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[The following is an exact transcript of this podcast.]
Anyone who’s ever had a cat knows how demanding they can be. Let me out, let me in, give me food, give me different food. The list goes on. But how do these clever kitties convince us to do their bidding? A study in the July 14 issue of Current Biology suggests it’s all in how they ask.
Karen McComb of the University of Sussex started studying persuasive cat calls after realizing that her own pet used a hybrid between a purr and a cry to get her out of bed in the morning. McComb got recordings of other cat calls. And back in the lab, she found that humans thought purrs made by cats who were trying to solicit a snack were more urgent, and less pleasant, than those made when kitty was, say, relaxing on the sofa.
Turns out that the "feed me" purr includes a high-frequency component, absent from the contented purr, that makes people want to reach for a can opener just to make Fluffy stop. It’s obviously part of “Fluffy’s Master Plan (song) for World Domination.”
—Karen Hopkin
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Add CommentYour attraction to alliteration averted the achievability of any actually apt appellation.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisActors playing non fictional characters often prepare by elocuting in the manner of the individual they're portraying and by so doing are able to grasp deep insight into the personality and inner motivations of said subject.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThis can also be done by imitating the sounds of cats (and other animals too). I've found most meows to be nothing more than the feline equivalent of a human scream, used as a directive.
From this elocution I was able to advance my knowledge of cat language, until one evening when my wife and I were hosting a rather large dinner party, our cat casually informed me that if I had a mind to I could kill our guests and nobody would be the wiser.
I wisely refrained and locked her in the laundry room for the rest of the evening.
Purring produces two distinct tones simultaneously. One tone is a low, sustained fundamental pitch, similar to the drone of a bagpipe. The second is a series of flutelike harmonics, which resonate high above the drone.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisPurring produces two distinct tones simultaneously. One tone is a low, sustained fundamental pitch, similar to the drone of a bagpipe. The second is a series of flutelike harmonics, which resonate high above the drone.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this"It’s obviously part of “Fluffy’s Master Plan (song) for World Domination.”
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWritten by a dog in disguise who's disgusted with domineering dog treats that purr, no doubt.
Having written the song, "FLUFFY'S MASTER PLAN FOR WORLD DOMINATION" (recorded by THE BOBS, on our 2000 CD called COASTER, I can confirm that everything you say in this podcast is true. Thanks for including the tune!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisMore of of the song Fluffys Master Plan (for World Domination) is needed here! It's funny and clever, and a personal favorite by Amy Engelhardt of The Bobs. Listen to it here: http://www.myspace.com/iaremusic (in the Music audio file section on right side).
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