octopuses own brain wave which has never been recorded in animals and is similar to that observed in humans, shows the first of its kind electroencephalogram in a cephalopod.

In a groundbreaking study that published in the scientific journal Cell recorded the brain activity of octopuses for the first time by implanting electrodes in their brains and connecting them to subcutaneous data recorders.

These recordings gave scientists the first clues about the functioning of the cephalopod brain in an attempt to “read” their minds.

“Some of these activity patterns bear similarities to those seen in the hippocampus of the mammalian brain ,” said study lead author Tamar Gutnik, a research fellow at the University of Naples. “But we also saw unique patterns of activity at 2 Hz that have never been seen in other animals,” he adds.

Octopuses, like other cephalopods, they are constantly studied because of their special intelligence . Shellfish have wonderful Memory and stand out in art of camouflage . They are curious about what surrounds them, they have been recorded tools solve problems, but also change color in a dream, which indicates that they can be dreamed of.

However, their minds are hard to explore . Their tentacles can’t reach any part of their body, so they can’t grab and turn off an external tool designed to detect and record brainwaves.

It is noted that brain waves are the result of the electrical activity of the brain recorded by the electroencephalogram.

Impressive Findings

To overcome this swing, the researchers surgically implanted medical monitors into the heads of three captive octopuses by placing lightweight data loggers—often recorded in birds—between their eyes, and then connecting them to electrodes placed in an area of ​​the brain responsible for learning and memory. . Then they recorded octopuses for twelve o’clock while they were sleeping, “grooming” or exploring their tank.

Octopus brain wave patterns surprised scientists in several ways.

Researchers first found brain waves similar to those of the human hippocampus (sb: brain structures involved in the transition from short-term to long-term memory and spatial navigation). It refers to convergent logical progression – a condition in which two separate creatures develop the same trait independently of each other at the level of the nervous system, since the last common ancestor of man and octopus was worm who lived at the bottom of the sea about 750 million years ago and possessed only a rudimentary brain.

But in addition to the most common brainwaves, the researchers recorded others that had never been seen before. long and slow, repeating twice per second .

They themselves have not come to understand the cause of these mysterious brain waves. So mapping their brain activity would require additional recordings as the octopuses perform different activities.

Source: live science