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A28 SCIENCE
Saturday 16 March 2019
California science exhibit explains the dog-human friendship

By JOHN ROGERS give us that look?
Associated Press "If you look a dog in the
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Did eye, a dog will look back at
people domesticate dogs you and you will produce
or was it the other way oxytocin," Diane Perlov, the
around? And why do these center's senior vice presi-
two species seem to think dent for exhibitions, says
so much alike, act so much of the chemical known as
alike and get along so well? the love hormone because
The California Science of the feelings it evokes in
Center has spent the past people.
five years sniffing out the "And," she adds, "the dog
answers to those and hun- will produce oxytocin in
dreds of other vexing ca- his own body from looking
nine questions. It will begin back at you. It's a mutual
revealing the conclusions affection."
Saturday with an ambitious, A chimp, on the other
if somewhat lightheart- hand, will just look away.
ed, new exhibition called So who launched this en-
"Dogs! A Science Tail." during love affair that has
And, yes, real dogs will be resulted in dogs and peo-
there. (Just try hiding con- ple sharing living quarters in
traband from that drug- In this Tuesday, March 12, 2019 photo students from the Theodore T. Alexander Science Center more than 60 million Ameri-
sniffing dog and see what School play with interactive display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. can households?
happens.) Associated Press Scientists can't quite figure
"It's really not about just that out. They know dogs
dogs and science. It's re- how they manage to mark those shown in the cen- Although "Dogs! A Science descended from wolves
ally about how dogs and time without wristwatches ter's Imax Theatre, where Tail" will travel to museums and that wolves and peo-
humans are both social or smartphones. the Cosmic Picture film "Su- across the country after it ple crossed paths more
animals. About how dogs "They have an amazing perpower Dogs" will play closes in Los Angeles early than 10,000 years ago, says
and humans have evolved ability to learn information," throughout the exhibition's next year, the California Perlov, an anthropologist.
together over thousands of continues Rudolph, not- run. Science Center is the only Both wolves and people
years. And the fact that be- ing the 300 million sensory As Captain America ac- place to see the paintings could see the other was
cause we are both social receptor sites they carry in tor Chris Evans narrates, until Lucas opens his own pretty good at hunting for
animals, we've learned to their noses far outnumber viewers watch dogs from Museum of Narrative Art food. But did the wolves
work together," said Jeffrey our 6 million. around the world help down the street in 2021. walk up and offer their
Rudolph, the center's presi- Nine similar stations allow save people from drown- But do those dogs that help in that endeavor? Or
dent and a devoted dog people to see like a dog ing off the coast of Italy, Rockwell immortalized did people make the first
lover who worked for years does (their color vision is rescue people trapped in playing with kids, comfort- move?
to pull this show together. limited, but they pick up collapsed buildings, even ing owners, even comi- Whoever did, they created
As he spoke during a re- motion better than us), de- track down Kenyan poach- cally tying up traffic in a an enduring bond.
cent pre-opening walk- termine what a person has ers preying on endangered crowded Los Angeles alley "It's that social bond and
through of the exhibit, he just eaten by licking their elephants and rhinos. in 1949, really love us? our ability to communicate
paused briefly at what he hand and hear sounds so In the museum itself, peo- Or are they just trying to with them, and our ability
imagines might be its most subtle we're oblivious to ple could watch Garmin, wheedle another treat to understand each other
popular stop for the pre- them. a 2-year-old golden Labra- when they open those big that forms the basis of our
teen crowd — a replica of "In a bedroom they can dor retriever who is about black eyes of theirs and relationship," Perlov says.q
a fire hydrant next to a but- hear a termite scratching to graduate from guide-
ton that you can push to on the wall," Rudolph says. dog school, take blindfold-
smell what a dog smells. Such skills allow an ava- ed folks through a maze of
"But we just smell pee," Ru- lanche rescue dog to sniff obstacles during a demon-
dolph explained with a out a person buried in snow stration earlier this week.
laugh. "A dog can tell what in a minute's time while its When one person hesi-
dog was there, what time handlers stand there with- tated, Garmin pulled gen-
they were there and actu- out a clue. They can sniff tly on his leash as if to say,
ally which direction they out bombs people would "Come on, let's go. I've got
were going." never find until they ex- this."
It's one of the ways dogs ploded. Depending on the day,
can evaluate how safe the But those are the highly there will be therapy dogs,
surroundings are. It's also trained working dogs, like rescue dogs, drug-sniffing
dogs and others demon-
strating their abilities.
For those more interested
in mutts like the one sleep-
ing at the foot of their bed,
there is also plenty to see,
including a small gallery of
original dog paintings by
legendary American art-
ist Norman Rockwell. They
are on loan from "Star Wars"
filmmaker George Lucas.