Text: Veronika Kushnareva
The idea that animals, like cartoon characters, will be able to communicate with people has long excited scientists. There are a huge number of documented stories that describe cases of animals communicating with people in different ways. Many apes, including the chimpanzees Washoe and Nim, and the Kanzi bonobo, have learned to communicate using sign language and symbols on a keyboard. Alex the African Gray Parrot learned over 100 English words which he could use and combine accordingly. As part of the Dolphin Project Wild, scientists have made quite successful attempts to communicate with dolphins. In this material, we decided to collect the most impressive examples of such studies of communication between people and animals.
Talking dogs
The word “communication” itself is difficult to define precisely. A tiger trainer who tells a giant cat where to jump with a piece of meat may be communicating with it, but this kind of one-way interaction is a far cry from the way Dr. Dolittle talks to animals. The tiger, of course, will react, but will not be able to say anything in response.
Most animals, of course, cannot speak, simply because their vocal apparatus is designed in a completely different way than that of a human. But everywhere there are exceptions. The book “What the Talking Monkeys Said” describes a chimpanzee who, after several years of training, even learned three words: “mama”, “dat”, “kap”. However, YouTube is filled with videos of dogs declaring their love to their owners with guttural “aaa ruu yuu,” which closely approximates the human “I love you.” At the same time, happy owners of talking pets firmly believe that it is their pet that really knows how to think, and that’s why it expresses itself that way.
Dogs are able to imitate some expressions of human speech due to the fact that they are naturally able to detect tonal differences between different sounds, for example in the pronunciation of words and in general in the process of speaking in humans. This mechanism is developed in animals to transmit and capture emotions, primarily for communication in a pack. Distinct articulate sounds from the “mouth” of a pet are, in fact, a side effect of this tool necessary for survival.
Scientists claim that dogs are unable to understand the human meaning of words, but the hypothesis of “imitative intelligence” in animals is not completely rejected. This also has evolutionary benefits for dogs as a species as a whole. In addition to voice recognition, dogs take into account their owner's body language, posture and direction of gaze. All this ultimately contributes to the receipt of food as a reward for faithful service.
The record holder for the number of words learned among dogs was a collie named Rico. She learned about 200 names of her toys and could remember each of them by name even after a month. Scientists claim that in this case the dog acted according to the fast tracking method, which is used, for example, by small children.
Who can work with dolphins?
In the absence of special training centers, a potential candidate may benefit from experience interacting with animals in nurseries, zoos and nature reserves. For example, in the south of Russia, in coastal cities, there is a special volunteer program for working with marine animals. Here you can not only gain experience and learn all the intricacies of handling dolphins, but also provide all possible assistance to large dolphinariums and aquariums. During the tourist season, such establishments are in dire need of additional “hands”.
It is not at all necessary to have a veterinary education; anyone with an open heart can become a first-class trainer. Frequent visitors to the dolphinarium are children with Down syndrome, autism and cerebral palsy. Dolphin therapy has an amazing healing effect on children with developmental disorders. For this reason, the doors at the dolphinarium are always open to speech pathologists, rehabilitation specialists and psychologists.
It is worth noting that in Crimea there is an International Institute of Dolphin Therapy, whose workers actively cooperate with dolphinariums throughout Russia. However, one of the important criteria for selecting a potential dolphin trainer is the ability to stay in the water for a long time, swim and dive. Having a certificate of completion of courses at a diving school will significantly bring the candidate closer to his dream. To be hired, a future coach must pass a swimming test. Taking acting courses is no less useful.
A potential coach must be hardy and physically strong, since in addition to the fun coaching work, there is also the “other” side of the coin associated with cleaning pools, analyzing the condition of the water, and cleaning large quantities of fish. Dolphin trainer is not a job, but a calling characterized by genuine love and respect for marine mammals.
Translator from cat
One day, magician Jose Ahonen, who had previously shown tricks to his experimental dogs, invited an actor who could imitate a dog’s bark as believably as possible as an experiment. In the video, you can see how the dogs fell into a stupor, not understanding where the sounds were coming from and what they could mean. Of course, this experiment cannot be called scientific, but it perfectly demonstrates at what stage the development of verbal communication between humans and dogs is.
If you also want to try to communicate with your pet, but you don’t have the talent for barking or meowing, you can take a good look at the AppStore, where there are a lot of applications loudly called “translators into dog or cat language.” One of the most notable is Human-to-Cat Translator Deluxe for iPhone, created by Electric French Fries.
It is based on the principle of all the usual translation programs: it supposedly analyzes your words and translates them into a set of more than 170 samples that can attract the attention of the cat with whom you are trying to “communicate”. The translator offers to choose one of 16 sounds that are related to basic commands, as well as individual sounds of birds and rodents. The creators of the program disclaim any responsibility, stating that the application is for entertainment purposes only and does not provide any real functionality.
