![]() ![]() The room was closed off so that neither the mice could get out nor predators get in. This was achieved by fitting a pen (box-shaped enclosure) with unlimited food and water. His team created a comfortable environment ideal for the mice. John Calhoun’s experiments gained world-wide recognition and his expertise was sought after by government bodies such as NASA. They present a useful yet grim insight into what could be our own future, for no matter how many times Calhoun repeated the experiment, the results led to the same inevitable conclusion: extinction. The social decay led to unrest in the environment, which in turn led to sub replacement fertility. It was concluded that nature has a limit in which social animals can interact. He chose rodents as these reproduce rapidly thus allowing him to observe the development of several generations of mice in a relatively short space of time.Ĭalhoun and his researchers found that in a space-limited/resource unlimited environment, the population of mice would explode peak-out and then collapse to extinction. This test was replicated several times and it was found that these led to the same outcome each time. The reason for this phenomenon was found to derived from social decay which worsened with each generation. On how precisely you can achieve this and more, we'll go more in-depth on in the near future, so keep an eye out for that.In 1950, an American ethologist named John Calhoun created a series of experiments to test the effects of overpopulation on the behaviour of social animals. The animals which Calhoun chose for his experiments where mice (and later on rats). Luckily for us, we have the means to add difficulty to our lives our self. Furthermore it is important to know the following: you will create problems if you have none. So let me repeat, and I cannot stress this enough: You are not meant to have everything. As we discussed in a previous article this inevitably results in creative (self)destruction, as can be seen here with the mice in this experiment.Įven worse, exactly the same is happening to us right now, and my predictions are that it will only get worse in the future as technology and the mainstream narrative of instant gratification further develop. The mice had lost all purpose in their lives, all the challenge that makes it worthwhile. This is exactly what the mouse 'utopia' experiment took away from the mice. It is what infuses our lives with purpose and meaning. All these things are vital in the process of becoming mature, independent and healthy (both mentally and physically). Not for ordering pizza for delivery online, endlessly swiping for tinder matches and playing on IPads. We humans are evolved to hunt for food, attract mates, and play together when we’re children. ![]() Evolutionarily seen we are not meant to have everything at our disposal. It’s their purpose in a biological sense, and the same goes for us humans. You see, mice are evolved to explore territory, search for food, find shelter and all together struggle for survival. One far more likely possible as far as I can tell. However, I’d like to suggest a different hypothesis. Calhoun blamed it on overpopulation, suggesting the same would eventually happen to us. For they did not interact with other mice nor did they try to mate, instead spending most of their time grooming and cleaning themselves.Īll pretty unusual behaviour for mice. The researchers called these mice ‘the beautiful ones’. Meanwhile the males started raping females and eventually other males, some even resorting to eating their own infants.įurthermore, some mice instead opted to isolate themselves from the rest. Pregnant females started simply forgetting about their new born babies, even going as far as to drop and abandon a baby while they were carrying it. Mice attacked by stronger mice stopped defending themselves and trying to escape all together. The mice started fighting each other over food, even though there was more than enough. Though it seemed like the perfect living conditions for the mice, things quickly spiralled out-of-control. A paradise with everything a mouse could ever need. The premise of the experiments was to build a mouse utopia: an ideal place for mice to live, without worry about food, shelter, sex, etc. The mouse utopia experiments were a series of famous experiments conducted throughout the 50s, 60s and 70s by John Calhoun with the intent of studying the effects of population density on behaviour. In this article you will learn all about the so called 'mouse utopia experiments' and the crucial implications they have on our lives.įor those who aren’t familiar with the experiments I’m talking about, I’ll briefly summarize them. ![]()
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