Why didn't the Universal Translator speak whale?How did Kirk get the whales out?Is the universal translator an implant?How does the Universal Translator handle measurement units?Can universal translator be used to communicate with animals?Why did the Universal Translator fail to decipher Gorn?Does the Universal Translator also translate controls and control panels?The ultimate fate and influence of the HMS BountyWhat creature or object is represented during the time travel sequence in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home?

How to prove (A v B), (A → C), (B → D) therefore (C v D)

Does SQL Server's serializable isolation level lock entire table

Did Joe Biden "stop the prosecution" of his son in Ukraine? And did he brag about stopping the prosecution?

Thunderstorms but with Fire!

An example of a "regular poset" which does not belong to a convex polytope

Is "Ram married his daughter" ambiguous?

How to accompany with piano in latin music when given only chords?

Non-electric Laser

The answer is the same (tricky puzzle!)

Can I pay off my mortgage with a new one?

Search for something difficult to count/estimate

Injection from two strings to one string

Proof of bound on optimal TSP tour length in rectangular region

How does Donald Trump manage to remain so popular over a rather long period of time?

Can I voluntarily exit from the US after a 20 year overstay, or could I be detained at the airport?

Bash-script as linux-service won't run, but executed from terminal works perfectly

How to calculate Limit of this sequence

Where does the image of a data connector as a sharp metal spike originate from?

Maintaining distance

How much Money Should I save in Order to Generate $1000/Month for the rest of my life?

I've been fired, was allowed to announce it as if I quit and given extra notice, how to handle the questions?

Dotted footnote rule

Unicode-math and declaring symbol font

Using 4K Skyrim Textures when running 1920 x 1080 display resolution?



Why didn't the Universal Translator speak whale?


How did Kirk get the whales out?Is the universal translator an implant?How does the Universal Translator handle measurement units?Can universal translator be used to communicate with animals?Why did the Universal Translator fail to decipher Gorn?Does the Universal Translator also translate controls and control panels?The ultimate fate and influence of the HMS BountyWhat creature or object is represented during the time travel sequence in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home?






.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__bot-mid-leaderboard:empty
margin-bottom:0;









4















Klingon bird-of-prey HMS Bounty had to literally travel back to the 20th century to find humpback whales so they could speak to the alien probe threatening to destroy earth, which happened to speak whale.



The universal translator already speaks to the bottlenose dolphin crewmembers - albeit that was 80 years later - but it can't speak or understand whale?



Humpback whalesongs have been widely recorded even in the 20th century before they went extinct. It seems at least some rudimentary library of whale language should have existed as a reference.



Why did the universal translator fail to allow dialogue with the alien probe?










share|improve this question



















  • 1





    I had thought the problem was not that they couldn’t talk to the probe, but that the probe was there to confirm that the whales were still ok.

    – Todd Wilcox
    5 hours ago

















4















Klingon bird-of-prey HMS Bounty had to literally travel back to the 20th century to find humpback whales so they could speak to the alien probe threatening to destroy earth, which happened to speak whale.



The universal translator already speaks to the bottlenose dolphin crewmembers - albeit that was 80 years later - but it can't speak or understand whale?



Humpback whalesongs have been widely recorded even in the 20th century before they went extinct. It seems at least some rudimentary library of whale language should have existed as a reference.



Why did the universal translator fail to allow dialogue with the alien probe?










share|improve this question



















  • 1





    I had thought the problem was not that they couldn’t talk to the probe, but that the probe was there to confirm that the whales were still ok.

    – Todd Wilcox
    5 hours ago













4












4








4








Klingon bird-of-prey HMS Bounty had to literally travel back to the 20th century to find humpback whales so they could speak to the alien probe threatening to destroy earth, which happened to speak whale.



The universal translator already speaks to the bottlenose dolphin crewmembers - albeit that was 80 years later - but it can't speak or understand whale?



Humpback whalesongs have been widely recorded even in the 20th century before they went extinct. It seems at least some rudimentary library of whale language should have existed as a reference.



Why did the universal translator fail to allow dialogue with the alien probe?










share|improve this question














Klingon bird-of-prey HMS Bounty had to literally travel back to the 20th century to find humpback whales so they could speak to the alien probe threatening to destroy earth, which happened to speak whale.



The universal translator already speaks to the bottlenose dolphin crewmembers - albeit that was 80 years later - but it can't speak or understand whale?



Humpback whalesongs have been widely recorded even in the 20th century before they went extinct. It seems at least some rudimentary library of whale language should have existed as a reference.