Two-level system of communication with sea animals
For the last 60 years, scientists have been struggling to learn how to communicate with dolphins. The brain volume of dolphins is so large that many experts have made a bold assumption that the animals have their own language. American neurologist John S. Lily was so obsessed with the idea of penetrating the mind of a dolphin that he even subjected one to the drug LSD. This experiment is still considered one of the most unprincipled in history.
No less famous is his other experiment, which was supposed to shed light on the intellectual level of dolphins and their ability to learn human language. During the trial, an adult male dolphin named Peter was isolated from his fellow dolphins and lived for ten weeks in the same pool with a girl named Margaret Howe. It soon turned out that Peter had successfully mastered several commands in English and even learned to imitate the sounds that Margaret made, but ultimately he began to show sexual aggression towards his partner.
Of course, dialogue is too strong a word; in the case of dolphins, communication cannot be verbal, but it will definitely remain communication. The dolphin can talk and always answers something, but its “speech” remains incomprehensible to humans. Oceanologist Denise Herzig, however, is more optimistic about this and has already begun work on her own two-tier method for exchanging and receiving information. As part of the Wild Dolphin Project, Denise spent 29 years studying a group of Atlantic dolphins in Florida waters. During this time, the dolphins learned to trust her and recognize her, just as she, in turn, distinguishes each individual. In her opinion, long-term relationship building is a labor-intensive and responsible process, but it is a necessary condition for productive communication and learning the communication skills of higher marine animals.
They are known to use sounds to express concepts, and each individual has its own unique whistle that acts as a name. In addition, with whistles and crackling sounds, they are able to convey a wide range of emotions and the meaning of their intentions. But language is, first of all, a sign system where simple elements are combined into complex ones, and the presence of such in dolphins has not yet been proven. However, the fact that dolphins are extremely capable of learning is undeniable. This is also proven by numerous experiments by Diana Reiss, who confirmed that dolphins, for example, are able to recognize themselves in the mirror and send signals from an underwater keyboard, interacting with people using a specially designed “CHAT” device.
How to become a dolphin trainer?
Love for animals is the main selection criterion that guides the trainers when recruiting into the group those who want to take a course in all the intricacies of working with dolphins. These intelligent creatures are unusually sensitive; they convey the mood of the person nearby. Working with dolphins isn't just about teaching the mammals spectacular tricks. It is important to be able to create comfortable living conditions, monitor the animal and feed it daily. This is hard work, because you have to clean kilograms of fish on an ongoing basis.
It is worth saying right away that a dolphin is a social animal, it needs contact and exchange of emotions, but each individual has its own character, therefore the approach to them must be individual. Simple “education” is not enough here; it is necessary to achieve the animal’s favor and show respect to it. It is noteworthy that trainers in dolphinariums always call themselves “trainers”, since the standard training used in the circus is inappropriate here. Dolphins are capricious, so you definitely won’t be able to “bend” them.
Dolphins should be trained in a playful way; it is in play that the sea animal’s potential is revealed; he himself reveals a desire to demonstrate tricks and tricks, hoping for the trainer’s praise. Tricks, in this case, become not memorized movements brought to the point of automatism, but a sincere manifestation of the dolphin’s emotions. For the same reason, a potential dolphin trainer should be friendly, open, patient and understanding. It is necessary to “feel” the animal, its mood. We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the list of basic criteria that guide coaches in the process of recruiting “newbies”:
- It is commendable if the candidate has an education in zoology or veterinary medicine;
- the future coach should be artistic and friendly;
- it is important to have developed swimmer and diver skills;
- Having volunteer experience will be a “bonus”;
- It is important to be patient, responsible and understanding.
The lack of specialized education is not an argument for refusing anyone who wants to become a dolphin trainer. The main thing is to love these wonderful sea animals, help them and create comfortable living conditions.
Thinking parrot
Dr. Irene Pepperberg became famous for her experiments with the African gray parrot, Alex. It is reliably known that the bird knew at least 150 English words, which it could put into expressions and use them according to the occasion. Before Pepperberg's work, there was an opinion that birds were stupid and capable only of parodying or imitating sounds and human speech. But numerous experiments with Alex have proven that birds can analyze and reason logically at a basic level.
Alex could identify up to fifty different objects and identify up to six objects at the same time. The parrot distinguished seven colors, knew the concepts of “more”, “less”, “same”, “different”, “above” and “under”. When Alex was shown an object and asked about its shape, color or material, he gave accurate answers 80 percent of the time. Alex was also capable of performing simple mathematical calculations, and he even understood the concept of zero.
