> not just a physical challenge, but a navigational triumph of immense
> proportions, with virtually no navigation landmarks available for
Actually we give the birds too much credit for skill in this case. Their
flights are much akin to our GPS hard wired in along with image recognition
at the destination.
It's more like instinct rather than skill to "follow this road" and "Oh yah,
I remember that house" at the other end.
Humans do the same thing. We follow road maps, to the highways, airliners
follow GPS and inertial navigation that the pilots had to learn to use. At
the start of the trip we use pattern recognition to the highway, or airline
terminal, at the other end we use pattern recognition to find the rental car
or taxi, and to find our specific destinitation. These are things the smart
bomb and missle are not very good at but they are getting much better.
> guidance, and terrible difficulties due to wind and weather. These are
The difficulties they do have and many do not survive.
> the the little ones that are "at the shallow end of the gene pool"
> intelligence wise according to K8RI.
Yup!
>
> I wonder whether his navigational skills are comparable?
That the birds can make long migrations and come back to the same spot is a
great accomplishment, but it is instinct following well laid our roads we
don't see. Skill and intelligence have little to do with the result.
I probably have better skills, but I don't have the built in road maps nor
do I have instinct causing me to migrate. I have to pay money for a GPS
that'll get me in the neighborhood, but I do have pretty good pattern
recognition when I get in the neighborhood. I haven't gone in the wrong
house or gotten into the wrong bed yet<:-)) Of course a good portion of the
latter is due to instinct and self preservation.
73
Roger Halstead (K8RI and ARRL 40 year Life Member)
N833R - World's oldest Debonair CD-2
www.rogerhalstead.com
>
> Bob
> W7DDD
>
>
>
>
>
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