Talking Whales

[osprey_archer]

Here's a cool link for you today: Beluga Whale "Makes Human-like Sounds" It's about a beluga whale which, yes, taught itself to make human-like noises. And there's audio! And indeed, it sounds very human-like.

Not, mind you, intelligibly human-like yet. There are no actual words. But after all, babies don't start with actual words either; they, like the whale, babble.

Maybe someday we'll be able chat with whales! Using words! Wouldn't that be amazing? It would be even cooler than sign language with apes. Because whales. Talking whales. We could exchange poetry! (You know whales must have poetry.) Also possibly apologize for that whole whaling thing in the nineteenth century.

English may have too many consonant strings to be a good candidate for interspecies communication. Maybe Spanish or Japanese?

Comments

[aliannesecunda.livejournal.com]

That's so awesome!

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I know, right? I for one welcome the future in which whales join the United Nations.

[carmarthen.livejournal.com]

Given 21st century whaling, the idea of talking to whales in Japanese strikes me as painfully ironic...

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

No, see, that's why it would make a heart-warming Miyazaki movie! A young girl and a whale would learn how to talk to each other, and therefore put an end to whaling and incidentally other kinds of environmental destruction.

[carmarthen.livejournal.com]

Ha, fair enough. I would watch that and cry a lot.

[ladyherenya]

That is amazing. And fascinating. I wonder how much of it is the whale producing those sounds because it can and how much is it trying to communicate.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I don't know! It does sound awfully exhilarated to have found this new part of its vocal range. It may just be trying things out.

[bunn.livejournal.com]

This story reminded me a little of Ursula le Guin's 'The Author of the Acacia Seeds' although the BBC version of it is less sad than the one I first read - can't find it now but this is the gist : http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/video-noc-the-whale-tries-to-talk-to-captors-16228067.html

The whale-child who tried so hard to talk to the apes who had caught him, and eventually gave us up as a lost cause makes me want to cry a bit.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Oh, that sounds so sad. :(

[bogwitch64.livejournal.com]

Cool! I have to send this to someone I know in love with a beluga. :)

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I suppose there's more hope for that relationship, now that they might be able to talk together one day!