tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522311.post3022101540586268594..comments2024-03-12T03:23:42.976-04:00Comments on NeuroDojo: Do octopuses feel pain as deeply as mammals?Zen Faulkeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07811309183398223358noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522311.post-30069263350786595412010-06-15T12:51:59.752-04:002010-06-15T12:51:59.752-04:00I think that what we mean by "feel pain"...I think that what we mean by "feel pain" has very little to do with the properties of sensory neurons per se. Human "pain pathways" presumably evolved from some pre-nociception system that did not involve any sort of conscious recognition of pain. "Pain" as we know it most likely came later, as an adjuct to withdrawal responses (such as appear in simpler organisms, ie. nematodes) that helps to coordinate the actions of a more complex nervous system in response to noxious stimuli. Given the distinct possibility of octopuses having "consciousness" resembling that of birds and mammals (see http://www.psychology.stir.ac.uk/research/documents/Cephalopodconsciousness-behaviouralevidence.pdf ) and their clear withdrawal reactions when presented with noxious stimuli, I think it's a good be that if cephalopods perceive anything, they perceive pain.<br /><br />That said, I think the Everything Octopus post went beyond the evidence with such strong positive claims.Mike Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07650701412022872445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522311.post-76370033667664561142010-05-04T20:12:36.907-04:002010-05-04T20:12:36.907-04:00This is probably an opportune moment to say that V...This is probably an opportune moment to say that Victoria Braithwaite has a new book out on fish pain from Oxford University Press called, simply, <i><a href="http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/LifeSciences/BioethicsSocialIssues/?view=usa&ci=9780199551200" rel="nofollow">Do Fish Feel Pain?</a></i><br /><br />The science on fish nociception is fairly new, but getting more extensive.Zen Faulkeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07811309183398223358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522311.post-26293342585172796172010-05-04T19:14:35.281-04:002010-05-04T19:14:35.281-04:00Great post. The octopus is a new one. Im used to p...Great post. The octopus is a new one. Im used to people always asking if fish feel pain, or telling me they don't if they are fisherman. The fact that fish respond to painful stimuli by learning to avoid it is evidence enough for me that they feel pain.Danhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11054993129757617149noreply@blogger.com