Chirps Carry Through Water

three dolphins break the surface of the sea in the sunlight

Biological Strategy

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Image: Pablo Heimplatz / Unsplash / Free non-commercial use

Send Sound Signals

Many living systems send auditory signals to communicate with others, including to attract, announce, or warn. These sounds must be audible to the intended recipient in a variety of conditions, such as in wind, water, and solids. As a result, each living system has specific sounds best adapted to its environment. For example, some birds live in loud habitats, like those alongside noisy streams or in windy areas. These birds use sound frequencies that can be heard by other birds over competing environmental noises.

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Mammals

Class Mammalia (“breast”): Bats, cats, whales, horses, humans

Mammals make up less than 1% of all animals on earth, but they include some of the most well-known species. We know first-hand some of the characteristics that make mammals unique, like having hair, being able to sweat, and producing milk through mammary glands. Another critical shared feature is a set of highly-specialized teeth. Unlike sharks or alligators, for example, whose teeth are generally all the same size and shape, mammals have differently shaped teeth in different areas of the jaws to target specific foods or foraging strategies.

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Chirps of dolphins carry through water because they are multi-rate, ultra-short wave forms.

“Dr. Mohsen Kavehrad, director of the Center for Information and Communications Technology Research at Penn State, is using multi-rate, ultra-short laser pulses or wavelets that mimic dolphin chirps to make optical wireless signals that can penetrate fog, clouds, and other adverse weather conditions. The multi-rate feature increases the chances that some of the pulses will get through the obstacle. The new approach could help bring optical bandwidth, capable of carrying huge amounts of information, to applications ranging from wireless communication between air and ground vehicles on the battlefield to short links between college campus buildings to metropolitan area networks that connect all the buildings in a city.” (Courtesy of the Biomimicry Guild)

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