Thank you, Brad. I spoke with a few techno-optimists who point to technological solutions as a way to save the whales. The first solution is to eliminate entanglements with “ropeless” lobster traps, that release the line and the buoy from the bottom only when pinged but by the lobster boat above. It is a technically viable and elegant solution, and has seen a limited trial. But the expense and the time to rollout will likely sink that idea. The second solution is to minimize ship strikes by using AI to monitor whale locations and predict their movement. I don’t see it working now either because of the low resolution of the real-time satellite imagery - we are not continuously monitoring the relevant swatches of the ocean. A third idea is to use AIS beacons attached to whales. That is the technology used by ships to avoid each other. I did not research the efficacy of the idea.
That is all to say, that like you, I am pessimistic.
Excellent article, well researched. There is clearly no easy way for whales to come out ahead in this struggle.
Thank you, Brad. I spoke with a few techno-optimists who point to technological solutions as a way to save the whales. The first solution is to eliminate entanglements with “ropeless” lobster traps, that release the line and the buoy from the bottom only when pinged but by the lobster boat above. It is a technically viable and elegant solution, and has seen a limited trial. But the expense and the time to rollout will likely sink that idea. The second solution is to minimize ship strikes by using AI to monitor whale locations and predict their movement. I don’t see it working now either because of the low resolution of the real-time satellite imagery - we are not continuously monitoring the relevant swatches of the ocean. A third idea is to use AIS beacons attached to whales. That is the technology used by ships to avoid each other. I did not research the efficacy of the idea.
That is all to say, that like you, I am pessimistic.