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Animals are communicating — but what are they saying? And can we talk back? Marine biologist David Gruber introduces Project CETI: a team of scientists, linguists and AI specialists hoping to decode sperm whale language. Using noninvasive robots and a machine-learning algorithm to collect and analyze millions of sperm whale vocalizations known as coda, the team aims to demystify the communication structures and dialects of these majestic creatures — and possibly even crack the interspecies communication code. (This ambitious plan is a part of the Audacious Project, TED’s initiative to inspire and fund global change.)
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Dawid Wolnik
April 28, 2021 at 5:53 pm
it sounds like fart!
Dawid Wolnik
April 28, 2021 at 5:53 pm
but can it play crisis?
Lawrence
April 28, 2021 at 5:57 pm
What would you tell them? The ocean is a dump full of plastic/toxic waste!! Boy the things money can buy lol.
Ramandeep Nijjar
April 28, 2021 at 5:58 pm
So fascinating! Thank you! As a current student hoping to study marine biology in university in the future
Aida Nurus Suroyya
April 28, 2021 at 6:13 pm
Amazingg thankyou🤍
Matty P
April 28, 2021 at 6:30 pm
I suspect they’ll be taking about current events
Lewis Johnson
April 28, 2021 at 6:35 pm
You showed that wasn’t gas
Karen Pierce
April 28, 2021 at 6:40 pm
❤
Gary Graham
April 28, 2021 at 7:32 pm
We can tell them to “get out of Dodge” when the whale boats show up! HURRY! FLEE! They have earned at least that much!
Z Shieh
April 28, 2021 at 8:18 pm
Practice for communication with other species before First Contact with extraterrestrial aliens.
We are all One
April 28, 2021 at 8:28 pm
My butt has spoken a similar language, sometimes after burritos
DeathAngel
April 28, 2021 at 8:39 pm
isn’t ceti the people looking for aliens?
DeathAngel
April 28, 2021 at 8:48 pm
how cool woild it be if a century from now, sperm whale could be an option when you need a foreign language credit. i’d love to be able to speak with them, imagine what secrets of the ocean they could tell us.
Mohamed Esam
April 28, 2021 at 9:25 pm
What is the useful for this it’s privacy of whales to communicate with each other without being spied by humans
Hugo Austin
April 28, 2021 at 9:27 pm
it sounds like really slow grandma farts
Haidar Ali
April 28, 2021 at 9:37 pm
we’re humans and people are intelligent yet arrogant, hopefully this study can bring our understanding to whale specifically and how not to disturb them, communication can be something some people use for itself.
FM GOBi
April 28, 2021 at 9:43 pm
James Nestor did a TED talk in 2017 saying that the project would be done in 2 years. And now you say in 2021 that the project will be done in 5 years.
Elliot Blair
April 28, 2021 at 10:27 pm
pffft John Lilly style (LSD) would probably work better than AI and robots in the ocean. Also wouldnt they be uncomfortable with robots in the ocean. Like they can echolocate the innards, blast them and break them.
Wasilej Wasiliewicz
April 28, 2021 at 10:30 pm
That’s odd, i’ve already talked with your mother, ted.
YOYO YOOO
April 28, 2021 at 11:03 pm
LETS GO finaly a usefull project. Not like these besos guys with billions who do nothing with there money besides making more. Besos could clear the ocean with his money. This is the beginning of a new era.
Mike L
April 28, 2021 at 11:04 pm
Bro, give my wife and her friends 20 minutes and they’ll crack the code. There is absolutely nothing they don’t know!
-Yop-
April 29, 2021 at 12:21 am
I thought you were saying she was a whale lol
Daniel Miles
April 29, 2021 at 12:22 am
There are plenty of AI tutorials on youtube, finding access to the database of sperm whale sounds could be difficult but not impossible! get them to do it!!
Geoffrey Kail
April 28, 2021 at 11:33 pm
GO FOR IT. THIS IS A TRUE APPLICATION OF SCIENCE VERSES MAKING WAR MACHINES OUT OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES.
Emiljano Dervishllari
April 28, 2021 at 11:43 pm
Imagin if they call us sperm humans
Overonator
April 29, 2021 at 12:15 am
I’m not buying it that you can use machine learning will magically decode sperm whale language. This isn’t like trying to decode a human language. You know that humans share common experiences so describing those experiences in figuring out what those words mean is easy. We aren’t sperm whales, we don’t have the same experiences so to me this is quite unbelievable and bordering on pseudoscience.
waddac2
April 29, 2021 at 12:15 am
Has any of your guys, jumped in the water and let off a few sneaky Farts to communicate with them as under water done correctly a fart sounds same as the Whales language. If you could tune your farts by squeezing bum cheeks we may all know and learn.
