How a dog IQ test could help humans By Jenn Gidman Published February
09, 2016.
Scientist from the London School
of Economics and the University of Edinburgh set out to understand the link
between intelligence and health
by studying ... dogs. Per the
Independent , 68 border collies performed a series of cognitive tasks (a
"dog IQ" test, if you will), and scientists found not only did dogs
who did well on one task tend to also have high performance on others, but that
canines also develop dementia in a way similar to their two-legged
owners-meaning study findings could potentially be applied to humans as well.
Scientists carrying out the study, had the dogs-whom were referred
to as "Mensa mutts"-tested on navigational skills, how quickly they
could find hidden food, if they could gauge differences in food quantities, and
how well they could follow a human pointing gesture. The dogs who performed
above average on one test not only performed well on others-they also tended to
complete the tests faster. "Just as people vary in their problem-solving
abilities, so do dogs, even within one breed," Arden says. "This is
significant because in humans there is a small but measureable tendency for
people who are brighter to be healthier and live longer. Which could eventually
help figure out the true tie-in between intelligence and health, with so-called
"dognitive epidemiology" perhaps even leading to treatments for
dementia in humans. Why it may have been easier to conduct an intelligence test
on dogs than on humans: Researchers didn't have to control for
"confounding" factors such as lifestyle choices (e.g., smoking) and
socioeconomic status. Plus, "dogs are excellent for this kind of work
because they are willing to participate and seem to enjoy taking
part."
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