---
title: "Scientists Taught Rats How to Drive Tiny Cars"
description: "A team of scientists at the University of Richmond, Virginia have taught rats how to drive tiny cars around a track to get to a food reward."
date: "2019-10-22"
modified: "2019-10-22"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/scientists-rats-drive-tiny-cars"
categories:
  - "Science & Energy"
tags:
  - "driving"
  - "mice"
  - "rats"
  - "the digest"
---

# Scientists Taught Rats How to Drive Tiny Cars

![A team of scientists at the University of Richmond, Virginia have taught rats how to drive tiny cars around a track to get to a food reward.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/scientists-rats-drive-tiny-cars.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Kelly Lambert/University of Richmond\</em\>*

## RATSCAR

A team of scientists at the University of Richmond, Virginia have taught rats how to drive tiny cars around a track, [*New Scientist* reports](<https://www.newscientist.com/article/2220721-scientists-have-trained-rats-to-drive-tiny-cars-to-collect-food/>) — a bold step in the study of animal cognition.

The researchers are hoping to glean insight into how learning new skills can alleviate stress and how neurological conditions affect our ability to deal with complex situations. The rats were able to steer the tiny cars made out of clear food containers on wheels using three input devices that made the vehicles go left, right, or straight.

## Tiny Cars

The researchers motivated the rats with food rewards of Froot Loops cereal. [A paper](<https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166432819311763#!>) of their research was published in the journal *Behavioural Brain Research* last week.

"They learned to navigate the car in unique ways and engaged in steering patterns they had never used to eventually arrive at the reward," lead researcher Kelly Lambert told *New Scientist*.

## See Me Rolling

Just like us humans, learning to drive and navigate seemed to have a relaxing effect on the rats. In a control experiment, they found rats had higher levels of cortisol when being driven around in remote-controlled cars than when they were allowed to steer themselves.

The researchers are hoping to use similar driving tests in rat models to study neuropsychiatric conditions, including the effects of Parkinson's disease.

**READ MORE:** [Scientists have trained rats to drive tiny cars to collect food](<https://www.newscientist.com/article/2220721-scientists-have-trained-rats-to-drive-tiny-cars-to-collect-food/>) \[*New Scientist*\]

**More on driving:** *[Waymo: Building Cars is a “Distraction” From Self-Driving Tech](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/waymo-cars-distraction-self-driving>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)