A Caenorhabditoid whiskey compass

steingar

Taxi to Parking
Joined
Feb 6, 2007
Messages
29,248
Location
Land of Savages
Display Name

Display name:
steingar
Magnetoreception is found in many animals and possibly humans. Pigeons use it to navigate. Dogs tend to orient themselves north-south to poo. There are many examples.

Turns out nematode worms do it too. Even though they don't migrate, they do sense the Earth's magnetic field and align themselves to it. Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have found the actual cell that functions as the worm's whiskey compass. Why I think this is cool is the worm is an outstanding genetic system. If they can measure the worm's ability to orient north south, they can find the molecules involved. Saw the story on NPR.
 
Magnetoreception is found in many animals and possibly humans. Pigeons use it to navigate. Dogs tend to orient themselves north-south to poo. There are many examples.

Turns out nematode worms do it too. Even though they don't migrate, they do sense the Earth's magnetic field and align themselves to it. Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have found the actual cell that functions as the worm's whiskey compass. Why I think this is cool is the worm is an outstanding genetic system. If they can measure the worm's ability to orient north south, they can find the molecules involved. Saw the story on NPR.

This is not factual. None of the dogs we've had, nor my current pup face north or south to poo. He faces any and all directions, and that's whether he sees me watching him or not. The last dumper he took was an east-wester.
 
This is not factual. None of the dogs we've had, nor my current pup face north or south to poo. He faces any and all directions, and that's whether he sees me watching him or not. The last dumper he took was an east-wester.

I think the operative part is "tend to".
 
Magnetoreception is found in many animals and possibly humans. Pigeons use it to navigate. Dogs tend to orient themselves north-south to poo. There are many examples.

Turns out nematode worms do it too. Even though they don't migrate, they do sense the Earth's magnetic field and align themselves to it. Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have found the actual cell that functions as the worm's whiskey compass. Why I think this is cool is the worm is an outstanding genetic system. If they can measure the worm's ability to orient north south, they can find the molecules involved. Saw the story on NPR.

I seriously believe it's a human trait as well, and let me tell you, it ****ed with me in Australia. In the N hemisphere, I pretty much always know what direction North is, not in the southern, at least not for the first 6 months or so I was there. Then it started coming back, and I realized I needed to replace that 'north sensing' to be 'south sensing'.
 
I seriously believe it's a human trait as well, and let me tell you, it ****ed with me in Australia. In the N hemisphere, I pretty much always know what direction North is, not in the southern, at least not for the first 6 months or so I was there. Then it started coming back, and I realized I needed to replace that 'north sensing' to be 'south sensing'.
I'd expect that too, but is there any chance it had more to do with sun angle than magnetic sense? If it was your magnetic sense, I'd expect it to be screwed up pretty badly up in northern Canada too.
 
I'd expect that too, but is there any chance it had more to do with sun angle than magnetic sense? If it was your magnetic sense, I'd expect it to be screwed up pretty badly up in northern Canada too.

Not really for me because it was irrelevant to night or day. I have worked in the arctic both ends of the year, 24 hour dark and the sun circling the horizon. Sun circling the horizon screwed with my time of day perception, but I would refer to my sense of north to work it out with where the sun was in relation and would always be close enough.
 
Not really for me because it was irrelevant to night or day. I have worked in the arctic both ends of the year, 24 hour dark and the sun circling the horizon. Sun circling the horizon screwed with my time of day perception, but I would refer to my sense of north to work it out with where the sun was in relation and would always be close enough.
Where in the arctic? Does your sense of north agree with true north or magnetic north? The reason I mentioned the arctic is because they're very different in many places in the arctic, 25 degrees or so in parts of the NWT.
 
This is not factual. None of the dogs we've had, nor my current pup face north or south to poo. He faces any and all directions, and that's whether he sees me watching him or not.

I think the operative part is "tend to".

I'm with Ed on this one. I heard about this study about a year ago so I started watching my three dogs on our morning and evening walks. There is no "tend to" about it. They face all directions randomly. The only thing that's consistent..., if they're on a slope, then the tend to point uphill.

Otherwise all bets are off.
 
Where in the arctic? Does your sense of north agree with true north or magnetic north? The reason I mentioned the arctic is because they're very different in many places in the arctic, 25 degrees or so in parts of the NWT.

Prudhoe Bay Alaska summer, Spitsbergen in winter. Not accurate enough sensing to be able to measure against variation, but I would imagine magnetic North.
 
I wish I could detect north. I always know where north is in the midwest...but..take me out of the midwest and put me somewhere that isn't a grid system..and I get incredibly confused about cardinal directions.

For example, I end up losing my sense of direction quite quickly somewhere like North Carolina, where the roads change direction randomly, and your view is blocked by tall trees.

I never "lose" my sense of direction flying even when I'm without a grid system, mostly, because I keep track of it because I know which direction I'm going and constantly save the visible landmarks in my brain.
 
Last edited:
I took a dog to the Arctic, very close to the north pole.
This is (as expected) how his poo oriented.
You can trust me on this. I have considerable experience on the topic.
 

Attachments

  • index.jpeg
    index.jpeg
    4.6 KB · Views: 16
I took a dog to the Arctic, very close to the north pole.
This is (as expected) how his poo oriented.
You can trust me on this. I have considerable experience on the topic.

Valentine, the Wonder Rat used to do that!
 
I think directional sense, like pheromonal communication, is one of those abilities that we once had, but have de-prioritized to the point that we're in the process of losing it.

Rich
 
I think directional sense, like pheromonal communication, is one of those abilities that we once had, but have de-prioritized to the point that we're in the process of losing it.

Rich

I don't think we're losing the sense, just that it's no longer part of our cultural development because we no longer need it.
 
I have absolutely no sense of direction. I also admit to not paying too much attention to which way my dog faces when he dumps.
 
I think directional sense, like pheromonal communication, is one of those abilities that we once had, but have de-prioritized to the point that we're in the process of losing it.

Rich

Are you saying this is what the appendix did? Nobel prize in medicine to Rich! ;)

I have absolutely no sense of direction. I also admit to not paying too much attention to which way my dog faces when he dumps.

I'm the opposite. When GPSs first came out, I wanted one and my wife just laughed. "WTF do you need a GPS for? You're a freakin' homing pigeon."
 
Are you saying this is what the appendix did? Nobel prize in medicine to Rich! ;)



I'm the opposite. When GPSs first came out, I wanted one and my wife just laughed. "WTF do you need a GPS for? You're a freakin' homing pigeon."

I think the appendix is the vestigial remains of an organ that digested fiber.
 
Back
Top