Sound natural?

TakaDoes this sentence sound natural to you native speakers?

Some say that dolphins exchange what they think by sound.

communicate (?)

Yes, I would also use 'communicate'. But I've found this:

Her lecture will focus on how dolphins exchange information using postures, touch, specific sounds (including unique whistles) and other behavior. "Dolphin Communications" is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. in the Duke Lecture Hall. It is free and open to the public.

so I thought it might b

Hi guys,

Could you tell me why you, as a native speaker, feel 'exchange' doesn't really fit here?

Here's one small comment.

'Exchange' suggests equivalency, equal value. If Einstein were to discuss relativity with me, we would be communicating but not really exchanging 'equal' thoughts. In the sentence about dolphins, it seems to me the ide

Thanks for the great comment, Clive. Let me ask some more.

If the sentence were:

…they communicate what they think by sound.

instead of:

…they communicate by sound.

how does it sound?

Hi,

At first glance, 'communicate what they think' sounds a bit redundant. On the other hand, it does focus on the idea that conscious thought is being intentionally communicated. That's as opposed to the communication of other things, like emotions and attitudes.

Clive

CliveHi,

At first glance, 'communicate what they think' sounds a bit redundant. On the other hand, it does focus on the idea that conscious thought is being intentionally communicated. That's as opposed to the communication of other things, like emotions and attitudes.

Clive

Even if the subject is 'dolphins', your impression will

Hi,

We quite often don't think of animals as thinking beings. It's a rather philosophical question as to whether they are.

Dolphins certainly are considered to be intelligent, but do you think the lecture will focus on their communication of 'thoughts'? The website doesn't seem to mention that specifically.

Best wishes, Clive

Then how about this one?

Some people believe that dolphins communicate what they see by sound.

Hi,

Sounds a little odd and awkward to me. Presumably dolphin #2 is near dolphin #1, and can thus see the same thing. So why does dolphin #1 need to communicate what it sees?

Clive

I would agree that "exchange what they think" makes assumptions that aren't present in "exchange information".

Thus honeybees exchange information about the location of good food sources by their figure-of-eight (waggle) dances; but we would be assuming something more, if we said that they exchanged "what they think".

MrP