UW octopus scientist on the Seattle Kraken
Published 2020-07-31
David Gire, an assistant professor of psychology, studies the neuroscience of the octopus. He says their tentacles act like little brains as their arms forage for food, that one species is big and strong enough to take down a shark, and how, even though octopus are solitary creatures, they learn from each other and work together.
That’s part of what makes the Kraken such an appropriate name, and logo, for a hockey team, Gire says. With the octopus, “you’re seeing the epitome of teamwork. You’re seeing an arm with a bunch of little brains, and they’re all working together to guide where that arm goes.”
Gire's team has had many an opportunity to 'release the Kraken' when they return an octopus to the Puget Sound when they are done observing it in the lab.
This video was produced by Kiyomi Taguchi for UW News.
More: www.washington.edu/news/2020/07/30/uw-researcher-e…