Whale hello there! Did you know that sperm whales not only have a language, but they have an alphabet as well? It’s not exactly like the ABCs you learned in preschool though.

Project CETI (Cetacean Translation Initiative) is a team of scientists, including linguists, that are determined to decode sperm whale communication. It began in the 1960s when the project’s advisor Dr. Payne discovered that whales sing to each other. Nowadays CETI is using machine learning algorithms to reveal the secret phonetic alphabet of sperm whales.

Let’s dive into the details!

Sperm whales use codas (short sequences of clicks) to communicate. CETI found that these codas seem to vary based on the conversation’s context. Whales distinguish these codas using four elements: rhythm, tempo, rubato (gradual modulation of coda duration), and ornamentation (extra clicks at the end of a coda). Through data analysis, CETI proved that both rubato and ornamentation exist as independent features of whale language (paper linked below). CETI’s current research demonstrates that whale language is more intricate than expected, hinting at the possibility that complex language could be found in animals.

CETI aims to investigate whether the four elements are actually encoding the whale’s intent in its language. This would directly contrast the idea of duality of patterning, which is often called the fundamental difference between human and animal language. Duality of patterning describes how all human languages have two structures: combining sounds into words and combining words into meaningful sentences.

Fun fact: For any alien believers, CETI thinks their research could provide a framework for decoding unique communication systems like what we may find in extraterrestrials.

It would be fascinating if complex language existed outside of humans. I think Project CETI is a worth-whale endeavor and I look forward to their future updates.

(This post was definitely not made because I started reading Moby Dick last week.)

Read more:

Sharma, P., Gero, S., Payne, R. et al. Contextual and combinatorial structure in sperm whale vocalisations. Nat Commun 15, 3617 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-47221-8.

Gordon. Rachel. “Exploring the mysterious alphabet of sperm whales.” MIT News. May 7, 2024. Available from: https://news.mit.edu/2024/csail-ceti-explores-sperm-whale-alphabet-0507.

Project CETI. Available from: https://www.projectceti.org/.