average human. We didn't just develop a thinking capacity in a vacuum. Predator species, even reptile an
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I've been surprised to find that the long-believed correspondence between brain size and intelligence really doesn't exist. This was demonstrated to us by, of all things, hummingbirds. With a brain smaller than a pea they can recognize us, tell us when the feeder needs refilling, sit with us as we have breakfast or lunch on the patio, complain when we prune plants which have flowers they like (even if the plant isn't flowering at the time), and tease the dogs. The males also flirt with my wife, although
Some dogs love language (Score:3)
One dog I had as a kid (an American Eskimo) had a ridiculously large vocabulary. You could tell that she was always listening to everything said in the house. When we wouldn't want her to know what we were talking about we would spell words, and then she learned the spellings. My friends didn't believe me, so they would try spelling words using monotone voices, directed at somebody else etc, and she would always react.
She wasn't necessarily the most trainable dog because she was a bit stubborn, but you could always tell that she knew exactly what you wanted!
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Pattern matching, correlation. Dogs are great for this. But not an understanding intelligence.
Spelling is also sounds so no (big) wonder. Would she react to newly learned word spelled for the first time? This would mean she actually generalized concept of spelling which would be really a wonder for a dog.
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My dog learned what W-A-L-K spells. We're currently using "perambulate" but I expect her to figure that out soon.
Not so for language... (Score:2)
With apologies.. (Score:3)
So I guess the genius dogs are an example of...
*puts on sunglasses*
The long tail effect.
YEEEAAAAAHHH!
For some narrow definition of "learn" (Score:2)
My dog did pick up few words like "walk" and go to the "bushes" (to go pee into the bushes) without any training. It also picked up recognizing the end of the TV shows, perhaps by the motion or audio patterns, which is when we take him for the evening a walk. But it's all correlation, not understanding. You can call it "learning" but it's just Pavlov's reflex. Dogs are good pattern matching machines with little ability to generalize them as they do not understand the "why".
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Then your dog isn't too bright. Not to be mean, but some are smarter than others, just like every type of animal. I've had some very intelligent dogs who learn remarkable things, and others who were nice animals but of only average canine intelligence. Of course I could say the same thing about chickens, some are smarter than others.
On the other hand, it might be just an issue with the owner . . . :-)
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Haha, that's possible, he does not have much understanding of what's he's 'learning' but he does pick up a lot 'from the air'. He's a blue healer. But alas, I can say this about several humans as well. ;-)