DIY Neuroscience
Greg Gage: The real reason why mosquitoes buzz
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What does the love song of a mosquito sound like? Find out as our intrepid neuroscientists explore the meaning of all that annoying buzzing in your ear.
Greg Gage - Neuroscientist
TED Fellow Greg Gage helps kids investigate the neuroscience in their own backyards. Full bio
TED Fellow Greg Gage helps kids investigate the neuroscience in their own backyards. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
(Mosquito buzzing)
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(Zumbido de mosquito)
00:14
Greg Gage: We've all heard
the annoying sound of a mosquito,
the annoying sound of a mosquito,
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Greg Gage: Todos hemos oído
el sonido irritante de un mosquito,
el sonido irritante de un mosquito,
00:17
and we will stop at nothing
to make it go away.
to make it go away.
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y haremos cualquier cosa
para hacerlo alejar.
para hacerlo alejar.
00:19
While this sound may be maddening to us,
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Aunque el sonido puede volvernos locos,
quizás sea música al oído de un mosquito.
00:21
perhaps it's music to a mosquito's ears.
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00:23
The mosquito's nervous system has almost
as many sensory auditory cells as we do.
as many sensory auditory cells as we do.
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El sistema nervioso del mosquito casi
tiene tantas células sensoriales auditivas
tiene tantas células sensoriales auditivas
como el nuestro.
00:28
But why would they have
so many in such a small body,
so many in such a small body,
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Pero ¿por qué tendrían tantas
en un cuerpo tan pequeño,
en un cuerpo tan pequeño,
y por qué necesitarían ser
tan sensibles al sonido?
tan sensibles al sonido?
00:30
and why would they need to be
so sensitive to sounds?
so sensitive to sounds?
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La respuesta es el amor.
00:33
The answer is love.
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00:34
[DIY Neuroscience]
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[Neurociencia casera]
00:36
(Music)
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(Música)
Como humanos,
hacemos mucho para atraer al otro.
hacemos mucho para atraer al otro.
00:39
As humans, we do a lot
to attract each other.
to attract each other.
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00:41
Some things are conscious --
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Algunas cosas son conscientes:
nos maquillamos, queremos oler bien.
nos maquillamos, queremos oler bien.
00:43
we put on makeup
and make sure we smell nice.
and make sure we smell nice.
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Otras son inconscientes.
00:45
And some are unconscious.
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Sin pensar, puedes dirigir tu cuerpo hacia
00:46
You may unconsciously point your body
or even sit closer to someone you like.
or even sit closer to someone you like.
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o sentarte más cerca de
alguien que te gusta.
alguien que te gusta.
Son comportamientos de cortejo,
y muchos animales los practican.
y muchos animales los practican.
00:50
These are courtship behaviors,
and a lot of animals have them.
and a lot of animals have them.
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00:53
And mosquitoes are no different.
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Los mosquitos no son diferentes.
Haley pasa su verano con valentía
escuchando mosquitos
escuchando mosquitos
00:55
So Haley's been spending her summer
bravely listening to mosquitoes,
bravely listening to mosquitoes,
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y observa algo que puede sorprenderte.
00:58
and what she observed may surprise you.
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01:00
So we want to investigate
how the mosquitoes make their song.
how the mosquitoes make their song.
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Queremos investigar cómo los mosquitos
producen su canto.
producen su canto.
01:03
So Haley, how do we record
their wing beats?
their wing beats?
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Haley, ¿cómo anotamos
el batido de las alas?
el batido de las alas?
01:06
Haley Smith: We need to tether them.
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Haley Smith: Necesitamos sujetarlos.
01:08
First, we anesthetize them
in a fridge or a bed of ice.
in a fridge or a bed of ice.
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Primero, los anestesiamos
en el refrigerador o sobre hielo.
en el refrigerador o sobre hielo.
01:13
And then I transfer them
to this petri dish of ice,
to this petri dish of ice,
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Luego los transfiero
a esta placa de Petri con hielo
a esta placa de Petri con hielo
01:16
just to get them even more anesthetized.
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para anestesiarlos aún más.
01:18
Next, I take an insect pin,
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Luego, tomo un alfiler de insectos
01:22
and what I do is put a tiny little dab
of superglue on this pin.
of superglue on this pin.
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y pongo una gotita de
pegamento extra fuerte en él.
pegamento extra fuerte en él.
01:26
I want to make sure that I get it
on his thorax above his wings
on his thorax above his wings
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Quiero estar segura de colocarlo
en el tórax arriba de las alas
en el tórax arriba de las alas
01:30
so that when he is suspended,
his wings are still free to move.
his wings are still free to move.
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para que cuando esté suspendido,
las alas estén libres.
las alas estén libres.
01:33
So here's one down.
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Uno ya completo.
01:35
It's really hard to catch
male mosquitoes in the wild
male mosquitoes in the wild
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Es muy difícil atrapar los machos
en su hábitat natural
en su hábitat natural
01:37
because females are the only mosquitoes
that are attracted to humans.
that are attracted to humans.
