All potentially plausible explanations, but one could reduce much of human
behaviour to similar explanations.
Somewhere along the  way Occam's Razor (== "keep it simple, stupid")
requires us to jump from "hardwiring is the likely solution" to "software is
driving this". Occam's razor doesn't, of course, always produce the correct
answer.

With the fish, while hardwiring COULD explain all this, I feel a bit of
learning makes more sense. When it comes to our two Burmese cats, the amount
of hard wiring required to explain away their behaviour would be vastly more
costly than  a little software. Also, my wife is sure our cats are self
aware. I'm not certain. (I purr, therefore I am ?)




     Russell McMahon
_____________________________


> Russell,
>
> Good example. How about the following explanation ??????
> [doesn't require any learning whatsoever, BTW].
>
> >
> >It seems highly likely that
> >
> >- The first fish found the area randomly.
>
> it sensed the warmth flowing out of the region "immediately",
> but it took 2 days for it to randomly find its way in.
>
> >- Thereafter it returned daily purposefully.
>
> it went towards the warm area and then followed the "pheromone"
> trail it had laid down the day before.
>
> >- The other fish learned from the first fish.
>
> they followed the first fishs' pheromone trail.
>
> [one might assume fish lay down pheromones of different
> chemical composition for different instances - acidic for bad
> places, nicely sweet smelling and alkaline for warm cosy places,
> etc - Alice's slugs or their cousins, BTW, lay down a heavy
> slime trail where they travel]
>
> >- Thereafter they all returned daily purposefully.
>
> they all followed their own pheromone trails laid down the day
> before.
>
> >- The fish preferred the warmer area.
>
> instinct - ie, hard wiring.
>
> >- They chose to go to it when they knew it would be warm and left when
they
> >knew the main tank would be more desirable.
>
> they didna know nuttin - they simply move towards the temperature
> they feel most comfortable in.
>
> >- They develop and retain memories with spans of 1 day plus and probably
> >rather longer
>
> the pheromones stay in place at least until they come and
> re-do the spots the next day.
>
>
> >There are still many explanations of the fine mechanism.
> >eg the 'following" fish may be working on sensory detection of their
> >fellows.
> >"Follow the leader" pertains - this seems unlikely as they do not do so
in
> >the main tank.
> >
>
> they only lay down pheromones when it advantageous to do so.
> ============
>
> Salmon, of course, swim upstream 1000s of miles to the place of
> their birthing several years after leaving same and going out to
> the open sea. They apparently do this by being able to "taste"
> the unique chemicals in the water and follow it upstream - or
> some similar mechanism.
>
> [following a poop trail 10 feet in a tank may be a slightly
> easier job].
>
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>

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