Editing Sentience (section)

=== Indicators of sentience ===
[[File:European honey bee extracts nectar.jpg|thumb|Experiments suggest that bees can display an optimistic mood, engage in playful behavior, and strategically avoid threats or harmful situations unless the reward is significant.<ref name=":1" />]]
[[Nociception]] is the process by which the [[nervous system]] detects and responds to potentially harmful stimuli, leading to the sensation of [[pain]]. It involves specialized receptors called [[Nociceptor|nociceptors]] that sense damage or threat and send signals to the brain. Nociception is widespread among animals, even among insects.<ref name=":02">{{Cite magazine |last=Reynolds |first=Matt |title=Insect Farming Is Booming. But Is It Cruel? |url=https://www.wired.com/story/insect-farming-sentience/ |access-date=2024-06-06 |magazine=Wired |language=en-US |issn=1059-1028}}</ref>

The presence of nociception indicates an organism's ability to detect harmful stimuli. A further question is whether the way these noxious stimuli are processed within the brain leads to a [[subjective experience]] of pain.<ref name=":02" /> To address that, researchers often look for behavioral cues. For example, "if a dog with an injured paw whimpers, licks the wound, limps, lowers pressure on the paw while walking, learns to avoid the place where the injury happened and seeks out analgesics when offered, we have reasonable grounds to assume that the dog is indeed experiencing something unpleasant." Avoiding painful stimuli unless the reward is significant can also provide evidence that pain avoidance is not merely an unconscious reflex (similarly to how humans "can choose to press a hot door handle to escape a burning building").<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Chittka |first=Lars |date=2023-07-01 |title=Do Insects Feel Joy and Pain? |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/do-insects-feel-joy-and-pain/ |access-date=2024-06-08 |website=Scientific American |language=en}}</ref>