The Scientists Learning to Speak Whale
Two research initiatives — Cetacean Translation Initiative (CETI) and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) — are exploring not only what it means to collect data on how whales communicate, but to listen and understand what they are saying. Listening to whales ends up reflecting much more about humans, than anticipated: it highlights our relationship not only to another species, but to technology including the technology of our own language. While we have intentions of using the technology for good, including inviting better stewardship of our shared planet, the opportunity to use the technology to hunt with greater efficiency tempers the researchers’ hubris. “We should probably do more listening, and less talking,” is one way to responsibly use the technology says Samantha Blakeman, a marine data manager for the National Oceanography Centre. More listening, less talking is a prevailing theme across both initiatives, and the nature of their work a testament to what is available when listening is practiced: “This is such a unique, gentle creature, and there’s just so much going on. Each time we look, we find deeper complexity and structure in their communication.” This complexity allows whales to ‘see’ their world in a way research is just beginning to understand.
