http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/20/science/20creature.html?ref=science
In this article, “For Fish in Coral Reefs, it’s Useful to Be Smart” it explains that fish are actually a lot smarter then humans give them credit for. They have to distinguish between enemies and friends, and mates vs. rivals. They have to figure out ways to deal with their complex environments in which these things are very hard to do. Resent studies have shown that reef fish are very adaptable. The fish that are recently caught from the reef can much more easily determine things such as colors, patterns and shapes. This is because they have been doing this in the reef before. They also have a remarkable ability to learn, for example a fish took a test where he taped the correct shape with his nose, the first test he got 70 percent right, the second he scored 80 percent right and the third he scored 90 percent correct. This showed that he had learned his mistakes and was improving them. The fish also learned that when he got something right he would get a food reward which made him move faster and more correctly. The fish was even better at the color test; scientists think this is probably because in the coral reef the fish will be using their sense of colors more then their sense of shapes.
This article does not really affect daily human life nevertheless it has a significant influence on how we see fish. They aren’t the extremely stupid things that most people think they are. These small insignificant creatures even have “businesses.” Their job is to clean other animals; they even establish territories where other fish come to have parasites removed.
I thought this article was very interesting because before this I definitely thought of fish as very un-useful, unintelligent animals. This article was very well written; it captured the reader’s attention immediately with a story from the author’s childhood.
Article Review
ReplyDeleteOct. 20th
Chris Marasco
Many aspects were well presented in Amelia Phillip’s article review, "For Fish in Coral Reefs, It’s Useful to Be Smart". Three aspects clearly explained why it is useful for fish in coral reefs to be smart. Fish are intelligent in that they can adequately adapt to complex environments. They also have an innate intelligence with a strong ability to learn, which was proven by a fish test administered where their test scores improved each time they took the test. Fish are similar to humans because it was also observed that fish liked rewards and would work harder knowing the harder and quicker they worked, the sooner they would be rewarded with food.
A few areas where the review could be improved would be to include a brief synopsis of the author’s childhood story about fish, which had initially captured the attention of the reader. It would also be interesting to know why fish were not perceived to be intelligent in the first place.
I learned a lot about fish and was impressed by the article review, "For Fish in Coral Reef’s, It’s Useful to Be Smart". The review simply explained interesting facts about fish, a subject of which I knew little about.
Amelia's current events article summary was very well written. One point that was good was she supported her facts with examples that allowed us to understand her better. For example, Amelia wrote that fish are smarter than we think. She then she went along to say that they can even distinguish between friends and enemies. I also liked the article choice because this is different and like Amelia said this topic doesn’t really affect daily human life but it was very enjoyable to read. She did an excellent job at only writing the information that was really necessary for the reader's understanding. I think Amelia could explain the test more thoroughly in order for the reader to better understand how these tests proved that fish we smarter than we thought. I loved how she stated each test and what the outcome was but I think Amelia could discuss how these tests are either inaccurate or accurate. Also I think Amelia could improve her summary by writing about which species of fish received better results during the test, if any species of fish we shown to be be more smart than the another species. I was very impresses at how Amelia took this article and told us her view of fish and how it was influenced after reading the original article. Good Job Amelia!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDelete~Alex Adrian
“For Fish in Coral Reefs, It’s Useful to be Smart” was a well-written article. I learned that freshly caught fish quickly learned new tasks such as color, pattern, and shape discrimination. Learning to respond to new and different stimuli are important in fish adaptation and survival. Many tests were discussed to test these different learned behaviors. I liked the way she explained these tests in a simple, clear way.
ReplyDeleteThe article could have included clearer details that were easier to follow. The description of the tests were sometimes difficult to follow and what they were trying to prove, such as the “cleaning stations”, were not easy to understand.
Overall, Amelia summarized a difficult article well. I think that knowing that fish are actually smart will help both people’s understanding of fish and scientists when they are conducting future tests on fish.
Amelia's portrayal of this article was very well written. She was sure to include relevant examples which made the review quite enjoyable to read. I also enjoyed the content of this article, it was chosen according to interest and I admire that because it therefore helps the reader easily analyze it and also gain knowledge about interesting studies and events.
ReplyDeleteI think that this article could have been more scientifically knowledgeable if Amelia included important facts as to how these new studies were obtained. Although her subject was interesting, it wasn't as relevant to chemistry as some others were.
I was thoroughly impressed and pleasantly surprised by what I have learnt throughout this article review. The absolute unbelievability about this article was very interesting and again I will repeat that it shocked me to hear about fish being able to have businesses and recognize different colors etc.
Overall I was greatly impressed by this article and I think that Amelia did a great job.
Olivia Estes
Amelia wrote a very well written summary of this article. One thing Amelia did well was that she thoroughly explained all examples she gave. By doing this she allowed the reader to understand what was going on much more clearly. Another thing she did well was she wrote a very interesting article. The idea that fish are smart and can distinguish between friends and enemies is really cool. This kept the reader very interested in the article. I also liked that even though it was irrelevant to daily life, it is a great thing to know about fish because many people have fish as pets. I do think the article could have been better explained when speaking about testing the fish. I did not understand how the fish were tested for their abilities until i read the actual article. Other than that i thought it was a well- written review. All in all i was very impressed with Amelia's article. It as not overly informant, but gave enough information that you learned something without being bored. Great job Amelia!
ReplyDeleteAmelia did a good job illustrating this article. She had some strong points that really made the review seem intelligent. I like how Amelia chose such an interesting topic about very interesting creatures. I also liked the part about the fish being rewarded. Thirdly, I enjoyed how the fish can distinguish colors from each other. One thing that needs improvement is the detail. What species of fish are they? Another thing that wasn't great was the part about a test that I couldn't follow. It was a little confusing and could of used more explanation. Overall, I learned that we take fish for granted, when they are alot smarter than we give credit for.
ReplyDeleteAmelia chose a great topic, that was very easy to understand. She used a great example, proving that the fish learned from it's mistakes. She made this article very clear and easy for us to understand. By choosing an interesting topic she grasped the readers attention. It was very interesting that fish from the coral reefs are smarter then regular tank fish.
ReplyDeleteWhat I did not understand in this was what types of fish from the coral reef's. Amelia could have explained in more detail about the tests that were used. For example, how was it possible to test the fish?
I learned that although a fish is small, it actually has a bigger capacity for a brain then I thought possible. Amelia did a fantastic job choosing and portraying this article.
Amelia did a good hob summerizing the article. her choice in the article was very interesting because it talked about a very normal creature and made it interesting. i like the part about the fish being able to see colors. i also found it interesting how the fish have their own buisnesses. It seemed incredible to me that fish know there own territories. Amelia could have explained more. I learned that fish are smart.
ReplyDeleteIn this review, I liked how in her summary, she made sure to mention why coral reef fish are smarter due to the environmental problems that they may face. She did a thorough job of explaning the studies that led to the conclusion and why the results for each study might be different. I enjoyed how this article was about animals that we thought we knew well and that makes it a shocker, rather than something about hydroelectric cars which might be harder to understand.
ReplyDeleteThe review was well thought, out however the spelling and grammar could have been proofread a tad bit more carefully to allow the sentences to flow more easily. I also wished there had been an explanation of whether our normal goldfish are as smart as coral fish. They're very different and the goldfish still looks pretty dumb and out of it. Another note, since you have read the article isn't using the term insignificant in the second paragraph a bit uncalled for? Maybe "seemingly insignificant" would prove more worthy of the creatures?
This article taught me that even the smallest creatures on this planet are by some way contributing to the community; I found the idea that they can set up shop fascinating.