Marine Cognitive Processes.
Abstract
The purpose of this research is to test the limits of the cognitive capacities of California sea lions within the framework of teaching them to comprehend an artificial language composed of a trainer's arm and hand movements. These arbitrary gestural signs by a trainer are mapped on to modifiers designating place (in the case of a male sea lion, Bucky, at Marine World), size and brightness (in the case of a ten-year-old female sea lion, Rocky, and a three-year old female sea lion, Gertie, at the Long Marine Laboratory, U.C. Santa Cruz) as well as mapped on to actions taken toward the designated objects. A second and related goal of our research is to determine the extent to which California sea lion pups imprint on humans and whether human attachment figures are reinforcing enough to play a significant role in controlling simple, as well as complex, learned behavior.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 09, 1985
- Accession Number
- ADA160992
Entities
People
- Ronald J. Schusterman
Organizations
- California State University, East Bay