Why did the universal translator fail to allow dialogue with the alien probe?







star-trek star-trek-movies






share|improve this question













share|improve this question











share|improve this question




share|improve this question










asked 9 hours ago









Vogon PoetVogon Poet

6772 silver badges18 bronze badges




6772 silver badges18 bronze badges










  • 1





    I had thought the problem was not that they couldn’t talk to the probe, but that the probe was there to confirm that the whales were still ok.

    – Todd Wilcox
    5 hours ago












  • 1





    I had thought the problem was not that they couldn’t talk to the probe, but that the probe was there to confirm that the whales were still ok.

    – Todd Wilcox
    5 hours ago







1




1





I had thought the problem was not that they couldn’t talk to the probe, but that the probe was there to confirm that the whales were still ok.

– Todd Wilcox
5 hours ago





I had thought the problem was not that they couldn’t talk to the probe, but that the probe was there to confirm that the whales were still ok.

– Todd Wilcox
5 hours ago










1 Answer
1






active

oldest

votes


















6
















According to the film's official novelisation, the information coming from the probe "overloaded" the Universal Translator, rendering it incapable of working.




The transmission's cacophony filled the bridge. "The universal translator-" Chitirih-Ra-Dreii said. He abruptly cursed again, using an epithet far up the hierarchy of Deltan curses. Deltans did not even bother with minor curses. "Overloaded, captain. Useless."




and




A blast of sound overwhelmed them with its eerie strangeness. "Nothing we have can translate it," Uhura said. ''Neither the Bounty's original computer nor our universal translator."




After realising that it was using whalesong, they briefly considered playing it recordings, but decided against it, given that the probe might respond negatively rather than positively.




"Spock, couldn't we simulate the humpback's answer to this call?"
 
"We could replay the sounds, but not the language. We would be responding at best in rote phrases, at worst in gibberish."




For the record, they were right. Had they done so, the probe would have destroyed every living thing on Earth.






share|improve this answer


























    Your Answer








    StackExchange.ready(function()
    var channelOptions =
    tags: "".split(" "),
    id: "186"
    ;
    initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);

    StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function()
    // Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
    if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled)
    StackExchange.using("snippets", function()
    createEditor();
    );

    else
    createEditor();

    );

    function createEditor()
    StackExchange.prepareEditor(
    heartbeatType: 'answer',
    autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
    convertImagesToLinks: false,
    noModals: true,
    showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
    reputationToPostImages: null,
    bindNavPrevention: true,
    postfix: "",
    imageUploader:
    brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
    contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/"u003ecc by-sa 4.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
    allowUrls: true
    ,
    noCode: true, onDemand: true,
    discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
    ,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
    );



    );














    draft saved

    draft discarded
















    StackExchange.ready(
    function ()
    StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fscifi.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f220774%2fwhy-didnt-the-universal-translator-speak-whale%23new-answer', 'question_page');

    );

    Post as a guest















    Required, but never shown

























    1 Answer
    1






    active

    oldest

    votes








    1 Answer
    1






    active

    oldest

    votes









    active

    oldest

    votes






    active

    oldest

    votes









    6
















    According to the film's official novelisation, the information coming from the probe "overloaded" the Universal Translator, rendering it incapable of working.




    The transmission's cacophony filled the bridge. "The universal translator-" Chitirih-Ra-Dreii said. He abruptly cursed again, using an epithet far up the hierarchy of Deltan curses. Deltans did not even bother with minor curses. "Overloaded, captain. Useless."




    and




    A blast of sound overwhelmed them with its eerie strangeness. "Nothing we have can translate it," Uhura said. ''Neither the Bounty's original computer nor our universal translator."




    After realising that it was using whalesong, they briefly considered playing it recordings, but decided against it, given that the probe might respond negatively rather than positively.




    "Spock, couldn't we simulate the humpback's answer to this call?"
     
    "We could replay the sounds, but not the language. We would be responding at best in rote phrases, at worst in gibberish."




    For the record, they were right. Had they done so, the probe would have destroyed every living thing on Earth.






    share|improve this answer





























      6
















      According to the film's official novelisation, the information coming from the probe "overloaded" the Universal Translator, rendering it incapable of working.




      The transmission's cacophony filled the bridge. "The universal translator-" Chitirih-Ra-Dreii said. He abruptly cursed again, using an epithet far up the hierarchy of Deltan curses. Deltans did not even bother with minor curses. "Overloaded, captain. Useless."




      and




      A blast of sound overwhelmed them with its eerie strangeness. "Nothing we have can translate it," Uhura said. ''Neither the Bounty's original computer nor our universal translator."




