The codebreakers: Harnessing AI to understand animal language
A group of international experts believes that the challenge of decoding communication systems in animals such as whales, crows and bats is now within reach after the incredible advances made in AI research.
The authors of an article in Science led by Professor Christian Rutz of the School of Biology, University of St Andrews explain how machine-learning techniques could offer new insights into animal behavior, which would have important implications for conservation.
Since millennia, the idea of being able to understand what animals are saying to each other or even having a conversation with a different species has captured human imagination. Since there is no Rosetta stone for translating animal communication signals, the meaning of these signals must be determined through careful observation and experiments. Even though research has made great progress in the last few decades, gathering and analyzing data remains a difficult task. Annotating recordings such as bird calls, primate gestures, or whale songs can be time-consuming. Even experienced biologists have difficulty distinguishing between similar signals.
Source:
https://phys.org/news/2023-07-code-breakers-harnessing-power-ai.html
