We would need 1000x faster, so that doesn’t really change anything.
timschmidt 3 hours ago [-]
Evolution of small things like algae and the krill which feed on it and feed the whale is quite fast. Single celled organisms reproduce on the scale of 20 minutes and hold immense amounts of genetic diversity in their populations to facilitate the success of a better adapted line almost immediately. Additionally, they are adept at horizontal gene transfer from other well-adapted organisms.
kulahan 2 hours ago [-]
This would be great news if the whale literally only required krill to survive, but complex megafauna have complex needs, so the ability of krill and other small creatures to evolve is largely irrelevant in a discussion regarding the ability of megafauna to survive. This is especially true if you read TFA and see that the whales already adapt to eat different things as necessary.
timschmidt 2 hours ago [-]
Humpbacks have a highly specialized feeding mechanism. They only prey on krill and small fish.
The food chain really is sun -> algae -> krill (and sometimes small fish) -> humpback whale
thrance 3 hours ago [-]
Sure, in a few million years.
wahnfrieden 3 hours ago [-]
It’s game over for a very long time
napierzaza 3 hours ago [-]
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swframe2 7 hours ago [-]
I hope we create whalegemma (similar to dolphingemma) so we can explain to them how to co-exist better with humans (e.g. avoid this area during their whale hunting season, travel to this area if you get sick or tangled in rope).
AlecSchueler 2 hours ago [-]
It's just a pity we couldn't figure out how to better coexist with whales.
zyxin 5 hours ago [-]
There is a group that is attempting to communicate with whales by training a transformer based model on whale sounds.
No it isn't and that clickbait article doesn't say it is.
tclancy 6 hours ago [-]
It’s going to be prog rock, isn’t it?
_joel 3 minutes ago [-]
The water goes all the way up to 11
parpfish 6 hours ago [-]
no, i think they're just going to start a podcast.
tclancy 6 hours ago [-]
Yes officer, this one right here.
3 hours ago [-]
The_Blade 2 hours ago [-]
Migaloo is joining Humphrey the Whale's team in SF forming a super team
astrocat 7 hours ago [-]
holy units batman
> Bursting from their enormous lungs at over 300mph (483km/h), a humpback whale's blow can rise up to 7m (23ft) into the air.
Pick a lane BBC.
But this is great news. Also the fact that whales "transport huge amounts of nutrients across the globe" (linking to [1]) is fascinating. The role of whales in sucking up critters in one place and pooping them out elsewhere being a fundamental dynamic that drives global ocean ecosystems... just chefs kiss
It's not just the BBC, it's the UK as a whole. Miles per hour or deeply entrenched for speeds but for measurements we use meters. The same for weight, we weigh people in stone but we weigh everything else with grams.
tom_ 5 hours ago [-]
I think the BBC policy is to provide every measurement in both types of unit.
gamerslexus 5 hours ago [-]
Ordering is inconsistent.
CarVac 5 hours ago [-]
They use MPH in the UK.
aaronbrethorst 5 hours ago [-]
Their hours are pegged to the hogshead, and are about 3 seconds shorter than American hours.
The_Blade 2 hours ago [-]
The metric system is the tool of the Devil! My Tesla gets 40 rods to the hogshead and that's the way I likes it!
lostlogin 3 hours ago [-]
The US use of units is worse than the UK.
Said from a proudly metric country, New Zealand, where everyone knows their weight in kilograms and height in feet and inches.
redsocksfan45 7 minutes ago [-]
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cyberax 3 hours ago [-]
Apparently they also measurably affect the vertical water mixing. Fish need dissolved oxygen to breathe, so they don't normally venture past the thermocline. And their fins are also vertical, so they don't cause a lot of vertical water movement.
But whales routinely dive deep, and their tail fin is _horizontal_ and it creates powerful updrafts.
Another organism that affects mixing is apparently jellyfish.
5 hours ago [-]
5 hours ago [-]
kunley 2 hours ago [-]
They are going to save us from that XXIII century probe, right
dotspec 5 hours ago [-]
It's the Entmoot of the sea.
shevy-java 1 hours ago [-]
They may gather up for a protest. See the whale north of Germany who seems unable to swim away.
The food chain really is sun -> algae -> krill (and sometimes small fish) -> humpback whale
https://www.projectceti.org/
> Bursting from their enormous lungs at over 300mph (483km/h), a humpback whale's blow can rise up to 7m (23ft) into the air.
Pick a lane BBC.
But this is great news. Also the fact that whales "transport huge amounts of nutrients across the globe" (linking to [1]) is fascinating. The role of whales in sucking up critters in one place and pooping them out elsewhere being a fundamental dynamic that drives global ocean ecosystems... just chefs kiss
[1] https://www.nature.com/research-intelligence/nri-topic-summa...)
Said from a proudly metric country, New Zealand, where everyone knows their weight in kilograms and height in feet and inches.
But whales routinely dive deep, and their tail fin is _horizontal_ and it creates powerful updrafts.
Another organism that affects mixing is apparently jellyfish.