1 How did Joshua Klein become interested in crows? What does he hope to accomplish with his experiment?
2 Why do you think Klein chose to experiment with the crows? What does he think that we should focus our attention on to find new innovations? Do you agree or disagree? Why?
3 What is operant conditioning? Describe an experiment that uses operant conditioning.
4 What was the Pigeon Project? How did it use operant conditioning?
5 Describe Klein’s experiment. What steps did he use to get the crows to pick up the coins?
6 Why are crows a good choice for an experiment like Klein’s? What characteristics do they have that make them a good choice?
7 What is the Celebrate Urban Birds Project? What are five of the common species that are found in urban areas according to the project?
8 Based on the information from the websites, do you think that crows demonstrate culture? Why or why not?
9 Describe the Crows.net project. What are the researchers hoping to learn? How are the researchers gaining their information? Why do you think researchers are using regular individuals to gain information?
10 In Pavlov’s work, how did he get the dogs to salivate at the sound of a bell?
11 Why were Pavlov’s findings important? How did his experiment differ from Klein’s?
12 From the website on Skinner, what is shaping? How did Klein use shaping in his experiment?
13 What are schedules of reinforcement in Skinner’s work? How do these make a difference in an animal’s behavior?
14 What is an urban ecosystem? What are some of the aspects that affect urban ecosystems more than non-urban ecosystems?
15 Why do you think that crows and other urban species are sometimes seen as pests? Do you agree with Klein that we need to think of ways to live in mutually beneficial ways with these species? Why or why not?
Answer:What does he hope to accomplish with his experiment? He became interested in crows at a cocktail party when a friend was complaining about crows making a mess in his yard. He wanted to find a wayto train them to do something useful. 2.
