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Subject:
From:
James Fischer <[log in to unmask]>
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Date:
Tue, 14 Jan 2003 08:46:00 -0500
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Dave Cushman said:

> There is a flaw in the way we understand "what the bee sees" because we
> consider what our eyesight 'picture' would look like through a bee's eye.

> Consider that vision in humans is a combination of the optical signals and
> the processing that our brains do on those signals.

> Why then do we extrapolate what the bee 'sees' when we have no idea how it's
> brian processes the data it receives?

Because we can observe what the bees do, and at least figure out what colors
and shapes they can distinguish as unique from something else.

Without any testing at all, one can state with certainty that bees can differentiate
one flower from another by vision alone, so markers that are nothing but simplified
and enlarged patterns copied from photos of flowers taken under UV light should
be a good "drift preventer".

One can also state with certainty without any testing that high-contrast dark
areas on lighter backgrounds are clearly identifiable, given that bees will
target their defensive stinging on such areas.

Post-mortem examination of the light receptors in bees eyes tell us what
colors bees can differentiate, for the simple reason that unique color receptors
in eyes clearly feed different signal to the bee's brain, and this can be cross-checked
against colors that bees are known from testing to be able to differentiate.

I don't really care "how" a bee's brain processes the data, I only care if the bee
can "tell the difference" between one thing and another.

        jim

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