Scientists talked to the whale for 20 minutes: the animal's speech was deciphered

 

The group of researchers managed to enter into a real dialogue with the humpback whale for the first time. The signals for the mammal were broadcast through an underwater speaker, its answers were recorded by an unmanned bathyscaphe nearby. The conversation took about 20 minutes, after which the whale's speech was deciphered.

The conversation was initiated by oceanologists. They broadcast a signal that whales use as a greeting. Twain, a large, adult humpback whale, quickly responded to the impulse.

Over the next 20 minutes, Twain answered each new call. Scientists had only one signal and could only modulate the time of its execution, which largely made the conversation strange for the whale.

Twain reacted to the first impulse with great enthusiasm. Whale sent a similar signal in response and came closer to the bathyscaphe. With each new audio message, the animal lost a little interest - in fact, the whale constantly heard only "hello" in different modulations.

The signals received from the whale were deciphered in a sense. The whale also welcomed the interlocutors, then as if he asked what was going on. At the end, Twain clearly expressed disappointment, on the 19th minute the animal said goodbye and went about his business.

We still consider it a breakthrough. The whale reacted to the signal. We'll record new impulses and get a real conversation," says one of the authors of the study.

Theoretically, this method of negotiation can also be used for dialogue with other animals.