Author | Chen Zhihan source | Science and technology publicity cultural resource library
From the Phoenix legend that swept the square a few years ago to the various "divine comedy" that has dominated Douyin in recent years, the dynamic and rhythmic songs seem to have a mysterious magic, which can always make people can't help but beat and sway. Reflect, is it melody together, you start shaking your legs wildly and nodding?
According to Darwin's theory, following the beat rhythm is actually an "ancestral" human skill, also known as beat synchronicity. It is innate, the foundation of singing and dancing, and has been considered exclusive to humans.
Although some non-human mammals can also respond to sound, some can chirp regularly, and some are trained to keep up with the rhythm of music, these are different from human rhythms. The latter relies on the interaction of the auditory and motor systems, and when tuned, one can not only efficiently identify the beat, but also predict the beat, and then accurately "step on the point" to dance. Scientists have never found a similar talent for dancing in animals before.
But now, a study published in the journal Science Advances found that rats have the same skills, and they are not as talented as humans.
A natural master of rhythm
The research team at the University of Tokyo in Japan focused on 10 rats and 20 human volunteers to conduct the experiment.
In the experiment, the researchers played the same track simultaneously for humans and rats, and captured the slightest head movements of both through wireless miniature accelerometers. The music is all 1 minute long and comes from Mozart, Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson, Queen and Magic Red. After the normal speed playback, the researchers adjusted the music rhythm several times (0.75x/1x/2x/4x) and repeated the above operation.
To rule out the restriction of the "on all fours" posture on beating, rats are arranged in a transparent box. Although there is a drinking water device on the top of the box, it is at a height that the rat cannot reach while lying on its stomach. This means that in order to drink water, the rat must stand all the time.
The researchers were surprised to find that no matter which track was played, the rats effortlessly kept up with the rhythm, and their heads swung regularly — with a degree of grasp of the beat comparable to that of humans.
"This reaction can't be fully explained by 'panic', but they haven't been exposed to music before, or have undergone any training, so there's no reason to 'shake their heads' for no reason." Hirokazu Takahashi, an associate professor at the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Information Science and Technology, said.
The only explanation is that rats can also synchronize beats. "Their sense of rhythm is innate."
Favorite Disco
Like people, rats also have a "soft spot" for fast-paced music (Disco is about 120bpm) of 120~140 beats per minute. In this rhythmic range, both have the most violent head swing frequency and the strongest rhythm synchronization. And as the music accelerates, its action frequency gradually decreases.
In addition, the data also showed that rats were on par with humans in predicting rhythm and even more reactive than humans. In other words, when it comes to the speed of "singing and dancing", human beings must also sigh at themselves.
The similarities in musicality between humans and rats allowed the team to confirm the hypothesis that rhythm does not depend on physical speed (the speed at which the body moves) but on the "time constant" (the speed at which the brain responds).
This constant is very similar across all species. It also means that beat synchronization may be more common in the animal kingdom than thought – some animals have heads that are too small to capture with the naked eye.
It is worth mentioning that at the end of the paper, it is pointed out that the head acceleration of the mouse when nodding and patting is basically equivalent to a student "reading with headphones".
For people, wearing headphones and playing music is to avoid the noise of the outside world and focus more on reading, but it may be difficult for them to realize that they have "moved and played" countless times.
bibliography
https://phys.org/news/2022-11-rats-bopping-video-innate-synchronization.html
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abo7019#sec-3
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