4 ms·

Don't humans have this too?

by trevyn 9y ago

always_good 9y ago
This is a characteristic you think humans have? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gy55o76SZc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gy55o76SZc It's something you'll see a trained ballerina do when twirling, but I'm not about to say humans walk on their toes.
- fern12 9y ago
  Ballet dancers are trained to do turns (fouette [0], pique [1] and pirouettes [2]) by "spotting" (i.e. picking an object in the near distance and spotting it until the next turn). I'm not sure the chicken video does this term justice, hence the links below. [0] https://www.instagram.com/p/2ZOLkkHMKU/?taken-by=devon.teusch https://www.instagram.com/p/2ZOLkkHMKU/?taken-by=devon.teusc...] [1] https://www.instagram.com/p/BeoYE2DlTXF/?taken-by=tilerpeck https://www.instagram.com/p/BeoYE2DlTXF/?taken-by=tilerpeck [2] https://www.instagram.com/p/BT4WSbmDMKM/?taken-by=devon.teusch https://www.instagram.com/p/BT4WSbmDMKM/?taken-by=devon.teus...
kinkrtyavimoodh 9y ago
We do have a "poor man's" version of it I guess. Coz our sense of balance does reside in the inner ear.
lowpro 9y ago
In a rough sense, but maybe keeping your eyes fixed on something on a high-speed roller coaster that shakes a lot would be a better comparison of cheetah vs human stabilization. I also wonder if there is some technology or lesson we can learn from this, more than just learning about our world and the animals in it. Either way it's fine, but it's always fun to wonder about the opportunity.
icegreentea2 9y ago
Yes. Pretty much all vertebrates have something like this. The claim here is that cheetah's have an unusually well developed vestibular system, and that this evolution was recent (developed after the 'concept' of a cheetah evolved). The linked paper is free to read. The actual research itself is limited to the anatomical study of how cheetah's vestibular system are different from other cats. It builds on other papers that talk about the relative advanceness of the cheetah's head stabilization, and the estimated benefits of the stabilization.
- dmix 9y ago
  Specifically from the article: > They found that the inner ears of living cheetahs differ markedly from those of all other felids alive today, with a greater overall volume of the vestibular system and longer anterior and posterior semicircular canals. > These traits were not present in Acinonyx pardinensis, the extinct species examined by the researchers, emphasizing the recent evolution of the highly specialized inner ear of modern cheetah.
jessriedel 9y ago
Humans have a tighter feedback to the muscles in the eyes and do most of the stabilization that way. Chickens don't have that sort of eye movement, and so they have to be more responsive with their head.

Don't humans have this too?

by trevyn 9y ago

Don't humans have this too?

This is a characteristic you think humans have? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gy55o76SZc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gy55o76SZc It's something you'll see a trained ballerina do when twirling, but I'm not about to say humans walk on their toes.

fern12 9y ago
Ballet dancers are trained to do turns (fouette [0], pique [1] and pirouettes [2]) by "spotting" (i.e. picking an object in the near distance and spotting it until the next turn). I'm not sure the chicken video does this term justice, hence the links below. [0] https://www.instagram.com/p/2ZOLkkHMKU/?taken-by=devon.teusch https://www.instagram.com/p/2ZOLkkHMKU/?taken-by=devon.teusc...] [1] https://www.instagram.com/p/BeoYE2DlTXF/?taken-by=tilerpeck https://www.instagram.com/p/BeoYE2DlTXF/?taken-by=tilerpeck [2] https://www.instagram.com/p/BT4WSbmDMKM/?taken-by=devon.teusch https://www.instagram.com/p/BT4WSbmDMKM/?taken-by=devon.teus...

kinkrtyavimoodh 9y ago

We do have a "poor man's" version of it I guess. Coz our sense of balance does reside in the inner ear.

lowpro 9y ago

In a rough sense, but maybe keeping your eyes fixed on something on a high-speed roller coaster that shakes a lot would be a better comparison of cheetah vs human stabilization. I also wonder if there is some technology or lesson we can learn from this, more than just learning about our world and the animals in it. Either way it's fine, but it's always fun to wonder about the opportunity.

icegreentea2 9y ago

Yes. Pretty much all vertebrates have something like this. The claim here is that cheetah's have an unusually well developed vestibular system, and that this evolution was recent (developed after the 'concept' of a cheetah evolved). The linked paper is free to read. The actual research itself is limited to the anatomical study of how cheetah's vestibular system are different from other cats. It builds on other papers that talk about the relative advanceness of the cheetah's head stabilization, and the estimated benefits of the stabilization.

dmix 9y ago
Specifically from the article: > They found that the inner ears of living cheetahs differ markedly from those of all other felids alive today, with a greater overall volume of the vestibular system and longer anterior and posterior semicircular canals. > These traits were not present in Acinonyx pardinensis, the extinct species examined by the researchers, emphasizing the recent evolution of the highly specialized inner ear of modern cheetah.

jessriedel 9y ago

Humans have a tighter feedback to the muscles in the eyes and do most of the stabilization that way. Chickens don't have that sort of eye movement, and so they have to be more responsive with their head.