      After realising that it was using whalesong, they briefly considered playing it recordings, but decided against it, given that the probe might respond negatively rather than positively.




      "Spock, couldn't we simulate the humpback's answer to this call?"
       
      "We could replay the sounds, but not the language. We would be responding at best in rote phrases, at worst in gibberish."




      For the record, they were right. Had they done so, the probe would have destroyed every living thing on Earth.






      share|improve this answer



























        6














        6










        6









        According to the film's official novelisation, the information coming from the probe "overloaded" the Universal Translator, rendering it incapable of working.




        The transmission's cacophony filled the bridge. "The universal translator-" Chitirih-Ra-Dreii said. He abruptly cursed again, using an epithet far up the hierarchy of Deltan curses. Deltans did not even bother with minor curses. "Overloaded, captain. Useless."




        and




        A blast of sound overwhelmed them with its eerie strangeness. "Nothing we have can translate it," Uhura said. ''Neither the Bounty's original computer nor our universal translator."




        After realising that it was using whalesong, they briefly considered playing it recordings, but decided against it, given that the probe might respond negatively rather than positively.




        "Spock, couldn't we simulate the humpback's answer to this call?"
         
        "We could replay the sounds, but not the language. We would be responding at best in rote phrases, at worst in gibberish."




        For the record, they were right. Had they done so, the probe would have destroyed every living thing on Earth.






        share|improve this answer













        According to the film's official novelisation, the information coming from the probe "overloaded" the Universal Translator, rendering it incapable of working.




        The transmission's cacophony filled the bridge. "The universal translator-" Chitirih-Ra-Dreii said. He abruptly cursed again, using an epithet far up the hierarchy of Deltan curses. Deltans did not even bother with minor curses. "Overloaded, captain. Useless."




        and




        A blast of sound overwhelmed them with its eerie strangeness. "Nothing we have can translate it," Uhura said. ''Neither the Bounty's original computer nor our universal translator."




        After realising that it was using whalesong, they briefly considered playing it recordings, but decided against it, given that the probe might respond negatively rather than positively.




        "Spock, couldn't we simulate the humpback's answer to this call?"
         
        "We could replay the sounds, but not the language. We would be responding at best in rote phrases, at worst in gibberish."




        For the record, they were right. Had they done so, the probe would have destroyed every living thing on Earth.







        share|improve this answer












        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer










        answered 8 hours ago









        ValorumValorum

        446k123 gold badges3277 silver badges3449 bronze badges




        446k123 gold badges3277 silver badges3449 bronze badges































            draft saved

            draft discarded















































            Thanks for contributing an answer to Science Fiction & Fantasy Stack Exchange!


            • Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!

            But avoid


            • Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.

            • Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.

            To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.




            draft saved


            draft discarded














            StackExchange.ready(
            function ()
            StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fscifi.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f220774%2fwhy-didnt-the-universal-translator-speak-whale%23new-answer', 'question_page');

            );

            Post as a guest















            Required, but never shown





















































            Required, but never shown














            Required, but never shown












            Required, but never shown







            Required, but never shown

































            Required, but never shown














            Required, but never shown












            Required, but never shown







            Required, but never shown







            Popular posts from this blog

            Invision Community Contents History See also References External links Navigation menuProprietaryinvisioncommunity.comIPS Community ForumsIPS Community Forumsthis blog entry"License Changes, IP.Board 3.4, and the Future""Interview -- Matt Mecham of Ibforums""CEO Invision Power Board, Matt Mecham Is a Liar, Thief!"IPB License Explanation 1.3, 1.3.1, 2.0, and 2.1ArchivedSecurity Fixes, Updates And Enhancements For IPB 1.3.1Archived"New Demo Accounts - Invision Power Services"the original"New Default Skin"the original"Invision Power Board 3.0.0 and Applications Released"the original"Archived copy"the original"Perpetual licenses being done away with""Release Notes - Invision Power Services""Introducing: IPS Community Suite 4!"Invision Community Release Notes

            Canceling a color specificationRandomly assigning color to Graphics3D objects?Default color for Filling in Mathematica 9Coloring specific elements of sets with a prime modified order in an array plotHow to pick a color differing significantly from the colors already in a given color list?Detection of the text colorColor numbers based on their valueCan color schemes for use with ColorData include opacity specification?My dynamic color schemes

            Ласкавець круглолистий Зміст Опис | Поширення | Галерея | Примітки | Посилання | Навігаційне меню58171138361-22960890446Bupleurum rotundifoliumEuro+Med PlantbasePlants of the World Online — Kew ScienceGermplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN)Ласкавецькн. VI : Літери Ком — Левиправивши або дописавши її