By shedding light on the intricate and intelligent communication of whales, the project not only aims to accelerate conservation efforts, but has the potential to transform the way we understand our relationship with the natural world.
Photo by Amanda Cotton
Project CETI is a collaboration between scientists from many institutions around the world, including:
MIT
Harvard
Imperial College London
University of Haifa
City University of New York
National Geographic Society
The Dominica Sperm Whale Project
Project CETI is working to develop a deeper understanding of the complex system of communication that sperm whales use and share that understanding with the world. Through this unique approach, the Project will highlight the critical role of biodiversity in a time of ecosystem collapse, drawing attention to the need to accelerate conservation efforts for sperm whales and other species.
Humans are far from the only species capable of complex communication. The work of Project CETI has the potential to reframe our understanding of our relationship with nature and take a significant step towards meaningful interspecies communication.
Since then, whale conservation efforts have received broader support and publicity than almost any other environmental endeavor, and the study of whale behavior has become a major field in marine biology.
Sperm whales have the largest brains of any living animal species. They live in tightly-knit family groups, which coordinate themselves using a complex system of communication. They also contribute to ocean ecosystems in a variety of important ways and play a role in sequestering carbon dioxide - sperm whale waste products are rich in nutrients that encourage the growth of phytoplankton, which draws CO2 from the air through photosynthesis.
The possibility of translating the mysterious language of whales may have seemed extremely distant to the listeners of Songs of the Humpback Whale in 1970, but recent advances in engineering, artificial intelligence, biology, and linguistics have made this a realistic prospect. Breakthroughs in AI and unsupervised machine translation have, for the first time, allowed researchers to translate between two unknown human languages without needing a Rosetta Stone equivalent as a comparison point. Project CETI will be reapplying and adapting these promising discoveries to the field of non-human communication.
Once that data is collected, it will be analyzed by Project CETI collaborators around the world, along with important context information provided by Dr Gero’s team. With cutting-edge machine learning and pioneering linguistics methodologies, the Project hopes to decode the whales’ songs and start to build a picture of their unique language. Over time, as more data is collected and that picture is filled out, the Project will work towards initiating communication with the whales to test and refine their understanding of that language.
In the meantime, Project CETI will work with partners in media, such as National Geographic, to engage the global community in their fascinating work. There are plans to develop a bespoke online platform that will provide accessible insights into sperm whale communication and behavior for the scientific community, legislators and the general public.
Project CETI is a 2020 TED Audacious Project.
Songs of the Humpback Whale https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Songs_of_the_Humpback_Whale_(album)
Whale Ecosystem Benefits https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/09/how-much-is-a-whale-worth
Dominica Sperm Whale Project http://www.thespermwhaleproject.org/
