Sorry Snapple, this is a myth. Not only do goldfish have an attention span longer than three seconds, there memory can last for several months. Also, they are sentient, intelligent and can feel pain. Think about that next time you go fishing. :)

http://www.nootropics.com/intelligence/smartfish.ht ml

Thereby qualifying it to hold the position of Governor of Alaska.

I agree with alpepper; while they're not quite quite the braniacs of the animal kingdom, they sure remember what it means when I walk up to their tank at a certain time of day (human approaching=feeding time). And, on the Discovery Channel show "Mythbusters", they have even succeeded in "training" fish to swim through a maze-like tank. Which is more brainpower than some people I've come across seem to have.

I don't agree with that factoid. My Koi have learned over the years that whenever a silhouette of a blue heron appears, fish "go to the cornfield." Last year, like well-trained Londoners during the Blitz, all our fish took deep cover when the heron came a dining at my garden pond. All but one survived.

I'm suprised they aren't allowed to vote.

I think this is something most everyone knows.

This explains why my cat had such an easy time getting to them!

Suggests to me that there are a certain number of goldfish posting on RIA

Did you not know that Blue? It's why it's so easy to over-feed them. They forget that they just ate and if you feed them again; theyll just keep eating and eating. My cousin actually killed her fish this way; she could never remember how much to feed them and how often to do it.