关于猫的记忆力的-猫心理学
2011-07-23 09:09阅读：
语文没学好，翻译水平有限，随便看看吧
by Dawn R. Cole
Created on: January 20, 2009
Last Updated: November 28, 2009
Understanding A Cat's Memory
'Thousands of years ago, cats were worshiped as Gods. Cats have
never forgotten this.' - Anonymous'
“在数千年前人类把猫当作神来崇拜，猫们一直未曾忘记-” 某人的话
There is more truth to that statement than most people know. Just
because Fluffy won't come when you call her name or refuses to
perform tricks like a dog, doesn't mean she can't remember. Cats
not only display long-term memory capabilities, but are also
capable of emotional mapping, manipulation, can use tools, figure
out the spatial configurations of mazes or puzzles and, when
stalking prey, execute carefully planned schemes.
实际上这句话并没有大多数人想象的夸张,猫咪在你叫它的时候不过来或拒绝玩棒子不代表它们不记得。猫不仅具有长期性记忆，而且具有情绪影像映射，操作和使用道具的能力，当它们埋伏捕猎的时候显示出极细心的规划能力
Researchers have discovered that there is not much difference
between how a cat, a human, or another animal's brain utilizes
certain cues to assist in the creation of short and
long-term memories. A cat's brain functioning has been compared to
that of a two tothree year old child and, when compared to a dog, a
cat's memory is almost 200 times more retentive. Without repeated
and reinforced training, a dog's memory span is about 5 minutes.
Cats, on the other hand, averaged about 16 hours, only IF the
activity benefited THEM.
研究人员发现人类大脑形成短期记忆和长期记忆的方式和猫，等其他动物并没有太多区别。猫大脑的功能可以和一个2-3岁的孩子相比，和狗比较下，一只猫的短期记忆比狗要强200多倍。不经过强化和训练，狗的短期记忆能维持大约5分钟，而猫的短期记忆则能持续16小时（不过是仅仅对于能为它带来好处的事能记忆这么久）
Years before cats became domesticated, their survival depended
heavily upon their memory. In the wild, cats were forced to hunt
for their own food. Unlike dogs that hunted in packs, cats operated
alone. The hunt involved many hours of study, problem solving,
patience, and the formulation of an appropriate attack strategy.
Various distances were traveled to expand their 'hunting circles'
and every scent detected, sound that frightened them, or predatory
danger they encountered along the way, had to be remembered to
ensure their safe return home.
在猫还未被驯养之前，它们的生存严重依赖于他们的记忆力。在野外，猫们只能自己去捕食。不像那时候的狗是群体捕食，猫则是善于单独狩猎。捕猎的过程需要数小时的学习过程，耐心，解决困难和形成一套适当的捕猎策略。为了保证猫儿们每次捕猎后能安全返回，它们需要记住自己所经过的各种路线，各种气味，各种声音，或哪些区域有对它们构成威胁的动物存在
Domesticated cats re-enact some of these ingrained memories even if
they are 'indoor kitties.' They will sit at a window for hours
studying birds, squirrels, or other 'prey' and 'plot' an attack
strategy. They will also amuse themselves for hours by 'playing'
with toys that resemble 'caught' prey.
家养猫也具有一些这种天生授予的记忆，它们可以坐在窗户台上几小时，注视学习外面的鸟类和松鼠，或学习其他的攻击捕猎的方法。它们可以很享受的玩上几个小时玩具作为一种捕猎的模拟动作
Cats, like most mammals, learn through experience. Good and bad
memories are created by their experiences involving physical
activities and interactions with things in their environment like
people, other animals, smells, and sounds. Cats form 'learning
sets,' or sequences of events, through observation and copying.
Kittens learn by copying their mother. They watch her eat, use the
litter box, and interact with her environment. The kittens mimic
her actions and carry them into adulthood. As cats mature, and
develop a relationship with humans, they will often copy us, too.
They watch us open cupboard doors and then figure out how to repeat
the action. Some cats have even been known to flush toilets or raid
refrigerators!
猫儿和其他哺乳动物一样通过学习获得经验。不论好于坏的记忆都是由各种活动和接触的经历所带来的。猫们的学习是通过观察和模仿，小猫则模仿他们的妈妈，它们会观察猫妈妈如何使用猫砂，吃饭和社交。小猫们模拟所学来的行为将带至它们的成年。当猫们长大同人类建立起联系后，猫们同样可以学习人类的行为，它们注视和人是如何将厨门打开的，并会设法去做这个动作。有些猫甚至能学会按抽水马桶和打开电冰箱。
A cat's long-term memories are directly related to experiencing
pleasure (benefit) or displeasure (pain, fear or threat). For
example, it takes a long time and a lot of patience to gain the
trust of an abused or neglected cat. If they suffered physical or
mental abuse from a man or child, then they will associate that
memory with all men and all children. The same holds true for
positive experiences. Every time a cat receives affection, praise,
or a treat for doing a specific activity, it is logged into their
memory as 'a good thing' and they will continue to use it to their
benefit.
猫的长期记忆是需要直接关联到快乐和痛苦的体验的，比如它得到的好处，受到的伤痛，害怕或恐惧的经历。举例来说，人们往往需要花相当长的时间来和足够多的耐心来取得一只被虐待，或者被抛弃猫儿的信任。
如果一只猫儿受到了成人或小孩对它身体上或精神上的虐待，那么，它会把这种不好的记忆关联到所有的大人和小孩。对于好的经历也是如此，每次当猫因为做某件事而得到表扬，奖赏，那它就会形成记忆，继续做会继续得到奖励
In 2007, the University of Alberta, Canada, conducted a study on a
feline's short-term, visual memory. They discovered that short-term
memory depended heavily upon the cat's most recent physical
movements to solidify the memory in their brain and, it only lasted
about 10 minutes. This study proved that a cat's memory relies more
on physical experiences, involving trial and error and imitation,
than on visual cues
2007年，加拿大Alberta大学做过一项短期记忆和视觉形象记忆研究。研究员发现，猫的短期记忆主要依赖于它们近期所作的各种活动在脑中的固化，但只能持续10分钟。这说明猫的短期记忆是建立在它的行为经历上的-包括猫做的各种尝试，尝试失败的经历，和各种模仿，而它们的短期记忆和视觉感受并无什么联系
Every creature's ability to remember decreases with age. As cats
get older, they may forget certain things, just like we do, undergo
a personality change, or can even suffer from dementia.
同其他生物一样，当猫变老，它们也会遗忘一些事情，它们会经历性格的改变，甚至有智力上的消损
While some of a cat's memories are purely instinctual, most are
created through mental and physical experiences. Their memories are
catalogued within their brain according to how they felt at the
time and what benefit was derived. A cat's short-term memory may be
fleeting, but their long-term memory is truly amazing.
然而一部分猫的记忆力则是纯内在性的，通过精神和身体上的体验来获得。这些猫只会记得当时自己是什么体验和当时它们得到了什么好处。。一只猫的短期记忆也许只是转瞬即逝，但它们的长期记忆相当的惊人
'After scolding one's cat one looks into its face and is seized by
the ugly suspicion that it understood every word. And has filed it
for reference.' - Charlotte Gray
在人们训斥自己的猫时，猫则用疑惑无辜的表情来回应，其实它们能听懂每一句话，并且已在脑中备案-Charlotte Gray说
cited in
http://www.helium.com/items/1305323-feline-memory-retention-cats-remembering-cats-memories-short-term-memory-long-term-memory
