Generating a photorealistic video with a simple command is a striking example of AI applications. There are, however, less obvious areas, such as its use in data analysis in construction or predicting the wear and tear of machine parts, which demonstrate the deeper impact of AI on various human activities. Science is no exception. MIT recently announced a significant advance in understand the animal kingdom thanks to AI. Their study, which applied artificial intelligence to sperm whales, suggests that the language of these creatures is much closer to human communication than previously believed.
What will I read in this article?
The mysterious alphabet of sperm whales
Sperm whales are surprising in many ways. They have the largest teeth of any animal, but their most notable feature is their brain, which is six times larger than that of a human. Additionally, they maintain complex social relationships within families and groups. These factors led MIT scientists to study their language using artificial intelligence, in collaboration with the Cetacean Translation Initiative (CETI).
The roots of this work date back to 1971, when CETI published an article in the journal Science revealing that sperm whales could sing songs. Today, thanks to AI, they have progressed further. By employing machine learning techniques and D tags attached to each whale, the researchers discovered that these cetaceans use a phonetic alphabet with complex and combinatorial structures.
The researchers analyzed nine thousand “codas”, the bursts of sound emitted by sperm whales. The algorithms identified four basic elements: rhythm, tempo, rubato and ornamentation. Whales use these techniques to create diverse vocalizations that vary depending on context, allowing other whales to recognize and engage in dialogue.
Artificial intelligence to decode animal language
Daniela Rus, director of MIT's CSAIL lab who initiated the project, suggests the results could challenge the idea that humans are the only species capable of processing complex language. This research also constitutes a crucial step towards decoding languages of other species and, ultimately, achieve human-animal communication.
“The data collected could lead one to question whether humans are the only species capable of processing complex language.”
Additionally, Rus highlights a surprising application of AI: understand beings from other planets. The science fiction film Arrival posed a big challenge in making contact with an extraterrestrial civilization: language. It is conceivable that algorithms could help us communicate with extraterrestrial civilizations if such contact ever occurs.
An ambitious AI project to understand the animal kingdom
Back on Earth, one of the most fascinating AI projects in animal communication is the Terrestrial Species Project. This initiative has been working for several years to unravel the mysteries of language in various species. Working with biologists and neural network experts, they are developing standards for data collection, AI models, pattern detection systems and, ultimately, a platform for interpreting and communicating with animal language. Their work so far includes studies of ravens and belugas, among others.
For more information on the potential of AI applied to animals, see our previous article on using AI to interpret the sounds of monkeys like marmosets and other mammals like prairie dogs.
Sources: