Re: This isn't physics, but this is a summary of my last Science Fair project

[brian whatcott <inet@INTELLISYS.NET>]

At 11:23 7/2/00 -0400, Lisa Gardner responded to this:
> > I would be very pleased if you could discuss technical
> > topics of interest to you ...

> ... I think roaches can learn a maze. After I
> finished my individual science project, two years ago (1998), I
> wondered, since fish could learn a maze why not cockroaches? ...

I was interested in your a-maze-ing experiment.
 You are the second person who has expressed an interest in working
with roaches to me.
   I expect that part of your difficulty in motivating these very
early flying machines, is their nocturnal habit.
 I know little of them, but I speculate that night predators who depend
on sight tend to have proportionately large eyes - cats and owls come
 to mind - whereas scavengers, like catfish and mice tend to rely on
 other sensory modalities like taste/smell.

    The attractants sold to fishermen who are interested in catching
catfish smell quite awful. As roaches seem not to have large eyes,
I speculate (as you suspected) they may rely on scent. I seem to recall
something about a sensor situated on the rear legs. They have active
antennae by all accounts. But how would you smell sugar? That's one food
that roaches are inordinately fond of.

It's possible to buy a CCD TV camera these days of such sensitivity,
that a blinding filter that allows only the infra-red to pass might make
such a camera into a useful tool with a darkened maze. I bought one that
 cost $34. Perhaps your coach would bridle at experimental extravagance
of this kind though.

   I see that you mentioned a roach of a kind that occurs in Florida.
I'm not quite sure where you live, but there is a lake in Florida
called Lake Placid where Cornell U maintains a biological research station.

Insects of all kinds are abundant there. Possibly the most famous insect man
associated with that institution is Professor Eisner   (not even sure if I
spelled his name correctly). He has fostered the insect interests of many
students.

You mentioned the possibility of a geomagnetic sense. There have been
numerous pigeon releases at that location. It was the the interest of the
late lamented Prof. Keaton.   The best current understanding is that there
are ferrite deposits in the pigeon's head that sensitize a group of nerves
near those responsible for smell.

I would not be too concerned about defining what is not physics - I recall
that some students at the Clarendon lab (which is a well known physics lab
at Oxford) set out to wind some Helmholtz coils on bicycle rims in connection
with animal magnetic sensing. If it's called bio-physics, I expect it sounds
acceptable.

Do you have a bicycle? My son bought a beautiful yellow one, with independent
 front and rear suspension. It is delightfully smooth to ride.
 I visited a college where they researched the physics of the bike's
stability.
It is unexpectedly difficult.

Sincerely

Brian

brian whatcott <inet@intellisys.net>
Altus OK