Mice Just Passed the Mirror Test. Here’s What That Says About Our Sense of Self

Thu, 11 Jan 2024 05:02:36 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
<https://singularityhub.com/2023/12/07/mice-just-passed-the-mirror-test-heres-what-that-says-about-our-sense-of-self/>

"Here’s a fun test: Dab some blush onto the forehead of a six-month-old baby
and plop them in front of a mirror. They might look at their reflection with
curiosity but ignore the rouge. Redo the experiment at two years old. Now
they’ll likely furrow their brows, touch the blush, and try to wipe it off.

In other words, with a few years of life experience, they’ve learned to see the
person in the mirror as “me.”

The so-called mirror test has been a staple in cognitive science to gauge
self-recognition—the ability to realize that a reflection of you is you and
learn how you differ from other people. It’s a skill that naturally comes to
babies, but how this works in the brain has long baffled scientists.

This week, a study in Neuron suggests that mice may also have a rudimentary
sense of self."

Via Rity Dixet.

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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