Study shows monkeys are able to remember what they have seen

A report published in the Current Biology journal on April 28, showed that like their human cousins, rhesus monkeys are able to recall what they have seen in two very important ways. 

The first type of memory is the ability to recognize something that you have already seen.  For example, looking at a photograph of a toy you loved as a child, and knowing it on sight.  The second type of memory is being able to describe how that recalled object looked, either verbally or with a drawing.

The scientists determined that the monkeys had the ability to remember basic shapes with some versatility, as they were capable of reproducing them on a touch screen computer.  These findings are important because they demonstrate that the memory of a monkey is much closer to that of humans than had formerly been believed.

Benjamin Basile of Emory University said that “It’s exciting to speculate that they may be able to recollect the appearance of monkeys they know, what favorite foods look like, or the path they would have to take to get to a water source.”

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Posted by Louise Wellington on May 1 2011. Filed under Science. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.