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porque las hembras son los únicos
mosquitos que atraen los humanos.
mosquitos que atraen los humanos.
01:41
They feed on human blood.
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Se alimentan de sangre humana.
01:43
And now, we can try to get
some recordings from them.
some recordings from them.
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Ahora podemos intentar anotar los sonidos.
01:48
So this is the stand
that I use to hold them.
that I use to hold them.
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Este es el aparato al que los sujeto.
01:51
I like to place it
right over the microphone
right over the microphone
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Me gusta ponerlo justo sobre el micrófono
01:53
so that I can get a recording
of the buzzing that you hear.
of the buzzing that you hear.
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para grabar ese zumbido que escuchas.
01:56
That sound is generated
by how fast they're beating their wings.
by how fast they're beating their wings.
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Ese sonido se genera
según lo rápido que baten las alas.
según lo rápido que baten las alas.
01:59
This is a male.
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Este es un macho.
02:00
The males have very bushy antennae,
and they look kind of feathery.
and they look kind of feathery.
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Los machos tienen antenas muy espesas
que se ven un poco plumosas.
que se ven un poco plumosas.
02:04
And they are also much smaller.
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Y también son mucho más pequeños.
02:06
GG: So he's flying at around 600 hertz.
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GG: Está volando a unos 600 hercios.
02:09
Can we try a female mosquito?
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¿Podemos intentar con una hembra?
02:12
HS: Sure, here we go.
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HS: Sí, claro. Aquí tengo.
02:14
(Mosquito buzzing, lower pitch)
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(Zumbido de mosquito a un tono más bajo)
GG: ¡Guau!
02:20
GG: Wow.
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HS: Esta es una frecuencia
mucho más baja que la del macho.
mucho más baja que la del macho.
02:21
HS: This is a much lower
frequency than the male.
frequency than the male.
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02:23
GG: Yeah, it sounds completely different.
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GG: Sí, suena completamente diferente.
02:26
(Mosquito buzzing)
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(Zumbido de mosquito)
02:28
(Mosquito buzzing, lower pitch)
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(Zumbido de mosquito a un tono más bajo)
02:30
So is it because they're
two different mosquitoes,
two different mosquitoes,
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¿Es porque son dos mosquitos diferentes
o porque uno es macho y otro es hembra?
02:32
or because they're male and female?
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02:34
HS: It's because
they're male and female.
they're male and female.
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HS: Es porque son macho y hembra.
02:36
GG: Alright, let's verify that.
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GG: De acuerdo. Verifiquémoslo.
¿Puedes traer otra hembra
02:38
Can you bring in another female
and see if she sounds
and see if she sounds
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para ver si suena como
el mosquito A o el mosquito B?
el mosquito A o el mosquito B?
02:40
like mosquito A or mosquito B?
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02:42
HS: Yeah.
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HS: Sí.
02:43
(Mosquito buzzing, lower pitch)
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(Zumbido de mosquito a un tono más bajo)
02:45
And again, she is much lower
than the male.
than the male.
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Y de nuevo, canta
mucho más bajo que el macho.
mucho más bajo que el macho.
02:47
GG: Yeah, she sounds different.
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GG: Sí suena diferente.
02:49
(Mosquito buzzing, lower pitch)
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(Zumbido de mosquito a un tono más bajo)
02:55
Yeah, she's spot-on 400.
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Sí, precisamente a 400.
02:56
HS: She really is.
GG: That's really bizarre.
GG: That's really bizarre.
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HS: Sí, es cierto.
GG: Es extraño.
GG: Es extraño.
02:58
HS: The females are at a much
lower pitch. They were around 400 hertz.
lower pitch. They were around 400 hertz.
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HS: Las hembras están a un tono
mucho más bajo, a unos 400 hercios.
mucho más bajo, a unos 400 hercios.
03:02
HS: And all of the females
were around that, too.
were around that, too.
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Todas las hembras cantaban en ese rango.
Y eran mucho más grandes que los machos,
03:04
They were much larger than the males,
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03:06
so they didn't have to flap their wings
as fast to stay in free flight.
as fast to stay in free flight.
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así que no tenían que batir
las alas tan rápido
las alas tan rápido
para mantener el vuelo libre.
03:10
GG: So they have larger wings,
so they're flapping slower.
so they're flapping slower.
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GG: Tienen alas más grandes
entonces baten más lento.
entonces baten más lento.
03:13
And you noticed that all the females
have the same frequency, roughly?
have the same frequency, roughly?
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Y notaste que todas las hembras
tienen la misma frecuencia, más o menos,
tienen la misma frecuencia, más o menos,
03:16
And the males do, too.
That's kind of interesting.
That's kind of interesting.
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y los machos también.
Es interesante. Debe significar algo.
03:19
So that must mean something.
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03:20
Well, let's see what happens when
we put the male and the female together.
we put the male and the female together.
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Veamos qué pasa cuando ponemos
juntos al macho y la hembra.
juntos al macho y la hembra.
