Pavlov's dogs

Cultural  

1. The dogs used in conditioned response experiments by a Russian scientist of the late nineteenth century, Ivan Pavlov. In these experiments, Pavlov sounded a bell while presenting food to a dog, thereby stimulating the natural flow of saliva in the dog's mouth. After the procedure was repeated several times, the dog would salivate at the sound of the bell, even when no food was presented.

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Someone who reacts instinctively rather than reflectively to a situation is said to be engaging in a Pavlovian reaction.

Example Sentences

Instead of producing a reflex like Pavlov's dogs, the turtles respond with an energetic "dance."

From Science Daily

The way it works is reminiscent of Ivan Pavlov’s dogs.

From Washington Post

They did this by showing them the blue object and observing whether they extended their mouths, a “thirst” response similar to Pavlov’s dogs salivating.

From Science Magazine

“I guess they are like Pavlov’s dogs,” Alex said.

From Washington Post

Unfortunately, said events have already been thrown down the memory hole, both by the public and the corporate media, who have been trained and conditioned like Pavlov's dogs by the orchestrated chaos and confusion of Trump's regime.

From Salon