Poetic Genius?
Ok, I don't really want to keep stringing you on re. the previous post (especially as no one seems to be very interested) so, I'll tell you what's going on.
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A few years ago I bought one of those speech-recognition-software programs. Unfortunately, despite giving it some voice training, it never seemed to understand my muttering very well. In fact, it was almost impossible, sometimes, to see the relationship between what I said and what appeared on screen. Then, in a moment of inspiration, it occured to me the other week that this random element might bring some amusement to my blog.
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So, I thought I'd give you a challenge. To be fair, I think it was incredibly difficult but maybe some of you got it and were too modest to say. The verse was the first of John's gospel. That, in itself, wouldn't be all that difficult except that I dictated it in Greek while the software was expecting English. Maybe those of you familiar with the Greek of John 1:1 will recognise some of the sounds, if not the words.
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Perhaps, next time I compile a crossword, I'll devise devious cryptic clues and then get someone to translate and read them in Finnish through the filter of Via Voice. That would be a tough one wouldn't it!
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Apart from John 1:1, I read the words of a couple of songs and a well known nursery ryhme (in English) into it too, to see what would happen. Below I have pasted the nursery rhyme - which I read several times with different accents to see what would happen - I think you'll recognise it fairly quickly. Bizarrely enough, some of the phrases that come out sound quite poetic. [I wouldn't be surprised if Thom Yorke (of Radiohead) is sat at a computer somewhere right now saying, 'pot noodle, Dairylea slices, mini cheddars, spam, alphabetti spaghetti, cup-a-soup, kimchi...' And on the screen it says, 'Shot a poodle, despairing suicide, clam all sweaty span yeti, karma-group becoming itchy...]
And did up the gangway wall
Her Auntie Dante had agreed Paul
Walking sources are not all Kingswear
And parties together again
Hunted 20 of the report
Wanted Conti other grateful
Walking sources of Larkin's men
Conquer a haunted together again
Didn't hear the Greek War all
Didn't hear the greed for
The walking sources will Kinsman
Couple wanted you very hen
Wanted to and hear the crowd all
Korma wanted to empty the great fall,
Or looking sources Hawking's then
Until quantity of Odeon.
Wanted on to higher rate floor
Calmer hearted Auntie has a rate far
Ham or markings harshest part expense
Cumber Humpty together a gap.
Didn't you decretal
And didn't he decreed for
All the king's horses and all the kings may
Curzon for to Humpty together trickier
3 Comments:
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Oh the disappointment of looking to see someone's comment and finding spam!
Well done mate, you're right, it is Humpty Dumpty!
You're also right to say that the software doesn't perform its function very well. Though it might be said that I mumble a bit and even a human scribe would make mistakes. Even if the software produced a perfect copy of my dictation it probably wouldn't be very useful, my speech is full of um's and ah's and aborted sounds that get in the way.
It's a sad fact that in our society we find ways to spend money on things that we don't need under the illusion that they will, in some way, enhance our lives.
The only defence I can give for this software is that it has brought moments of hilarity through its misunderstanding.
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