New Mom Pareidolia, Soapy Cilantro, Problem-Solving Birds

Curiosity Weekly

Warner Bros. Discovery

Science

4.6 • 963 Ratings

🗓️ 9 November 2023

⏱️ 11 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Today, you’ll learn about how new moms see faces in inanimate objects, why some people think cilantro tastes like soap, and the problem solving prowess of vocal birds.

New Mom Pareidolia

“New mothers more likely to experience pareidolia, when your brain thinks it sees faces in inanimate objects.” by Emily Cooke. 2023.
“What is pareidolia?” by Tia Ghose. 2023.
“Oxytocin: Facts about the ‘cuddle hormone’.” by Stephanie Pappas & Ailsa Harvey. 2022.
“Why new mothers are more likely to see faces in everyday objects.” n.a. 2023.

Soapy Cilantro

“Why do some people think cilantro tastes like soap?” by Donavyn Coffey. 2023.
“Why do people like spicy food?” by Donavyn Coffey. 2023.
“A genetic variant near olfactory receptor genes influences cilantro preference.” by Nicholas Eriksson, et al. 2012.

Problem-Solving Birds

“Birds with more complex vocal skills are better problem-solvers.” by Darren Incorvaia. 2023.
“Cockatoos can tell when they need more than one tool to swipe a snack.” by Erin Garcia de Jesus. 2023.
“Songbird species that display more-complex vocal learning are better problem-solvers and have larger brains.” by Jean-Nicolas Audet, et al. 2023.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, you're about to get smarter in just a few minutes with Curiosity Daily from Discovery.
0:08.6	Time flies when you're learning super cool stuff.
0:10.8	I'm Nate.
0:11.8	And I'm Callie. If you're dropping him for the first time
0:13.7	welcome to curiosity where we aim to blow your mind by helping you to grow your mind.
0:17.1	If you're a loyal listener, welcome back. Today you'll learn about how new moms see
0:21.8	faces in inanimate objects, why some people think
0:25.0	cilantro tastes like soap, and the problem-solving prowess of vocal birds.
0:30.9	Without further ado, let's satisfy some curiosity.
0:34.2	Have you ever glanced over at an object, I mean, let's say like a watermelon or something
0:38.0	like that and you suddenly see a face in it?
0:41.7	Is it like a haunted watermelon?
0:44.0	Okay, no, but I mean that would make a great band name.
0:48.0	Like, maybe there are a couple of spots on it that look like eyes and the line underneath it that looks like a cute little watermelon smile it's it's not a face it just
0:55.9	looks like a face okay yeah of course faces are kind of all over the place you
1:01.7	you see I mean electrical outlets or you know a house with
1:04.4	cute little window eyes and a door for a mouth or you know you see the Virgin Mary on your
1:08.8	grilled g sandwich. Aren't human minds somehow programmed to see faces in inanimate objects?
1:15.0	I mean, maybe? Some researchers think humans evolve to be able to quickly pick out faces in a busy setting,
1:21.0	which can lead to us making mistakes or thinking that everything is kind
1:24.7	of facey but there's actually a phenomenon called paradolia where people think they see some kind
1:30.0	of significant image in an otherwise random pattern.
	...

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