system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How are butterflies/moths able to remember what they learned as caterpillars?

There was a study years ago where caterpillars were taught to avoid ethyl acetate by shocking them every time acetate was in the environment.   They let the caterpillars transform into adult moths, and then tested the moths again to see if they still remembered to stay away from the ethyl acetate smell.  It turned out that the moths still avoided acetate.

How is this even possible?  During the metamorphosis, the caterpillar essenntially turns into a liquid goop and the nervous system turns into gloop.  How does the goop get reconstructed into something as complex as a memory?
gpt
> How does the goop get reconstructed into something as complex as a memory? 

How does the goop get reconstructed into something as complex as a butterfly? 

Well, it never really turns into "goop" in the first place. There's still plenty of structure within the chrysalis. It breaks down what it needs to to form the new butterfly parts, but it's hardly a matter of "dissolve" then "reform". It's a very controlled process.