A proposal to use distributional models to analyse dolphin vocalization

This paper gives a brief introduction to the starting points of our coming—pending favourable decisions by research funding agencies—experimental project to study dolphin communicative behaviour using distributional semantics as implemented by us at Gavagai. It presents some of the challenges and conveys some of the optimism we feel is warranted given the rapid increase of available data and of processing power. This is an opportunity both to test the limits of our model and the characteristics of dolphin communication systems! Co-authors are Mats Amundin from Kolmården Wildlife Park, Robert Eklund from Linköping University, Henrik Hållsten, myself, and Lars Molinder of Carnegie, one of our financial advisors, who came up with the original idea. The paper was presented by Mats Amundin at the 1st International Workshop on Vocal Interactivity in-and-between Humans, Animals and Robots.