ELearning K-12
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Vocal Characteristics
Language
EnglishVoice Age
Young Adult (18-35)Transcript
Note: Transcripts are generated using speech recognition software and may contain errors.
curious kids do butterflies remember being caterpillars by michael f brady the conversation. Dear Evan, I think it is highly unlikely that a butterfly or moth remembers being a caterpillar. However, it may well remember some experiences it learned as a caterpillar. That fact in itself is especially amazing because inside the pupa or chrysalis, the caterpillar actually turns to liquid as it transforms into a butterfly or moth. The adult stage. The transformation from the pupa to the adult is the most dramatic change in the life cycle of a butterfly. And scientists refer to this change as metamorphosis during metamorphosis. The body tissues of the caterpillar are completely reorganized to produce the beautiful adult butterfly that emerges from the pupa. Scientists have known for a long time that caterpillars can learn and remember things when they are caterpillars and adult butterflies can do the same when they are butterflies. However, because of metamorphosis, we are not sure if an adult butterfly could remember things it learned as a caterpillar. The researchers trained the caterpillars to dislike the smell of ethyl acetate, a chemical often found in nail polish remover. They did this by giving the caterpillars little electric shocks every time they smelled the chemical. Soon these caterpillars were trained to avoid that smell because it reminded them of the electric shock. They lead the caterpillars transform into adult moths and then tested the moths again to see if they still remembered to stay away from the ethyl acetate smell and guess what most of them did. The scientists had shown that the memories of avoiding the bad smell experienced as a caterpillar had been carried over into the moth stage. The study showed that memory, and therefore the nervous system stays during the complex transformation from the caterpillar to the adult moth. So while a moth or butterfly may not remember being a caterpillar, it can remember experiences it learned as a caterpillar. This ability to remember caterpillar experiences as an adult was tested in a study by a team of scientists at Georgetown University in the US.