![]() A mechanical pencil is ideal as it always has an even width line and never needs sharpening. I don’t want to put any shading in here as it will show through when we start to paint. I also use a mechanical pencil for all my watercolor drawing. Using standard hardware store masking tape I tape a piece of paper to a lightweight drawing board. It’s a little more work but it is the most cost effective way to buy good quality watercolor paper. I usually buy large 22″x30″ sheets and tear them into quarters. I’m working on a 11″x15″ piece of Fabriano Artistico 140lb cold press watercolor paper. From the Cover: Self-recognition in an Asian elephant Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 103 (45), 17053-17057 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.Elephant outline drawing Use a Mechanical Pencil for Watercolor Drawing Dogs tend to fail too, but their main sense is smell not sight. Gorillas do poorly in the test, but this may be because they see direct facial contact as a sign of aggression. While the test is undoubtedly useful, there is some debate about whether failing it proves that an animal is not self-aware. NB The history of mirror self-recognition is fascinating and is well beyond the scope of this article. The test will clearly need to be repeated in other elephants, but for the moment, this study provides compelling evidence that the Asian elephant can join the illustrious self-awareness club. Even though Maxine and Patty both failed, Plotnik isn’t discouraged, pointing out that even in the frequently-tested chimpanzee, only one in two individuals pass the test. After being marked, he examined herself in the mirror by moving in and out of view, and began to probe the visible mark with her trunk while ignoring the invisible sham one. Elephants use their trunks like humans use their hand and can touch most of their body surface with it, making them ideal subjects for the mirror test. The mark testĪt this point, Plotnik put the elephants through the mark test, by placing a visible mark on the right side of their heads, and an invisible control mark on the left side. They were clearly examining their own bodies, pulling their ears or sticking their trunks in their mouths, in a way that they never did without the mirror. They also started to make unusual body and trunk movements in front of the mirror in the same way that a person would check out a new outfit in a dressing room. None of them made any attempt to socially interact with their reflection and they would do things that they would normally avoid when directly in front of other elephants, like eating. As the days went on, they started investigating the mirror less and less. They started to investigate the mirror and the wall it was mounted on with their trunks, peering behind or under it. When the mirror was revealed, each elephant started to spend more time with it. The trio, named Happy, Maxine and Patty, were given a literally jumbo-sized mirror in their yard. Researchers test for this awareness by seeing if the animal can touch a mark on its body that it couldn’t otherwise see and that’s exactly what Plotnik did with three Asian elephants at New York’s Bronx Zoo. In 2006, Joshua Plotnik of Emory University added elephants to that list. In the animal kingdom, the skill is even rarer and has only been found in the most intelligent of species – humans, apes, dolphins and more recently, magpies. This may seem obvious to us but even human children only become self-aware in their second year of life. As such, it is intimately linked to mental qualities like empathy and selflessness. ![]() Having it is a vital step to understanding that others are similarly aware and have their own thoughts and desires. It’s the understanding that you exist as an individual, separate from others. It’s a fairly innocuous scene but it requires an ability that only the most intelligent of animals possess – self-awareness. Embarrassed, you wipe it away and rejoin your date. Midway through dinner, you excuse yourself and head to the bathroom where, to your chagrin, the mirror reveals that you have a streak of sauce on the side of your face. You are on a date and by all accounts, it’s going well. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |