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Science Week: Bird Brains (Stage 2, Stage 3, Stage 4, Stage 5)
Aug
Join us for Science Week to learn all about the fascinating minds of magpies!
ACTIVITY OUTLINE:
Did you know that being social makes you smarter? Find out why in this special Science Week incursion on Bird Brains!
Lizzie is a behavioural ecologist working at the University of Western Australia. Her PhD investigates why certain individuals are smarter than others with one of the main theories being that social behaviour is what makes you smarter, which is also known as the Social Intelligence Hypothesis.
To test this theory Lizzie works with wild magpies. Despite the popular phrase “bird brain”, magpies demonstrate incredibly sophisticated cognitive abilities, including tool use and recognising human voices. As part of this research magpies are presented with a series of tasks to measure their cognition (or intelligence) and are also tested for social connectedness – who’s friends with who and who doesn’t get along. Combined, this allows researchers to test whether smarter magpies are more social.
Join Lizzie this Science Week to learn all about the fascinating minds of magpies!
IS THIS A FREE EVENT? Yes
BROUGHT TO YOU BY: Arludo
Event Details
Date & Time
16-Aug-2023 11:45AM + Google Calendar + iCal Export
Event Type
Live Event - Scheduled
Delivery Platform
Duration
Price
FREE
Curriculum
Primary, Secondary
Main KLA, Strand, Sub Strand
Special Event
Presenter Bio
Lizzie Speechley is a behavioural ecologist at the University of Western Australia. Her PhD explores the drivers of individual differences in cognition in the Western Australian magpie. She has also completed her Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Teaching and is a Higher Education Academy Fellow. When she isn’t working you will usually find her chilling on the couch, watching a good movie and cuddling her cats.
Will This Event Be Recorded?
No
Joining The Event
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Technology and Materials Requirements
This virtual excursion will run via Zoom. A device with internet connectivity with the capability of streaming video is required.
Attendees can choose to have their cameras enabled or disabled, but all microphones will be muted.
The virtual excursion will include a live presentation and time for a Q&A. Questions can either be submitted as part of your DART booking form or in the Zoom chat.
All student participants must be supervised by a teacher or parent/guardian for this virtual excursion.