Very cool project – A Vending Machine for Crows
The goal of this project is to create a device that will autonomously train crows. Initially we’re training them to deposit dropped coins they find on the ground in exchange for peanuts, but eventually we hope to be able to train them to search and rescue, or to collect garbage, or who knows!
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This is the highest-risk segment of the machine’s operation. At this point coins alone are made available whenever the bird lands on the perch. However, should a bird peck or sweep coins off the tray and cause a coin to fall down the funnel, the device then produces some peanuts. This stage is designed to cement in the crows’ mind the relationship between coins going down the funnel and peanuts being made available.
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Finally we shift the device into its intended, and long-term state of only providing peanuts when coins go down the funnel. Nothing is otherwise provided aside from coins scattered around the device at the beginning of the project.
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This is the highest-risk segment of the machine’s operation. At this point coins alone are made available whenever the bird lands on the perch. However, should a bird peck or sweep coins off the tray and cause a coin to fall down the funnel, the device then produces some peanuts. This stage is designed to cement in the crows’ mind the relationship between coins going down the funnel and peanuts being made available.
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Finally we shift the device into its intended, and long-term state of only providing peanuts when coins go down the funnel. Nothing is otherwise provided aside from coins scattered around the device at the beginning of the project.
Joshua Klein Thesis presentation definitely watch this! (the webcast takes like 30 seconds before the talk starts – it is worth the wait). Watch a video from the University of Ithaca site (with Dr. Kevin McGowan).
Other sites that also are mentioned as possible sites: Dr. Anne Clark, University of Binghamton (with a captive population of crows); Dr. Natalie Jeremijenko (seed podcast), Dr. Carolee Caffrey, Harvard and Dr. James Ha, University of Washington. Read the Paper by Joshua Klein about the plans for the experiment.
Related: The Engineer That Made Your Cat a Photographer – Backyard Wildlife: Fox – Ants on Stilts for Science
Hi John,
Great blog. It is fun to see how ideas travel around the web and who can resist science like this? I’ll be checking back- Susan
Always amazing what kind of inventions there are. Now it’s something for crows. And the crows are learning how to use this.
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Search and rescue sounds like a worthy endeavor indeed. I wonder how this experiment in training crows can be applied to search and rescue. If I were wounded on a mountainside, I would be grateful for help in any shape or form…including a crow!
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