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In an Aesop fable¹, a thirsty crow wanting to drink from a pitcher² must first raise the water level. So he drops pebbles³ in the container. In real life, the European Jay can perform the same task. But just how smart is it?

Researchers challenged jays and human children with puzzles like the one in the fable. And until kids reached the age of 8 their results were similar to the birds’. The study is in the journal Public Library of Science ONE. [Lucy G. Cheke, Elsa Loissel and Nicola S. Clayton, How Do Children Solve Aesop's Fable?]

For example, in one test, a prize was put in a tube of either water or sawdust. About half the birds took multiple trials to learn that dropping stones into the liquid, but not the dust, lifted the reward up to within reach.

When children between four and seven were faced with the same test, they learned similarly, taking about five trials to realize that the token in the water tube could be retrieved—although they did pick up the task faster than the birds. Older children learned more quickly, and those eight or older solved it the first time they tried. Till then, the kids were, well, birdbrains.

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1 fable
n.寓言；童话；神话
参考例句：
The fable is given on the next page. 这篇寓言登在下一页上。 He had some motive in telling this fable. 他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

2 pitcher
n.(有嘴和柄的)大水罐；(棒球)投手
参考例句：
He poured the milk out of the pitcher.他从大罐中倒出牛奶。 Any pitcher is liable to crack during a tight game.任何投手在紧张的比赛中都可能会失常。

3 pebbles
[复数]鹅卵石；沙砾；卵石，小圆石( pebble的名词复数 )
参考例句：
The pebbles of the drive crunched under his feet. 汽车道上的小石子在他脚底下喀嚓作响。 Line the pots with pebbles to ensure good drainage. 在罐子里铺一层鹅卵石，以确保排水良好。