Snails have just TWO brain cells: Molluscs work with a controller and motivator
IF YOU have ever felt a bit slow-witted, do not worry - scientists have discovered snails can make complex decisions using just two brain cells.
Two brain cells is enough for snails
One cell tells the mollusc if it is hungry or not while the other lets it know when food is present.
The discovery, made using electrodes to measure activity in the brains of freshwater snails searching for lettuce, could help engineers design more efficient robots.
Lead researcher Professor George Kemenes, from the University of Sussex said: “What goes on in our brains when we make complex behavioural decisions and carry them out is poorly understood.
Complex decisions made on just two brain cells
New discoveries could improve robot designs
“Our study reveals for the first time how just two neurons can create a mechanism in an animal’s brain which drives and optimises complex decision-making tasks."
This will eventually help us design the ‘brains’ of robots
He said the research also shows how this system helps to manage how much energy they use once they have made a decision.
The researchers hooked up electrodes to monitor changes in activity in the snail’s brain, which picked up on spikes in the activity of individual neurons.
They found that the two cells – a controller and a motivator – fed back to each other to make the decision.
Robot brains can be much more efficient
“Our findings can help scientists to identify other core neuronal systems which underlie similar decision-making processes,” he added.
“This will eventually help us design the ‘brains’ of robots based on the principle of using the fewest possible components necessary to perform complex tasks.”
Food-searching is an example of a goal-directed behaviour essential for survival.
During such goal-directed decision making, an animal must integrate information about both its external environment and internal state while using as little energy as possible.
The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.