Scientists Reveal That Dolphins Speak In A Holographic Language

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Scientists reveal that dolphins speak in a mysterious holographic language that humans can understand

New scientific research suggests that dolphins speak to each other using a type of holographic language that may be understood by humans. 

Scientists in Miami and the UK announced that they have successfully created the first 3-D images using the data taken from recordings of dolphin echolocation.

Rawstory.com reports:

“Our recent success has left us all speechless,” said research team leader Jack Kassewitz, of SpeakDolphin.com. “We now think it is safe to speculate that dolphins may employ a ‘sono-pictorial’ form of language, a language of pictures that they share with each other. If that proves to be true, an exciting future lies ahead for interspecies communications.”

Scientists made the prints using a complicated process of recording and then isolating the high-pitched clicks dolphins make to estimate distances and visualize objects underwater.

CymaScope image shows how a dolphin saw a submerged man, with a computer-enhanced image at right

One of the scientists, Jim McDonough, submerged himself in front of the female dolphin “Amaya” in a pool at the Dolphin Discovery Center in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico.

He exhaled all the air from his lungs to overcome his natural buoyancy and to avoid bubbles from a breathing apparatus, and the dolphin directed her echolocation at McDonough.

Other researchers then used high-specification audio equipment to record the dolphin’s signal, and they sent those recordings to the CymaScope laboratory in the United Kingdom.

Acoustic physics researcher John Stuart Reid first made two-dimensional images from these recordings and then used photo analysis to extract data and three-dimensionally imprint the signal onto a water membrane.

The process revealed dolphins relay “quasi-holographic properties of sound” as their echolocation reacts with water, Reid said.

“When a dolphin scans an object with its high frequency sound beam, each short click captures a still image, similar to a camera taking photographs,” Reid said. “Each dolphin click is a pulse of pure sound that becomes modulated by the shape of the object.”

Kassewitz said the CymaScope test represented a breakthrough in a decade-long effort to better understand how dolphins communicate.

“When we discovered that dolphins not exposed to the echolocation experiment could identify objects from recorded dolphin sounds with 92 percent accuracy, we began to look for a way for to see what was in those sounds,” Kassewitz said.

He said the test also revealed that dolphins can see surface features, such as the weight belt McDonough wore during the experiment.

Researchers suspect that dolphin echolocation signals could result in more detailed and clear mental images than they previously believed.

“Seeing the 3-D print of a human being left us all speechless,” Kassewitz said. “For the first time ever, we may be holding in our hands a glimpse into what cetaceans see with sound. Nearly every experiment is bringing us more images with more detail.”
The researchers plan to publish their findings in an upcoming paper, and a television documentary is also being developed by award-winning filmmaker Michael Watchulonis and David Albareda of Devised TV.

28 Comments

  1. This is a mis-titled article. I thought I’d read about dolphins communicating with each other in pictures. The closest the article came to that was mentioning that recorded echolocation sounds could be understood to some extent by dolphins, which isn’t the same thing as a language–a close analogy would be recognizing a picture taken by a camera.

    A scientist SPECULATING that dolphins MAY speak in a “holographic language” does not equal a scientist “revealing” that dolphins DO speak that way.

    But yes, echolocation detects objects using soundwaves–was that a mystery at this point? 😐

  2. This is a mis-titled article. I thought I’d read about dolphins communicating with each other in pictures. The closest the article came to that was mentioning that recorded echolocation sounds could be understood to some extent by dolphins, which isn’t the same thing as a language–a close analogy would be recognizing a picture taken by a camera.

    A scientist SPECULATING that dolphins MAY speak in a “holographic language” does not equal a scientist “revealing” that dolphins DO speak that way.

    But yes, echolocation detects objects using soundwaves–was that a mystery at this point? 😐

  3. We might not really want to hear what dolphins (or any other species, for that matter) have to say about humans

  4. We might not really want to hear what dolphins (or any other species, for that matter) have to say about humans

  5. Once again, the term “holographic” totally misused. There is nothing holographic about any of this. 3D is NOT the same as holographic.

  6. Once again, the term “holographic” totally misused. There is nothing holographic about any of this. 3D is NOT the same as holographic.

  7. THIS STORY IS CLICK BAIT. They mean ACOUSTIC. A scientist SPECULATING that dolphins MAY speak in a “holographic language” is ridiculous. Holography means light interference and has nothing to do with sound.

  8. THIS STORY IS CLICK BAIT. They mean ACOUSTIC. A scientist SPECULATING that dolphins MAY speak in a “holographic language” is ridiculous. Holography means light interference and has nothing to do with sound.

  9. The dolphins were all saying, “Ugly bags of mostly water kill what they do not understand. Danger!”

    • Theere must be an audio signal still not demodulated on those pulses they produce, so they probably “send” video on phrases… and with subtitles obviously, the females do the last !

  10. The dolphins were all saying, “Ugly bags of mostly water kill what they do not understand. Danger!”

    • Theere must be an audio signal still not demodulated on those pulses they produce, so they probably “send” video on phrases… and with subtitles obviously, the females do the last !

  11. I agree not holographic! I can relate to the story as a synesthete, my senses are interwoven with extra wiring i.e. i can hear with my eyes & see with my ears & so on, everything has a signature sound, wave, vibration & it builds a picture on the screen of the mind that helps to identify objects, through sound or smell/feel/ect. There was a guy in the states who is blind & by making clicking sounds he can identify doorways, stairs, walls ect, he has no need for a cane at school. Now how to turn this into a communication, i’m sure this blind boy ‘could’ communicate with Dolphins.

  12. I agree not holographic! I can relate to the story as a synesthete, my senses are interwoven with extra wiring i.e. i can hear with my eyes & see with my ears & so on, everything has a signature sound, wave, vibration & it builds a picture on the screen of the mind that helps to identify objects, through sound or smell/feel/ect. There was a guy in the states who is blind & by making clicking sounds he can identify doorways, stairs, walls ect, he has no need for a cane at school. Now how to turn this into a communication, i’m sure this blind boy ‘could’ communicate with Dolphins.

  13. I would like to see them study the effects of dolphins being held against their will in captivity–where Kassewitz keeps them. However, no studies are needed to measure the cruelty of keeping these intelligent animals in concrete tanks for profit. Anyone with an ounce of compassion knows it is morally wrong. And
    THAT is what Discovery Discovery Centers are all about–profit from cruelty.
    And now this pseudo research???

  14. I would like to see them study the effects of dolphins being held against their will in captivity–where Kassewitz keeps them. However, no studies are needed to measure the cruelty of keeping these intelligent animals in concrete tanks for profit. Anyone with an ounce of compassion knows it is morally wrong. And
    THAT is what Discovery Discovery Centers are all about–profit from cruelty.
    And now this pseudo research???

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