It is known that before his death in 2007 at the age of 31, he told the laboratory assistant who was observing him: “You be good. I love you. See you tomorrow." Irene Pepperberg is currently continuing her research with other birds. An entire foundation has been founded in honor of the parrot and in support of the study of the intellectual abilities of large parrots.
Symbol and sign language in primates
Researchers at the University of St Andrews say they have been able to translate the meaning of the gestures wild chimpanzees use to communicate with each other. It turned out that animals have about 66 gestures, with the help of which they send each other specific messages. Observing and filming a community of chimpanzees in Uganda, experts studied 4.5 thousand cases of gesticulation and found that if a female shows her foot to her baby, it means that he should climb onto her back.
If one animal wants to scratch its back, then it touches the other with its hand. To attract attention, primates chew leaves. “It's like grabbing a hot cup of coffee, screaming and waving your hand,” says study leader Katrin Hobaiter. “That being said, I can understand that the coffee was hot and you don’t have to tell me what happened to you.” In this respect, chimpanzee communication looks exactly like human communication.
Science knows many examples when primates were able to teach sign language. The first chimpanzee to be taught Amslen (the American version of the language) was Washoe, who learned about 350 “words.” Her level of language communication was quite comparable to that of a two-year-old child. After the chimpanzee's vocabulary reached 10–12 characters, she began to combine them at will. So, for example, when Washoe was taught the “open” sign (“open the door”), blackmailing her into going outside for a walk, she began using this gesture in relation to the refrigerator to mean: “open, sweetie” (thus expressing that she wanted a drink juice that was there). Washoe then began asking to “open up, blanket,” which meant asking her to get the blanket out of the closet so she could go to bed.
Even more impressive results were achieved by the gorilla Koko, who took part in various studies for about forty years. According to the experts who worked with her, during this time she managed to learn about 1,000 characters and learn about 2,000 human words by ear. This smart monkey even has his own YouTube channel where you can watch his progress.
Another famous bonobo monkey, Kanzi, has been trained in human language since the 1980s under the supervision of scientists at the Primate Research Center in Atlanta and later at the University of Georgia. Unfortunately, the primate died two years ago. He knew about 600 English words and knew how to use a special keyboard with symbols and buttons, which he handled very well. Due to the fact that bonobo monkeys are sensitive to a variety of sounds, Kanzi was even able to communicate with people through language. For linguists and anthropologists, he became a hope for new scientific discoveries and a symbol of a foundation studying the intelligence of bonobo monkeys.
Another stellar primate is the chimpanzee Nim Chimpsky, who lived in an American family and communicated with his household using sign language. The 2011 documentary project Nim showed how the industrious monkey learned language and new signs.
Educators, healers and scouts. Dolphins - special forces fighters
Scientific research... for gastronomic purposes?
Perhaps there is no animal in the wild that is more peaceful towards humans than dolphins. On top of that, they are also very cute. Just look at their amusing “smile from ear to ear.”
Probably, taking into account the fact that these “smaller brothers” of ours belong to the suborder of toothed whales, and people established a corresponding holiday - World Whale and Dolphin Day. It has been celebrated on July 23 since 1986. It was on this day that the International Whaling Commission decided to completely ban commercial whaling. Finally, man thought about how serious the consequences of his activities were for the harmony in nature.
Read the material on the topic: For the benefit of man. How do purring self-taught healers help us?
However, there are still countries that manage to find loopholes in this law. Thus, island Japan “bargained” for itself the right to catch almost a thousand whales a year “for scientific purposes.” It’s hard to say what Japanese scientists are so persistently studying, only the meat of hunted whales, after “research,” immediately goes to restaurants.
Who is studying whom?
The fact that dolphins help people has been known since time immemorial. And they drive fish into fishermen’s nets, and they help drowning people survive. By the way, dolphins push their wounded or sick comrades to the surface of the water so that they can breathe air. And during childbirth, two or three more experienced females always circle around the young mother, ready to help at any moment.
In terms of weight, the brain of an adult dolphin (1700 g) is three hundred grams more than a human brain. They are monogamous - married couples create for life. Their body temperature is the same as ours - 36.6 degrees. Being highly organized social animals, dolphins actively communicate with each other, their “vocabulary” is up to 14,000 sound signals.
DOLPHINS PUSH THEIR WOUNDED OR SICK COMMANDERS TO THE SURFACE OF THE WATER SO THEY CAN INHALE AIR.
If a person perceives sounds in the frequency band up to 20 kHz, for dolphins this limit is exactly ten times higher. Moreover, scientists have found that in a dolphin whistle there is an organization of sounds almost the same as ours: this is the sound itself, a syllable, a word, a phrase, a paragraph, a context. They even have their own dialects! It is assumed that proper names are too.
