The use of digital technologies to record non-human sounds (known as Bio- and Eco-Acoustics) has grown exponentially in the past decade. As we listen in remote corners of the Earth to sounds well beyond human hearing range, we discover marvellous things about our non-human kin. In this collection, learn more about the technology that fosters greater stewardship for animals and the environment, from Smartphone apps that track the movements of orca pods in the Salish Sea to acoustic sensors attached to trees in Sri Lanka to prevent illegal logging.
4 Featured Projects
AI App for Salish Orca Conservation
There are few iconic species in British Columbia as popular or as sacred as the Salish Sea Orca. With their numbers dwindling and only an estimated 73 left in the Salish Sea, which extends from the Southern Coast of British Columbia into Washington’s Puget Sound, Big Tech is joining with the Fisheries and Oceans Canada […]
Artificial Intelligence, Biodiversity, Data, Internet of Things, Monitoring, Psychology, Regulation
Pervasive wireless noise sensors (eMotes)
eMotes is a small monitoring device created by five researchers from the University of Newcastle in 2018 that is giving regulators the data needed to better track and clamp down on common sources of urban air pollution. Auditory sensors inside of eMotes measure the decibels of different sources of air pollution and match it to […]
Artificial Intelligence, Lifestyle, Monitoring, Pollution, Regulation
TreeSpirit
Illegal logging is a major issue worldwide, and it is estimated that over 100 million cubic meters of forest are logged illegally each year. This exacerbates not only localized environmental degradation but also contributes a large portion of global carbon emissions (approximately 20%). In 2017, six researchers based in Sri Lanka approached the tricky issue […]
Artificial Intelligence, Illegal Resource Extraction, Monitoring, Regulation
Automated Approach to Ecological Monitoring of Bird Species
In 2012, Researchers at Oregon State university created a new automated approach to ecological monitoring of bird species capable of identifying multiple bird sounds at one time. It is challenging for even the most skilled researchers to identify the species from the call of one bird, let alone several at one time, but this new […]
Artificial Intelligence, Biodiversity, Data, Ecological Monitoring, Internet of Things, Monitoring