It's almost impossible to listen to a song without listening to music. Rats like to move quickly in time to music.
Scientists say the discovery of this ability provides insight into the animal mind and the origins of music and dance.
Rat's beat synchronisation was innate, that is, without any training or prior exposure to music.
He said that music exerts a strong appeal to the brain.
The study is the first to investigate the phenomenon of animals dancing to music.
10 rats were fitted with wireless, miniature accelerometers to measure their head movements The excerpts were played at four different speeds, 75%, 100%, and 400% of the original speed. Human volunteers were also involved.
You have to sign up for the first edition.
Every weekday morning, Archie and Nimo take you through the top stories.
Rats may prefer faster music as their bodies work at a faster pace. The time constant of the brain is the same for all species.
When the music was in the 120-150 beats per minute range, both the rat and human participants had optimal beat synchronicity. Rats and humans jerk their heads to the beat in a similar rhythm, and the team found that the level of head jerking decreased the more that the music was sped up.
The results suggest that the time constant in the brain is the most important factor for beat synchronisation.
Music properties such as melody and harmony will be investigated by the team. The engineer is interested in using music for a happy life.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