03:24
(Mosquitoes buzzing; pitch varies)
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(Mosquitos zumban a tonos variables)
03:28
HS: When I put them
into the same hearing range,
into the same hearing range,
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HS: Cuando los puse
en el mismo campo auditivo,
en el mismo campo auditivo,
03:30
I noticed that they were kind of
changing their tones.
changing their tones.
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noté que cambiaban sus tonos
a unos más sordos.
a unos más sordos.
03:33
It was kind of more dull, almost.
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03:35
(Mosquitoes buzzing)
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(Zumbido de mosquito)
03:37
And when I put it back in my spectrogram
to see their interaction,
to see their interaction,
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Y cuando introduje el sonido
al espectrograma
al espectrograma
para observar su interacción,
vi que se sincronizaban
para cantar al mismo tono.
para cantar al mismo tono.
03:40
they were meeting at the same tone.
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03:43
GG: OK, pause.
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GG: Espera.
03:44
The males and females are singing a duet,
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Los machos y las hembras
están cantando a dúo;
están cantando a dúo;
03:47
meaning that they adjust their wings
to be able to produce a common tone.
to be able to produce a common tone.
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es decir, que están ajustando
el batido de sus alas
el batido de sus alas
para producir un tono común.
03:50
You have the male singing up here at G,
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¿Tienes al macho cantando aquí en la G
03:53
and you have the female
singing down here at D,
singing down here at D,
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y a la hembra cantando aquí en la D,
03:56
and when they get together,
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y cuando se unen,
dices que modifican la frecuencia
del batido de las alas
del batido de las alas
03:57
you're saying that they change
the frequency of their wings
the frequency of their wings
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04:00
such that they come together?
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de tal manera que se alinean?
04:02
HS: Yeah, exactly.
GG: And they sort of sing a duet.
GG: And they sort of sing a duet.
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HS: Sí, exacto.
GG: Y que cantan a dúo.
GG: Y que cantan a dúo.
04:04
(Mosquitoes gradually
adjusting to identical pitch)
adjusting to identical pitch)
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(Los mosquitos gradualmente
se ponen a cantar al mismo tono)
se ponen a cantar al mismo tono)
04:09
HS: They're communicating
to let each other know
to let each other know
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HS: Están comunicando entre sí
para hacer saber al otro
para hacer saber al otro
04:12
that they've basically
found a potential mate.
found a potential mate.
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que ha encontrado una pareja potencial.
04:14
GG: So in other words,
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GG: En otras palabras,
04:15
the female tends to choose
a male that best sings her duet.
a male that best sings her duet.
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la hembra elige un macho
que mejor cante para su dúo.
que mejor cante para su dúo.
04:18
And studies have found
that if she's pregnant,
that if she's pregnant,
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Y los estudios han demostrado
que si está embarazada,
que si está embarazada,
04:20
she doesn't even bother.
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ni se molesta.
04:22
So if we can understand
the mosquito mating behavior,
the mosquito mating behavior,
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Entonces si podemos entender
la conducta de cortejo del mosquito,
la conducta de cortejo del mosquito,
04:25
we may be able to disrupt it in the wild
and prevent diseases like malaria.
and prevent diseases like malaria.
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quizás podamos interrumpirla
en la naturaleza
en la naturaleza
y prevenir enfermedades como la malaria.
04:29
But for now, the next time
you hear a mosquito buzzing,
you hear a mosquito buzzing,
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Pero por ahora, la próxima vez
que escuches el zumbido de un mosquito,
que escuches el zumbido de un mosquito,
04:33
just pause and remember she may be in love
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detente y recuerda que quizás
esté enamorada y entonando su canto
esté enamorada y entonando su canto
04:36
and she may be singing her song,
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04:38
looking for her perfect match.
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en busca de su pareja perfecta.
04:40
(Mosquito buzzing)
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(Zumbido de mosquito)
04:41
(Smack)
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(Manotada)
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Greg Gage - NeuroscientistTED Fellow Greg Gage helps kids investigate the neuroscience in their own backyards.
Why you should listen
As half of Backyard Brains, neuroscientist and engineer Greg Gage builds the SpikerBox -- a small rig that helps kids understand the electrical impulses that control the nervous system. He's passionate about helping students understand (viscerally) how our brains and our neurons work, because, as he said onstage at TED2012, we still know very little about how the brain works -- and we need to start inspiring kids early to want to know more.
Before becoming a neuroscientist, Gage worked as an electrical engineer making touchscreens. As he told the Huffington Post: "Scientific equipment in general is pretty expensive, but it's silly because before [getting my PhD in neuroscience] I was an electrical engineer, and you could see that you could make it yourself. So we started as a way to have fun, to show off to our colleagues, but we were also going into classrooms around that time and we thought, wouldn't it be cool if you could bring these gadgets with us so the stuff we were doing in advanced Ph.D. programs in neuroscience, you could also do in fifth grade?" His latest pieces of gear: the Roboroach, a cockroach fitted with an electric backpack that makes it turn on command, and BYB SmartScope, a smartphone-powered microscope.
Greg Gage | Speaker | TED.com