Research: Cats can associate words with images

Research on cats continues to yield interesting findings. Previous studies had discovered that cats respond to their names and observed that they could associate photos of people they know with their names.

Researchers from Azabu University in Japan conducted a study with 31 house cats to determine whether they could associate images with random words. The research was published in the peer-reviewed journal 'Scientific Reports'.

In the experiment, cats were subjected to a test used in the language development of infants. The cats were shown short animations related to two nonsense words, 'keraru' and 'parumo'. While a mechanical voice spoke the words, images of a sun or a cloud associated with them were projected onto the screen.

After a short break in the experiment, the images paired with the words were swapped. Scientists examining the cats' reactions noticed that the animals looked at the screen longer than they did the first time and that their pupils dilated.

CATS FORM CONNECTIONS FASTER THAN BABIES

These behaviors in cats showed that they established connections between the words they heard and the images without any rewards or training. Experts also suggested that cats form these connections faster than babies.

Researchers state that the fact that cats succeeded in picture-word association is remarkable. While the findings suggest that cats know the names of objects, they do not prove whether these connections are long-term. Researchers say that more studies are needed to understand how cats would react if they were presented with more words.