An attempt at understanding dolphin language is being made — will people listen?
Since it was first published in 1979, Douglas Adams's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has seen generations of the philosophically minded expand on some of its themes. The series of books is comical, of course, as it satirises ontology, metaphysics, the pomposity of politicians, the dreadful diatribes of bureaucrats. But in all the fun of puns, Adams often stumbled into, perhaps knowingly, profound questions. The most popular of these is the Babel Fish argument — based on a creature that, by eliminating all boundaries to interspecies communication across the galaxy, caused the most dreadful wars of all. And then there's the enigma of dolphins. As the Earth is about to be destroyed in the first book, they leave the planet, leaving behind a one-line message: 'So long, and thanks for all the fish.' Now, as AI models threaten and promise to make the fears and fortunes of sci-fi worlds a reality, Adams's questions might just be answered.
This year, the Coller-Dolittle Prize — given for research into two-way inter-species communication — was awarded to the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program. It has used non-invasive methodologies to study the various vocalisations and body language of bottlenose dolphins for about 40 years. This data can be used to train AI models that can potentially uncover the layers of meaning in non-human language.
The dolphins in Hitchhiker's were smarter than human beings. And perhaps, for a given definition of intelligence, life can imitate art. For a long time, human beings have ignored the personhood of intelligent animals. Elephants, higher primates, dolphins and whales — there are several species that have language and heritage, that laugh and cry and grieve, have a sense of family, self and community. Perhaps AI can translate their realities in a way humans can understand them, and learn from them. But then, given that people are so adept at treating people as things, what chance does a dolphin have?
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Massive Iron Age hoard found after 2,000 years—Elite relics among the trove
History doesn't always whisper from crumbling ruins or faded records; sometimes some very important discoveries are made by digging deep in the soil, too. An important discovery has been made in northern England, where archaeologists have found something that goes far beyond the usual broken pots and rusted tools. This new discovery is a buried time capsule of power and prestige, including more than 800 stunning Iron Age artifacts, resting untouched for 2,000 years. This isn't just a lucky find, it's a discovery that could rewrite what we know about life in ancient Britain. Massive Iron Age treasure hoard tells about elite life in ancient Britain This discovery is being called one of the largest Iron Age discoveries ever made in the UK, Archaeologists have unearthed a hoard of over 800 ancient objects in Melsonby, Yorkshire. The site, known as the Melsonby Hoard, includes an extraordinary collection of horse harnesses, chariot parts, ceremonial weapons, and ornate vessels, where some are valued at over $3,00,000 collectively. According to archaeologist Tom Moore, who led the excavation, 'The Melsonby Hoard is of a scale and size that is exceptional for Britain and probably even Europe.' Moore noted that the presence of items blending Mediterranean and Iron Age British styles, like a wine mixing bowl, shows clear evidence of long-distance connections. 'Whoever originally owned the material in this hoard was probably a part of a network of elites across Britain, into Europe, and even the Roman world,' he said. The excavation was launched after a local metal detectorist alerted the British Museum through the Portable Antiquities Scheme. With support from Historic England, archaeologists from Durham University began a full dig in 2022, funded with over £120,000. A significant portion of the hoard includes decorated bridle bits and fittings in detail, some adorned with coral from the Mediterranean. 'If you imagine these decorating the ponies, it would look incredibly elaborate,' said Sophia Adams, a curator at the British Museum. She added, 'This region doesn't have many of these more ostentatious displays of wealth as you might get in a grave in southern England.' One of the most important finds of this excavation is a massive cauldron found buried upside down with no soil inside and rare images of swirling fish engraved on its base. 'This is really rare to find on pre-Roman objects,' said Adams. The cauldron's unusual appearance, including bright blues and greens, is attributed to the airless soil pockets in which it was buried. The most important discovery Perhaps the most mysterious part of the dig is a mass of tightly packed artifacts known as 'the block.' The archaeologists couldn't separate the individual items because they were corroded together. Instead, they used CT scans to examine the interior. 'What they seem to have done is thread spears through hoops or nave bands and tangled everything together before wrapping it in fabric,' Adams explained. The block also revealed a human-like face molded in sheet metal, which comes as one of many signs that these objects may have had ceremonial or funerary significance, even though no human remains were found. All these artifacts, including ornate horse gear to complex burial practices, gives a rare and vivid window into Iron Age life in northern Britain. As research continues, experts hope it will reshape what we know about early elite societies, cross-cultural trade, and the role of status in ancient times.
