Mathematics and technology together can achieve infinite advances, even deciphering the animal kingdom. A group of researchers from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) has managed to design an algorithm and artificial intelligence that are capable of interpret the language of spiders and turn it into music.
The key has been found in the cobwebs. The length and tension of each string translates into a specific note. But the process is more complex, the connections between the different filaments and the proteins they contain are also play an important role within the melody.
In order to thoroughly analyze these silk constructions, they have had to scan their creation process. These animals vary its structure, which means that the piece change in turn, as if it had a life of its own. A computer system was in charge of processing the data so that it was possible to explore the cobwebs in 3D and human size.
“It is music that spiders would feel very comfortable with.“
The symphony can be somewhat sinister. The person responsible for this discovery, Professor Markus J. Buehler, assures us that we have to change our perspective when listening to it: “Sound relies heavily on vibrations that the threads would generate. For us it is very strange, but surely it is a music with which the spiders would feel very comfortable “.
The cobweb, a house with many rooms
One of the great advances of this research has been to be able to better understand the distribution of cobwebs. Within it there are different areas, such as if it were a building with many rooms.
“They create and adapt the web to their needs. Just like we have the kitchen or the children’s room, they have a hunting area, another where they store the eggs …each dedicated to a specific task“, explica Buehler.
By identifying what they are building at each moment, they can establish patterns of behavior and predict what they are going to do.
In the project, MIT researchers Isabelle Su, Ian Hattwick, Christine Southworth, Evan Ziporyn and Markus J. Buehler have needed the collaboration of Ally Bisshop, Roland Mühlethaler and Tomas Saraceno, experts in art and architecture.
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Next challenge: talk to spiders
The purpose of the team is to try to send them messages using the vibrations of their threads. “With artificial intelligence, we are going to put these sounds on them to see if we can make them do certain things. We hope it helps us communicate with the spiders. Maybe we can have a chat or maybe have a coffee with them,” he jokes.
A very ambitious challenge and one that many experts see unlikely. However, they will continue to investigate your communication system. There is a lot of work ahead. There are about 47,000 species and each one has its own codes when it comes to expressing itself. Little by little they will try to find more keys to untangle this curious arachnid language.
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