Update: Cows Sense, Line up On Earth's Magnetic Field

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Thursday, March 19. 2009

Update: Cows Sense, Line up On Earth's Magnetic Field

A follow up on the original study that suggested that cows align themselves to the magnetic field of the earth based on imagery from Google Earth suggest magnetic fields from power lines may play a role, too.

The new research published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,updates last year's work that indicated the animals' north-south orientation was in response to the earth's magnetic fields. The effect was most noticeable near the power lines and diminished at a distance.

- The Scotsman

---- original post 8/26/09 ---------

Hynek Burda of the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany and his team determined that cows and deer tend to align along the invisible lines when grazing or sleeping. The original work was aimed at determining if people do so, by looking at camp sites in Google Earth. Instead, they found cows that followed the "rules." The why and how are not yet known.

- NPR
- Abstract (fee for article) in Proceeding of the National Academy of Sciences

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in Google at 06:00 | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0) |

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"The original work was aimed at determining if people do so, but looking at camp sites in Google Earth"

That study must be made by people who never camp. You always align your tent so your feet is placest lowest (or you will keep rolling off). I think all they could use that for is determining the slope direction where the tent is. Of course that doesn't apply to flat areas, but it doesn't take a lot of slope to deside what way to turn your tent (less than what you can see in GE, and if you could see it, there probably wouldn't be any campgrounds there).

#1 Morten on 2008-08-26 15:36 (Reply)

Having grown up on a farm raising beef cattle, it was always obvious to us that the direction the cows faced when grazing or sleeping/laying down had more to do with wind direction than any magnetic fields. If it was cold they faced away from the wind, if it was hot, they might face the wind for cooling. they also lie in the sun if it's cold, just like other animals, sheltering in the wind block of trees or low hills. I don't think these people have much experience with cattle.

#1.1 Farm Girl on 2009-03-20 10:48 (Reply)

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