Spyke
lemmy.world

Only humans have language. Inter-species communication is nothing special. Rattlesnakes are named for their ability to communicate cross species.

27
Swedneckreply
discuss.tchncs.de

curious how it's always humans saying that they're the only ones who have language..

43
Droechaireply
lemm.ee

it's only humans capable of the sub communication protocol called English that says that

1

Exactly, other languages would use something like "Det är bara människan som utvecklat tal" or "Es ist nur der Mensch, der die Sprache entwickelt hat" depending on language

2
Semjazareply
lemmynsfw.com

They identified nouns and adjectives in prairie dog communication, that also seems to vary with regional dialects. I'll try to remember to dig up a source when I'm not out and about later.

Edit: here's a not fully scientific link, but has names and links for people who want to go deeper in the science while being a decent lay person's overview.

Yes, the blog name isn't very scientific looking (I have not read anything else on it). https://thehumanevolutionblog.com/2015/08/18/a-career-studying-the-sophisticated-vocabulary-of-prairie-dogs/

And here's a peer reviewed study: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0003347205801174

15

Weren't science communicators talking about parts of speech in whale communication last year, too? They're using AI to identify patterns and variations in speech.

Here's a general (though older) overview of whale language: https://www.britannica.com/explore/savingearth/the-language-of-whales

Here's a more recent article taking about using AI to identify patterns in speech: https://scitechdaily.com/ai-decodes-sperm-whale-language-revealing-a-complex-system-of-communication/

4

Okay, I'll bite.

Why isn't it language? And how do you define that a method of communication qualifies to be called a language?

Also, what would you call a method of communication that lies somewhere in between "follow the pheromones" and "modern human comms"?

3
wiareply

What is this strange group on Lemmy that is so anti animal intelligence?

8
na_th_anreply
lemmy.world

A rattlesnake can certainly communicate using sound, but is that language? Bright colors can communicate ideas of "do not eat this" across species as well, but they wouldn't fit my mental model of a language.

6
shneancyreply
lemmy.world

what is language than making sounds to convey meaning and then decoding said sounds to understand their meaning

human language is incredibly complex but a bee just buzzing a particular buzz that means "bear nearby" counts as a valid form of linguistic communication imo

5
kbin.run

Well it makes sense

A slow tempo is... slow. A quick tempo is upbeat and attracts attention

23

Why do we use sound hmmm all over the world when thinking about something? Was there just first proto language that had all these onomatopoeias built in or were they invented independently because they excite neurons in same way, mood regardless of culture?

18
occhionautreply
lemmy.world

Maybe its for a similar reason to why cats purr; vibration make brain feel different in a way that facilitates thought?

source im fuckin g insame

10
Dasusreply
lemmy.world

Sign language is even more universal (early hominids def would've had signs before proper spoken language).

If I hold out my arm, my palm towards you, you'd probably know what I mean.

Like this.

5

My cat follows all my commands. I say "ignore me and do nothing else I say" and he ignores me and continues with his day.

No,but I use similar tempos to call him and he comes.

3

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