AUDIO: NEW APP WARNS OF IMPENDING ELEPHANTS
The state of Assam, in northeastern India, has launched a mobile app that warns people of incoming herds of wild elephants. Clashes between humans and elephants have continued to rise in recent years, as herds turn more aggressive as their habitats get downsized to make way for urban development. There have been more that 400 human deaths-by-elephant from 2017 to 2022. The app, named HaatiApp, tracks the movements of wild elephant herds and warns users if they get close to a collision.
* It’s tricky, because elephants don’t use their cellphones much so it’s hard to ping a location on them.
* “They’re calling for elephants today, dear, you’d better take a bag of peanuts.”
* You would think it would be hard not to hear a herd of elephants that was coming close enough for a collision, but they’ve learned to tip-toe.
* We could use that here in the breakroom, to warn of the stampeding sales department on donut day.
CLIP: Our little “There’s an app for that” sounder.
