How AI can decode oinks, grunts to keep pigs happy

The Manila Times

How AI can decode oinks, grunts to keep pigs happy  European scientists have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm capable of interpreting pig sounds, aiming to create a tool that can help farmers improve animal welfare. The algorithm could potentially alert farmers to negative emotions in pigs, thereby improving their well-being, according to Elodie Mandel-Briefer, a behavioral biologist at University of Copenhagen who is co-leading the study. They found that grunts, oinks, and squeals can reveal whether pigs are experiencing positive or negative emotions  REUTERS VIDEO  Subscribe to The Manila Times Channel - https://tmt.ph/YTSubscribe    Visit our website at https://www.manilatimes.net    Follow us:  Facebook - https://tmt.ph/facebook  Instagram - https://tmt.ph/instagram  Twitter - https://tmt.ph/twitter  DailyMotion - https://tmt.ph/dailymotion    Subscribe to our Digital Edition - https://tmt.ph/digital    Check out our Podcasts:  Spotify - https://tmt.ph/spotify  Apple Podcasts - https://tmt.ph/applepodcasts  Amazon Music - https://tmt.ph/amazonmusic  Deezer: https://tmt.ph/deezer  Tune In: https://tmt.ph/tunein   #TheManilaTimes #tmtnews #artificialintelligence

Transcript

00:00Do these pigs sound happy or sad?

00:06European scientists have developed an artificial intelligence algorithm capable of finding

00:11out.

00:13Their goal is to create a tool that can decode pigs' calls and update farmers on their well-being.

00:19Researchers say once fully developed, it could also be used to label farms and help consumers

00:25make informed choices.

00:29The AI algorithm was developed from thousands of pig recordings taken in different settings.

00:35What noises do they make when they play?

00:37How about when pigs are isolated or in competition for food?

00:41Then we started by combining all the recordings we had.

00:44LOD Mandel-Brieffer is a behavioral biologist at the University of Copenhagen and co-lead

00:50of the study.

00:51So we had this huge database of calls that are produced in specific emotions, specific

00:57contexts by many different pigs and kinds of pigs and ages.

01:02And then we developed AI, so artificial intelligence that could tell us, be trained to tell us

01:09if the calls that we recorded were emotionally positive or negative.

01:14They found that short grunts typically indicate positive emotions, while long grunts often

01:20signal discomfort.

01:23High-frequency sounds like screams or squeals usually mean the pig is stressed.

01:28For instance, when they are in pain, fight or are separated from each other.

01:34The study of animal emotions is a relatively new field.

01:38It recognizes the mental health of livestock as vital to their overall well-being.

01:43Most current animal welfare strategies focus on physical health and use systems that monitor

01:48these aspects for farmers.

01:51Mandel-Brieffer says she began working on the project in 2016.

01:55Now with the explosions of AI methods, it actually becomes more and more easy to do

02:00these things.

02:01We made a lot of progress in our team.

02:03The algorithm demonstrated that pigs kept in outdoor, free-range or organic farms, with

02:09the ability to roam and dig, produced fewer stress calls than conventionally raised pigs.

02:17Mandel-Brieffer says the technology could be developed into an app for farmers to enhance

02:22their animals' welfare.

02:24And the researchers say the information could one day be used by consumers to make informed

02:29choices.

02:30With enough data, Mandel-Brieffer says the method could also potentially be applied to

02:35understand the emotions of other mammals.

02:47For more UN videos visit www.un.org

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