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       Infants and Apes Remember Things Similarly

　　Infants and apes apparently adopt the same tactics（1） for remembering where things are, but as children develop their strategies change, a new study shows.

　　The findings might reveal in part how the minds of our distant ancestors shifted gears（2） to embark（3） on the road toward humanity.

　　There are two basic strategies animals use to remember where things are. Either they remember a thing's features, such as whether it was a banana, or they remember its place in space, such as left.

　　All animals scientists have tested seem to employ both strategies. However, if experiments are rigged（4） such that animals had to choose between the tactics, some species, such as chickens and toads（5）, prefer a feature-based strategy. Others, such as fish and dogs, favor a place-based strategy.

　　Researcher Daniel Haun at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany and his colleagues investigated orangutans（6）, gorillas（7）, bonobos（8）, chimpanzees（9） and humans. They wanted to see whether humanity and its closest relatives all adopted the same strategies for remembering where things are. Any changes in strategy between species or within species would shed light on how they all evolved.

　　At the Leipzig Zoo, the scientists hid rewards such as grapes, banana slices or toy animals under either a hollow piece of wood, an imitation（10） bird's nest or an artificial hollow rock.

　　At times, the rewards were concealed（11） under the same object they were hidden beneath previously, whose place had changed. A feature-based strategy would best find these coveted items.

　　At other times, the rewards were hidden at the same place they were concealed before, but under a different object. A place-based strategy would best discover these items.

　　When human infants are a year old, they favor place-based strategies like all the other great ape species do. This suggests human and ape brains start out the same, at least when it comes to remembering where things are. The most recent common ancestors between humans and all the other great apes date back to about 15 million years ago, suggesting this common preference has been part of our brain structures since at least then.

　　However, three-year-old children preferred a feature-based strategy. The researchers noted this shift in strategy coincided with a period when humans are first drawn into social life and acquire skills such as spoken language.

　　1. tactics：战术、战略

　　2. gear：齿轮

　　3. embark：登上

　　4. rig：操作

　　5. toad：癞蛤蟆

　　6. orangutans：猩猩，一种大型的树栖类人猿，产于波罗门和苏门答腊，有稀少的红棕毛皮、很长的臂且无尾

　　7. gorilla：大猩猩，栖居在赤道非洲的最大的类人猿，体型粗大健壮，头发很粗，呈深棕色或黑色

　　8. bonobo：产于非洲刚果河以南的倭黑猩猩

　　9. chimpanzee：黑猩猩产于非洲热带地区的一种长有长长的黑毛群居类人猿，有一些栖于树上的生活习惯且表现出与人类类似的行为以及高级的智力

　　10. imitation：仿造物

　　11. conceal：躲藏

       一项新的研讨显现，小孩和猿使用相同的办法来回忆物品地点的当地，可是当孩子们越长越大，他们的办法就会改动。

　　这些发现也许能在一定程度上阐明咱们的远祖是怎么转舵走上“人道”的路途。

　　动物回忆物品方位的办法有两种。一种是经过回忆物品的特色，例如它是否是一个香蕉；另一种则是经过回忆物品地点的空间方位，例如是否在左面。

　　受测的科学家们会一起采纳两种办法。可是在相同的试验中，动物们则会挑选其间一种，一些物种，例如鸡和蟾蜍会挑选特色回忆法。其他的，例如鱼和狗更喜爱空间回忆法。

　　德国莱比锡普朗克演化人类学研讨所研讨人员丹尼尔·焕和搭档们分别对猩猩、大猩猩、倭黑猩猩、黑猩猩和人类进行了研讨。他们希望了解人类是否会和他们最近的“亲属”挑选相同的回忆办法。不同物种之间和同一物种间的办法改动都能阐明演化的进程。

　　在莱比锡动物园，科学家们把如葡萄、香蕉片、动物玩具等奖品放入空木头、假鸟窝或许人工空石头里边。

　　当研讨人员用相同的掩饰物躲藏奖品，仅仅改动了它们的方位的时分，善用特色回忆法的动物很简单找到这些诱人的奖品。

　　当研讨人员没有移动物品，仅仅改动了躲藏物品的掩盖物的时分，善用空间回忆法的动物则能很快发现物品。

　　一岁左右的小孩和猿类一样挑选空间回忆法。这阐明至少在物品方位回忆方面，人类和猿类大脑开始是一样的。可证明的人类和猿类拥有共同先人的最近时刻是1500万年前，也就是说至少从那个时分起，人类和猿类就拥有相同的回忆办法。

　　可是，三岁的小孩就会挑选特色回忆法。研讨人员说这种改变正与人类刚刚步入社会生活相对应，那个时分人们学会了许多技术，例如说话。