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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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Subject:
Re: BEE-L Digest - 14 Feb 2000 to 15 Feb 2000 (#2000-45)
From:
Julian O'Dea <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 17 Feb 2000 09:19:38 +1100
Content-Type:
text/plain
Parts/Attachments:
text/plain (31 lines)
Adrian Wenner:
>We in science call upon a law called "Occam's Razor"
in such a case; use the simplest explanation that
can accommodate the evidence.  Odor is by
>far more simple than a human-type language.


Peter Borst:

1. Between these two explanations, which is more simple?:
         a) Bees encode spatial information into distinct
dance-like movements in order to convey this information
to others.
         b) Many different species of bees have evolved
a highly efficient symbolic representation of spatial
relationships for *no purpose whatever.*


Julian O'Dea: There is a third possibility, c), which I
discuss at

http://naturalscience.com/ns/articles/01-13/ns_jdo.html

This is that the symbolic representation evolved as
idiothetic behaviour: for the benefit of the *individual,
foraging bee*. The "dance" later evolved the function
of attracting other bees to the dancer, to pick up odours.
No symbolic communication, though.

Canberra, Australia

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