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Elephants Just Passed a Classic Psychology Test – With More Restraint Than Many Humans (www.sciencealert.com)
submitted 1 day ago by to c/science@lemmy.world
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[–] 13 points 1 day ago (2 children)

So they made it appear that the path of least resistance was directly in, and then when it wasn't, the elephants realized that there might be a different path of least resistance, possibly similar to the black boxes they'd already experienced? That doesn't sound like inhibition to me.

Exploring the inside of the clear box before taking the fruit may only demonstrate that the elephants rank knowledge of an unknown object higher than consuming a known fruit. Neat, but also not inhibition.

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  • [–] 7 points 18 hours ago

    The fact that they used the experience from the black boxes is the inhibition.

    I know people hate AI, but this is what Gemini said to help my understanding - take it or leave it as you wish:

    What the Results Showed

    • The First Surprise: When presented with the clear box, the elephants didn't waste time banging their trunks against the clear front wall trying to get the food. They immediately reached around to the side opening.
    • The Catch: This left researchers wondering: did the elephants have master-level inhibitory control (suppressing their impulse so effortlessly that they didn't even make a mistake)? Or did they simply view the clear plastic as just another solid barrier, meaning there was no strong impulse to fight off in the first place?
    • The Confirmation: When the researchers rotated the box to move the opening to a new side, the elephants did pause and slow down. That brief delay showed their brains actively overriding an established habit to figure out the new path—confirming that inhibitory control was indeed at work.

    Why Psychologists Care

    Inhibitory control is a core pillar of executive function (the brain's management system). Animals with high inhibitory control tend to have complex social structures, advanced problem-solving skills, and flexible thinking—they can pause, evaluate, and choose a strategy rather than just acting on raw instinct.

    So their use of "inhibition" is rather different than my use of the word. And once that's clear, it makes sense to me.

    Again, do what you will with the AI, but I've found that this is a good use of it - take a specific text and help rephrase it differently.

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  • [–] 1 point 19 hours ago*

    Sounds a little autistic or compulsive(not sure which word is more appropriate).

    They are pending like "Like no I'm not done with the task of knowing what this thing is over here. It could kill me"

    I'm a gamer, but im not a completionist given the missions that are intended just so you increase your hours of engagement goals they want from you.

    But I've grinded levels and other items in games more than many gamers because I was set on that goal. Internal rewards/accomplishments and all that.

    We know elephants supposedly have very good memories, so them completely exploring something new is not a very surprising thing to learn

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