Kam Overmon
April 29, 2021 at 1:53 am
So can we talk with dolphins… way more accessible
Sailaja sadineni
April 29, 2021 at 3:09 am
Interesting
v a s
April 29, 2021 at 3:14 am
An unlikely untapped resource could be those in our human societies called savants. They can detect patterns and nuances in patterns and obtain some plausible meanings.
Emilin
April 29, 2021 at 3:52 am
They would be pissed to know what we call them
Bob Swanson
April 29, 2021 at 4:14 am
There are a number of reasons why this is important, but one of the reasons is that someday, in the distant future we may find intelligent life, but may not recognize it as such because it doesn’t look like us. We will need some way to communicate with them, or at least attempt to communicate if we want to avoid conflict or exploitation.
Gang Pan
April 29, 2021 at 4:50 am
So what did you find? Your talk is empty.
Bianka
April 29, 2021 at 4:56 am
Im sending my apologies on behalf of all human activities that keep ruining their habitat. Im personally terrified of big bodies of water but please tell the whales we love them❤
Extra_V_I_C_C
April 29, 2021 at 5:31 am
“The most sophisticated method of communication that has ever existed” – I somehow seriously doubt that.
Antonio Usai
April 29, 2021 at 6:31 am
Fun fact: communicating at close range with a sperm whale can actually kill you. Their clicks have been measured to have a sound intensity of up to 230 decibels. Such clicks, at a short distance from the whale, can potentially cause internal damage or just stun you, if you’re lucky.
eyemall ears
April 29, 2021 at 7:46 am
Before watching:
Ok TED let’s see if you can still make videos that don’t feature a MASSIVE progressive bias.
After watching:
YES! Well f’ing done TED! You didn’t inject some far left talking points. Thank you.
Knightly Soul
April 29, 2021 at 1:39 pm
Whale: So, Mankind, clean up your trash.
Awww ww
April 29, 2021 at 2:28 pm
🤍
NIKKISHANA SUGAN Moe
April 29, 2021 at 4:25 pm
WOOOOO! 🎉🎉🎉🎊🎊🎊🎊🎊🎊 GO HUMANS!!!
Ambar
April 29, 2021 at 4:26 pm
Not kidding, learning to understand the language of sperm whales is one of the researches I’m excited for the most in today’s science. Great project!
filmalarmxxl
April 29, 2021 at 5:19 pm
Yes! This research is needed, urgent! What a humble lesson, this speech!
Michael Nelson
April 29, 2021 at 5:20 pm
A parrot or dog would make more sense for this project
Zahlenteufel1
April 29, 2021 at 5:28 pm
if it’s possible, it is inevitable
Dreckige Spritze
April 29, 2021 at 9:57 pm
sounds like the door-hinge is broken
Dreckige Spritze
April 29, 2021 at 10:07 pm
Nice. That way we could manipulate whales into serving us for transport and warfare. also for boarder-protection
keenan fetterly
April 29, 2021 at 11:53 pm
Any animal we talk to will eventually end up hating us unless we feed it only specific information about humans.
小故事
April 30, 2021 at 7:02 am
and then become aquaman
Dianne Goodrick
April 30, 2021 at 7:54 am
Very cool! I just hope we humans use what we learn for the good
Ali Hashemi
April 30, 2021 at 11:48 am
👏
Alejandro Verse
May 1, 2021 at 6:28 am
we live in a post-impossible era
Malcolm Pagett
May 1, 2021 at 3:46 pm
Mate, it’s pretty obvious that you’re reading from a card.
Jakub Sláma
May 1, 2021 at 5:46 pm
“perhaps the most sophisticated form of communication that has ever existed”? yeah right so why don’t you say that in spermwhalese
faith betinis
May 3, 2021 at 3:32 am
I want to know what they’re singing about!
UBT pixielox
May 3, 2021 at 12:35 pm
Finally! Someone’s doing it!
Sinedstro Cythan
May 4, 2021 at 4:32 am
Damn man damn damn damn
Gert van den Berg
May 4, 2021 at 1:42 pm
How is this not “Project Babel fish”?!
Bubble N Champagne Studios
May 4, 2021 at 10:00 pm
My girlfriend tries this everyday.