Indian Express
10-06-2025
- Indian Express
8 books to read if you love Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a masterpiece of absurdist sci-fi, blending cosmic existentialism with sheer, unbridled silliness. Originally conceived as a radio series for BBC Radio 4, it was later published as a series of novels. The book follows the adventures and misadventures of the last surviving Earth man, Arthur Dent, following the demolition of the Earth to make way for a hyperspace bypass. The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy is the first in the series and has a huge following across the globe. Besides the original radio series and the novels, the sci-fi series has been adapted for TV, theatre cinema, and even a comic book. If you've finished the series and crave more, here are eight books that will scratch that itch: Imagine Hitchhiker's Guide meets Eurovision (an international song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union), if losing meant the annihilation of Earth. This novel follows Decibel Jones and the Absolute Zeroes, a washed-up glam-rock band, as they compete in an intergalactic singing contest to prove humanity's sentience. Valente's prose is flamboyant, hilarious, and surprisingly poignant, packed with bizarre alien cultures and biting satire. The book's central thesis— life is beautiful and life is stupid'—could easily be Adams' own. If you love cosmic absurdity with heart, this is a must-read. Based on the cult British sci-fi series, this novel follows the last human in existence (a slob named Lister), his hologram roommate (the endlessly sarcastic Rimmer), a neurotic android, and a creature evolved from Lister's cat. Stranded on the mining ship Red Dwarf, they bumble through time paradoxes, sentient vending machines, and petty arguments about curry. The humour is quintessentially British: dry, absurd, and packed with existential dread. If you love Hitchhiker's blend of sci-fi, this is your next read. This book is Hitchhiker's meets Lovecraftian horror, if Arthur Dent stumbled into a dimension-hopping drug trip. The story follows Dave and John, two slackers who gain the ability to perceive alternate realities after taking a mysterious substance called Soy Sauce. What follows is a chaotic mix of time loops, meat monsters, and existential horror, all delivered with deadpan humour. Wong's writing is as unpredictable as Adams', blending the ridiculous with the profound. If you enjoyed the weirder, darker corners of Hitchhiker's, this is a wild ride. It isn't fiction, but Munroe's book matches Hitchhiker's energy. The creator of xkcd, a serial webcomic created in 2005, applies rigorous science to questions such as: what if you tried to hit a baseball at near-light speed or could you build a jetpack using machine guns. The answers are hilarious, hyper-literal, and often terrifying. If you loved the Guide's footnotes and pseudo-scientific tangents, this is the perfect nonfiction companion. If you haven't read Adams' other great series, you're missing out. Dirk Gently swaps space for time travel, ghosts, and a detective who believes in the 'fundamental interconnectedness of all things.' The plot involves an electric monk (a device resembling a human being and created for the purpose of believing things), a time-traveling professor, and a sofa stuck in a staircase. It is just as witty and bizarre as Hitchhiker's. Essential reading for Adams fans. This genre-bending novel is set in a post-apocalyptic world where reality itself has been warped by 'Go Away Bombs', weapons that erase things from existence. The narrator, a martial artist and former government operative, recounts his life in a world where unwritten things can suddenly manifest. Harkaway's writing is dense, philosophical, and laugh-out-loud funny, with Adams-esque tangents and a deeply weird sense of humor. If you like sci-fi that's both smart and ridiculous, this is a gem. If you've only read Hitchhiker's Guide (Book 1), stop everything and read this sequel. The novel doubles down on the absurdity, featuring a five-star eatery at the literal end of time, the worst poet in the universe, and the revelation that Earth was actually a supercomputer designed to find the Ultimate Question. Marvin the Paranoid Android gets even more hilariously depressed, and Zaphod's ego reaches new heights. It's peak Adams, irreverent, clever, and endlessly quotable. Other books you could check out include, The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut, All Systems Red by Martha Wells and Welcome to Night Vale by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor.
NDTV
22-05-2025
- NDTV
Jupiter Was Once Twice Its Size - And Its Magnetic Field Could Fry Spacecraft
The information of Jupiter's early evolution sheds light on the solar system's formation and structure. As the solar system's gravitational 'architect', Jupiter's influence was instrumental in shaping the orbits of other planets and defining the gas and dust disc from which they emerged. In a new study published in the journal Nature Astronomy, Konstantin Batygin (PhD '12), professor of planetary science at Caltech; and Fred C. Adams, professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Michigan; provide a detailed look into Jupiter's primordial state. Their calculations reveal that roughly 3.8 million years after the solar system's first solids formed-a key moment when the disk of material around the Sun, known as the protoplanetary nebula, was dissipating-Jupiter was significantly larger and had an even more powerful magnetic field. "Our ultimate goal is to understand where we come from, and pinning down the early phases of planet formation is essential to solving the puzzle," Batygin says."This brings us closer to understanding how not only Jupiter but the entire solar system took shape." Batygin and Adams approached this question by studying Jupiter's tiny moons Amalthea and Thebe, which orbit even closer to Jupiter than Io, the smallest and nearest of the planet's four large Galilean moons. Because Amalthea and Thebe have slightly tilted orbits, Batygin and Adams analyzed these small orbital discrepancies to calculate Jupiter's original size: approximately twice its current radius, with a predicted volume that is the equivalent of over 2,000 Earths. The researchers also determined that Jupiter's magnetic field at that time was approximately 50 times stronger than it is today. Adams highlights the remarkable imprint the past has left on today's solar system: "It's astonishing that even after 4.5 billion years, enough clues remain to let us reconstruct Jupiter's physical state at the dawn of its existence."