When you watch a person interact with these animals in a dolphinarium, you sometimes think: I wonder who is studying whom? Honestly, such thoughts give me goosebumps...
"Treat me with a dolphin"
Surely, many people know the term “dolphin therapy”. Yes, these animals really help people get rid of some diseases. What diseases do dolphins treat? Numerous studies have shown that these lovely “healers” help us in a variety of situations – from cerebral palsy and Down’s disease to the restoration of memory, hearing, and speech. Positive results from dolphin therapy have been noted in cases of functional disorders of the central nervous system. Problems with metabolism, depression, neuroses - dolphins also successfully fight these. Dolphin therapy is also indicated for autistic people.
Read the material on the topic: Mowgli is among us. What is it like, the world of autism?
However, you should not think that dolphin therapy is a panacea for all our troubles and illnesses; traditional medicine, as you know, has not been canceled. Moreover, there are also contraindications. Oncology, acute infectious diseases, epilepsy - these ailments should not be treated with dolphin therapy.
DOLPHINS HELP US IN A VARIETY OF SITUATIONS - FROM cerebral palsy and DOWN'S DISEASE TO MEMORY, HEARING, SPEECH RESTORATION
And further. There is no need to prescribe a course of dolphin therapy for yourself. Be sure to consult your doctor, this is important. In Russia, specialists in Anapa, Crimea, Evpatoria, and Alushta practice dolphin therapy at a professional level. There are separate centers specializing in the treatment of children with mental development delays (MDD).
Read material on the topic: Mom, school or kindergarten: who is to blame for neurosis in children?
Dolphin special forces
I don’t know about you, reader, but the next topic is sad for me. The fact is that the high intelligence of dolphins has become the object of close attention of the military. Man has long used animals for his militaristic purposes. War elephants in ancient India and China, camels, horses in cavalry. During World War II, dogs were trained to receive food under a tank, a mine was attached to them, and, hungry, they were released towards enemy combat vehicles. It turned out to be a kind of kamikaze involuntarily.
Perfectly trainable dolphins turned out to be a real godsend for people in uniform. The animals brought a lot of help, searching on the seabed for wartime mines, torpedoes lost during training, and small submarines. They became excellent assistants to military divers.
The military uses the unique sonar of dolphins to detect combat swimmers. True, attempts to force them to tear off the mask from the enemy, for the most part, were unsuccessful: the peace-loving dolphins did not wish death on anyone. Their task is only to find the enemy, they inform the trainer about their find, and then people get into action.
But how sad it is to learn about such facts. In order for the dolphin to receive food from the trainer, he must poke his nose into his body (it is called the rostrum). And then a syringe with compressed carbon dioxide or a nerve agent was attached to this rostrum, and, keeping the animal hungry, they sent it in search of a “source of food.” One injection with a long needle - and the enemy is defeated.
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Do you want to use the Internet to learn more about the use of dolphins for military purposes? Give it a try. But I think you will get little information: the military knows how to keep its secrets.
It seems to me that it is better to be friends with these animals. Moreover, they, sweet, smiling and kind, are sincerely committed to this.
Text: Igor Chichinov
Elephant vocabulary
The main communication tool of elephants is infrasound, that is, sound waves with a frequency lower than that perceived by the human ear. It was precisely because scientists simply could not hear these “voices” that for a long time it remained unclear how exactly animals communicate. The secret was unraveled by Christian Herbst from the University of Vienna, after conducting a series of experiments on the larynx of a dead elephant. It turned out that to communicate, elephants use approximately the same mechanisms as humans - vibrations of the vocal cords. As a result, signals that range from 1 to 20 hertz are transmitted over a distance of up to two kilometers.
At the same time, elephants have a fairly large “vocabulary”: Herbst’s group managed to record more than 470 different stable signals that they use. It is possible that this mechanism of sound reproduction is widespread among other mammals. In addition to their communication skills, elephants are prone to complex thought processes. This gives hope that learning programs through intellectual experiments will allow for indirect communication and a deeper understanding of the mechanism of their thinking.
First published on Look At Me
Photos: ISPHOTO - stock.adobe.com
Dolphin therapy
Close communication with dolphins helps relieve anxiety and psychological stress, normalizes the emotional background, improves sleep, and relieves muscle hypertonicity.
Dolphin therapy is indicated for children suffering from cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, autism, and mental retardation. Swimming sessions with dolphins help people recover from severe physical and emotional trauma. There are methods for treating patients suffering from sensorineural hearing loss, depression, neuroses, functional disorders of the nervous system, as well as patients with learning and memory problems.
Contraindications to dolphin therapy are cancer, acute infectious diseases and epilepsy.
Source: depositphotos.com
