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Monkeys are Heading to Mars

posted by cmn32480 on Thursday October 29 2015, @01:57PM   Printer-friendly
from the in-soviet-russia-mars-monkey's-you dept.

fliptop writes:

Russian scientists are currently training macaques to solve puzzles and use a joystick for a planned 2017 trip to Mars:

Each day a team, led by Inessa Kozlovskaya, trains the monkeys to control a joystick and hit a target highlighted by a cursor.

When they complete the task successfully they are rewarded with a sip of juice.

Once they have mastered this task the macaques will be trained to solve simple mathematical tasks and puzzles.

At the end of their training the creatures should be capable of completing a daily schedule of tasks on their own.

[...] Macaques typically have a lifespan of around 25 years, so it is hoped there is enough time to train them properly and for them to survive the six-month trip to Mars, added the team.

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  • (Score: 2) by FatPhil on Friday October 30 2015, @02:29PM

    by FatPhil (863) <reversethis-{if.fdsa} {ta} {tnelyos-cp}> on Friday October 30 2015, @02:29PM (#256469) Homepage
    Humans get cabin fever because of their advanced intelligence and analytical skills. Monkeys are therefore less likely to suffer from this. My guess is, however, that they will end up with some form of sterotypy, as seen in some captive zoo animals. Hopefully the scientists will give them something exciting to do whilst in space, so that the chances of them going mad are reduced. How about a twitter account where they can send tweets containing emojis! Sure, it's cruel, but of all the hardships science puts animals through it's probably one of the least bad. I just hope they name the monkeys, so that they can go down in history like Laika and the many Alberts. They helped move science forward through their scientific ritual sacrifice.

    Maybe after sending monkeys into space, if they need a beta test on a larger animal, they could use a death-row criminal! (Maybe give him a cyanide tablet in case he wants to terminate the experiment.)
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