It’s no secret that cats of all sorts love boxes.
Why, I cannot say, since I don’t have a very good handle on what it’s like to be a cat. But we do know that they love sitting in boxes so much, they’ll happily sit in a square you tape on the floor.
A new paper demonstrates that they will also plop themselves down inside a Kanizsa illusion ‘square’ you tape on the floor.
So pleased to announce that my paper, “If I Fits I Sits: A Citizen Science Investigation into Illusory Contour Susceptibility in Domestic Cats (Felis silvestris catus) has just been published in AABS! #IfIFitsISits #CatSquare #CitizenScience #CommunityScience pic.twitter.com/AXbDttnOGC
— Gabriella Smith M.A. (@Explanimals) May 4, 2021
Recent trials have found cats to be much more cooperative research subjects if they’re studied at home, and that’s what this researcher, Gabriella Smith, did.
With paper, scissors, and some tape, the owners were instructed to create several different shapes for the cats. This included the typical square, but it also included the Kanizsa square illusion, a pattern of Pacman-like shapes that fool the human brain into seeing a fully outlined square. For their control, they created a similar Kanizsa shape, but one where the illusion isn’t possible.
Once the shapes were put down on the floor, in various arrangements, the cats would enter the room. If they chose a shape to sit or stand inside for at least three seconds, the trial would be considered a success and their choice would be marked down. To monitor the trials remotely, the owners were asked to record the cats via a camera and smartphone. And to avoid influencing the cats in any way, they were told not to interact with them and to wear dark sunglasses so no eye contact could be made.
Ultimately, 30 owners completed the experiment in full, which involved six days of trials. Of these, nine cats were cooperative, meaning that they actually made a choice at least once during the trials. And out of the 16 times a choice was made, cats sat on the square eight times, the square-like illusion seven times, and the control illusion once.
The actual finding here is that cats are susceptible to Kanizsa illusions, but gosh if they didn’t test it in the most adorable way. I think I’ll have to test this out on Samwise…
Open thread!
guachi
⌈⌉
⌊⌋
Baud
But do they see the dress as black and blue or white and gold?
Baud
@guachi:
⌈ ⌉
⌊ ⌋
RobertDSC-Work
I have a picture of KC our beloved office cat sleeping comfortably on my backpack set down on the floor.
I just looked over my camera roll and have several pictures of her resting comfortably in all kinds of tight spaces. Such a good cat. I miss her sometimes.
guachi
@Baud: Mine is for a really skinny cat.
HumboldtBlue
I’m not a dad, but I am very close to several dads and this dad press conference is hilarious.
Major Major Major Major
@Baud: probably depends on the monitor settings, just like with humans ?
Gravenstone
They’ll also sit on throw rugs on hard surfaces for the same illusory boundaries. My tabby female loves the one outside my shower as an example.
CaseyL
Based on what I’ve observed with my own kitties, I think there are a couple of reasons cats do this:
One, they like marked spaces, marked off spaces, spaces that are separated from surroundings in any way whatsoever. Cats will sit on a sheet of paper in the middle of a rug. They like demarcations, because demarcations denote territory. “If I sits, it’s mine!”
Two, I think they like smallish spaces (cardboard boxes, paper bags) because they can touch all the sides all at once, and that’s a means of control. They’ll know instantly if anyone or anything else enters that space. So I think it’s a control and security thing.
…
…
…
Three, they like to mess with us.
Major Major Major Major
@Gravenstone: Samwise will sit on just about anything demarcated but now I want to know if he’ll sit in an invisible square…
Robert Sneddon
There’s a classic illusion, the “rotating snakes” pattern which most cats seem to be able to see and will react to.
Dorothy A. Winsor
An obvious candidate for the Ig Nobel Awards.
Miss Bianca
@HumboldtBlue: Beautiful. : )
@Dorothy A. Winsor: I was thinking that, as well! In fact, I checked the source to make sure it wasn’t the IgNobel Prize Committee announcing it!
Major Major Major Major
@Robert Sneddon: Oh that’s great!
@Dorothy A. Winsor: Those rub me the wrong way because it seems like a lot of them are actually valuable research… like this one!
zhena gogolia
Amusing Meghan McCain clip, and I know that sounds like an oxymoron
A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)
Cats are originally den dwellers in the wild, so yes, they quite naturally like small enclosed places (boxes, paper bags). But the thing where they will choose any demarked area to sit in is hilarious (and also very cute). My cats will also choose to sleep on any piece of clothing I leave on the bed, but that I think is all about my smell and comfort. Although you could argue all of these behaviors are about security.
ETA: I love the picture of the tiger in the box!
TaMara (HFG)
@Robert Sneddon: Now I want to make one for my cats.
My clowder seem to be immune to boxes…but laundry baskets with clean laundry, now that’s a container they can get behind.
Hkedi [Kang T. Q.]
@Dorothy A. Winsor: Seconded for the Ig Nobel prize! Very strong contender
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@zhena gogolia: “Cheeto Jesus”… most of what I see from America’s most famous middle-aged spoiled brat is whining that she, and all Republicans, but mostly her, are being picked on, so I had sorta kinda forgotten how much she hates trump.
RSA
Pretty cool! The abstract of the journal article, with highlights:
TaMara (HFG)
I got home in time to rewind the Biden speech on MSNBC and am listening – the Q&A is killer, off the top of his head topics/responses are amazing. Better than the prepared speech. I don’t see any video yet for it.
BruceFromOhio
I am associated with several potential test subjects, and this will be interesting to compare them to other subjects as well as each other.
