We all ask ourselves from time to time what is the future of humanity. The question is not new and follows humans generation after generation. The problem has been approached from a purely scientific, religious and philosophical points of view. What are the goals of humanity? What instincts rule us? Are we striving for higher purposes, or is it only about multiplying and struggling for survival?
Mouse Utopia Experiment
"What happens if we provide everything the animals need for survival?" - John Calhoun created the mouse equivalent of a developed human civilization. The experiment was carried out on mice in 1968 and lasted 4 years. Despite repeated trials, the end result was always the same - unrestricted access to food and no threats caused the extinction of the population.
Mouse Utopia - provided environment
Unlimited access to food, water and materials needed to build a shelter.
Lack of life-threatening predators.
Maximum limited spread of infectious diseases (medical care for mice).
The only restriction - a space that could hold up to 3,840 mice.
The Experiment
Phase A - Adaptation period (days 0-104)
On the first day, 4 males and 4 females were admitted to the habitat.
Initially, mice had problems with adapting to the environment and to each other.
After the relative stabilization of the situation, the mice created a kind of territorial division and began to build nests.
On the 104th day, the first "new" mice began to be born.
Phase B - Rapid population growth - resource lifetime (days 105-314)
The rodent population doubles every 55 days.
The structure of the social structure - the size of the litter depends on the "social position" of the parents.
More mice are born in cubicles inhabited by more dominant males, while few dominant mice have negligible number of offspring.
Despite the fact that the conditions in each of the boxes were identical and gave the same living conditions, you can notice the accumulation of mice and the consumption of food in specific places. The presence of others no longer disturbing the mice. More and more crowd in the "selected" boxes.
At the end of Phase B there were three times more individuals who did not socially support (not in any way) than socially stable individuals with an established position (male dominant). It is worth noting that stably social individuals are mainly older mice.
Phase C - Stagnation - equilibrium period (days 315-559)
The population doubles every 145 days.
The ability to defend one's territory disappears in males.
Nursing females begin to be clearly aggressive, taking the role of the nest defense from males. This aggression is also directed to their own offspring, who are sometimes attacked, injured and forced to leave the nest.
Violence becomes widespread. Males cease to solicit females in any way. Instead, they attack each other. A kind of new structure is created. They are aggressive males - more dominant, as well as passive - excessively bitten by others.
Homosexual behavior appears. The more dominant males use the more passive males that take on the "female role".
In females there is a mechanism of natural contraception - the absorption of fetuses. There is also less fertilization and parental instinct disappears. As a result, fewer and fewer young mice are born. There are also many childless females.
In the middle of phase C, virtually all the offspring were rejected by the mothers. They began a separate life without any emotional or social behavior.
Despite the fact that the expected growth-inhibiting factor will reach the limit of 3,840 individuals, the maximum population was only 2,200. In addition, only 20% of the nests were constantly occupied.
Phase D - Period of extinction (days 560-1588)
On day 560, the population growth ended.
Females very rarely get pregnant, and the few new born females do not survive.
The last fertilization took place on day 920.
There are male equivalents of females, the so-called "Beautiful ones". These males showed no interest in females as well as never participated in any conflicts. Their behavior was limited to drinking, eating, sleeping, as well as taking care of their own appearance (for example, cleaning fur and not getting involved in fights - no scars).
After some time, the population has completely lost the ability to reproduce.
The last thousand mice have not developed any social reactions. Aggression and behavior leading to the protection of the nest and offspring was unknown to them. They did not engage in activities other than drinking, eating, sleeping and taking care of themselves. The individuals at that time looked exceptionally nice and cared for. They had a healthy body and good-looking eyes. However, they could not cope with any unusual stimulus. Although they looked exceptionally good, they were also extremely stupid.
The last individual dies on 1588.
Conclusions
According to John Calhoun: "The conclusions drawn from this experiment were as follows: when all available space is occupied and all social roles are determined then competition and stress experienced by individuals lead to complete collapse of complicated social behaviors, ultimately resulting in the extinction of the population."
The lack of challenges gradually worsens the behavior of subsequent generations of the population. This degeneracy is inevitable and ends with the extinction of the population.
Will we survive?
I can see many similarities with our current world and the Utopian environment the mice were sent to live. Nearly unlimited access to food and medicine, automation, robotics, soon we all be receiving some sort of Universal Income as smart robots will provide us with all the goods and services we require. So are we slowly transforming into "beautiful ones"? The fertility rates in developed countries decrease from decade to decade, males are feminizing and females postpone maternity until older age. We are provided with all the ingredients needed for a species to become extinct.
I recommend watching this excellent video documentary of the Mouse Utopia Experiment:
