Rats Can’t Resist Energetic Beats, Research Says

It turns out that rodents are a species that can bob its head to Berghain’s beats. No disrespect to the techno church, but a new study revealed that rats can dance and are most synced with the music that features 120 to 140 BPM. 

Researchers at the University of Tokyo found that rats perceive music beats and nod their heads to the rhythm, similar to humans. By fitting 10 rats with wireless accelerometers that could detect the slightest head movement, experts analyzed their reaction to music. 

Furry rodents were exposed to a diverse playlist of genres and tempos, including Mozart’s Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major, Queen’s legendary Another One Bites the Dust, and Born this Way by Lady Gaga. 

Rats managed to keep in time with all the tracks when played at 132 BPM – just like an average clubber. But the academic paper notes that the synchronization quality dropped when speeding up or slowing down the beat. 

Beat synchronization was previously perceived as a human-only desire, but the research proves that the dancing animals phenomenon could be quite widespread.