@zhena gogolia:
Outstanding! The GQP fractures are getting closer to the surface as it tears itself into factions. Going to be very interesting to see where the big money falls. “We plunged the country into racist fascism, but our taxes are still low!”
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: That was satisfying. “People like me! How dare they?”
shorter: “Don’t they know who we are? Our dads were both really important!”
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@WaterGirl:
that, too
Major Major Major Major
BIG news!
WaterGirl
@BruceFromOhio:
I feel certain that they appreciate the respect you show when you talk about them. :-)
WaterGirl
@Major Major Major Major: Yes!
BruceFromOhio
@Robert Sneddon:
That’s kind of surreal, I would not expect a cat to react that way!
@TaMara (HFG):
I love when I learn a new word that I have to go look up, ‘clowder.’ Probably old hat to the multitudes of cat people around here. =)
Miss Bianca
@zhena gogolia: Wow, I have to finally approve of something Meghan McCain said?
The world’s turned upside down, indeed…
Benw
According to my cat, laptop keyboards check all the, uh, boxes for sitting on:
BruceFromOhio
@WaterGirl:
It’s a mutual thing. Full disclosure, they have a different address, and I enjoy the many pictures their handler provides.
Just One More Canuck
Will there be a follow up study on, if given a choice, will a cat barf on a carpet or a hard surface?
sdhays
@Major Major Major Major: That’s a Big Biden Deal!
Gravenstone
@Just One More Canuck: Empirically, carpeted surfaces win out > 80% of the time. If one is in walking distance at the onset of emesis, it will relocate to the carpet.
gvg
@Benw: When I was working from home, my shy cat wanted my attention and was getting in front of the monitor. On line suggestions were to get a box with some paper in it and put it a little to the side. After the cat started sitting in it, shift it gradually to be less in your way. It worked, the box got moved to behind the monitor, and she slept in it for months even after I was back at work.
There were also suggestions to put up an old keyboard as a decoy, with the working one below in a keyboard tray. I didn’t have to use that trick, but it seemed like it would work to me.
Nora
@Just One More Canuck: I think the answer will be “yes.”
Martin
@zhena gogolia: Fascism’s a bitch Megan. Your dad spends half a century in service to this country and some sex predator comes along and captures the entire party in a matter of 18 months. Y’all let him in the door when you thought it would help you, and not only are you stuck with him, you’re the only ones that can deprogram the country. Your party can’t do that by maintaining this partisan opposition to everything, by protecting Gaetz, by demanding the 1/6 commission investigate BLM. You can’t limit the damage to just Trump. You gotta own it all.
zhena gogolia
@Just One More Canuck:
I can tell you the answer to that one without any study!
Just One More Canuck
@Gravenstone:
@Nora: based on my own study of every cat I’ve ever known, Gravenstone’s estimate of 80% may be low, though our current cat (Elsa the wonder nut) may be bringing the average up
tokyokie
@Just One More Canuck:
My experience is that a cat’s first choice of locations for barfing is the bed. Especially if I’m in it.
MisterForkbeard
@zhena gogolia: And yet, Meghan McCain abases herself before ‘Cheeto Jesus’ all the time.
Warren Senders
@Dorothy A. Winsor:
I’m emailing the link to Marc Abrahams, so it will go to the IgNobel committee if it hasn’t already.
zhena gogolia
@MisterForkbeard:
Oh, but in that clip she’s promising there will be consequences!!!
Warren Senders
@Major Major Major Major:
The scientists who receive the Igs are often extremely proud of their work and delighted by the award. My father received an Ig in 2011 (for research he’d done in 1967!) and was over-the-moon happy about it.
BruceJ
@Major Major Major Major: A former boss of mine got one; and was able to attend the ceremony, says it was a blast. They’re very much give in the spirit of fun, not mean-ness.
He showed me the ‘cash’ portion of his prize: a Trillion Dollar Zimbabwean note.
Major Major Major Major
@Warren Senders:
@BruceJ: Ah, good to know! Bad science journalism strikes again, I suppose.
A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)
@Just One More Canuck: My experience is they prefer softer surfaces (beds, etc.) which may mimic grassy areas better than hard floors. But of course, when you need to barf, any surface will do. Nothing like stepping on (cold, wet) cat vomit on the floor when you get up in the middle of the night to pee. Good times!
rikyrah
@HumboldtBlue:
?????
WereBear
@Gravenstone: And especially if there is fringe in the area.
WaterGirl
@BruceFromOhio: You can never go wrong with mutual respect!
Just One More Canuck
@A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan): my cat, a regular barfer, has never done so outside. She could spend hours outside eating the entire lawn, but will not barf until she comes back inside. A very good thing that she’s cute
catclub
I would say the actual finding is that people will participate in ‘research’ that involves their cats in a fun way.
catclub
@Just One More Canuck:
Our cats never go outside. They still barf. Regularly.
different-church-lady
Cats are mammals.
Just sayin….
Ken
Is this really a valid test? I’ve seen cats walking across a bare floor stop and stand absolutely still for over three seconds, sometimes mid-step with a paw raised, then continue as if nothing had happened. I assume there is a cat reason for this, which my merely human brain cannot comprehend.
Ken
Yes, we’ve all seen the pictures from the 2019 Cats and thought that maybe the furries are onto something.
Major Major Major Major
@Ken: gotta define the parameters somehow!
Major Major Major Major
@different-church-lady: so are bats and we don’t pretend to have great insights into their minds…
Jinchi
This works for children as well.
Sister Golden Bear
Let them fight.