Can Your Mouth Become Multilingual?

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Can Your Mouth Become Multilingual?

Posted by Zonk on Sunday October 30, 2005 @10:45AM from the sign-me-up dept.

Roland Piquepaille writes "During a videoconference last week between Karlsruhe, Germany, and Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), Pittsburgh, USA, the talk of Alex Waibel, from CMU, was automatically translated in German and Spanish. Both the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PPG) and the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (PTR) attended the conference, took pictures and were impressed by this new 'open domain' speech-to-speech translation. This new computer technology is based on artificial intelligence (AI) and statistical methods. During the demonstration, the speaker had electrodes attached to his face and his neck, but the researchers think that these electrodes could be implanted into your mouth and your throat in a decade from now -- if you agree of course."

10 of 212 comments (clear)

Absolutely! by DoraLives · 2005-10-30 10:49 · Score: 5, Funny

the researchers think that these electrodes could be implanted into your mouth and your throat in a decade from now
Oh yeah. Please. Right now. Insert the electrodes into me right now. I can't wait!

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Is it fascism yet?
1. Re:Absolutely! by arose · 2005-10-30 11:27 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Careful, sarcasm isn't translated by this system.
  
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  Analogies don't equal equalities, they are merely somewhat analogous.
Privacy issues by wertarbyte · 2005-10-30 11:01 · Score: 4, Funny

So I won't even have to use a phone to get my speech intercepted, The Bad Guys [tm] now can directly wiretap my mouth. Perhaps this can be intercepted by chewing on my tinfoil hat?

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Life is just nature's way of keeping meat fresh.
Re:Nothing to see here... by FlopEJoe · 2005-10-30 11:02 · Score: 5, Funny

Why does he keep saying "My hovercraft is full of eels??"
Re:Nifty but... by lintux · 2005-10-30 11:17 · Score: 4, Funny

Indeed. It still centuries last for computers really the capacity to approach sense construction of the human languages also but slightly of course.
Re:A new form of slander and hate crime violations by JaredOfEuropa · 2005-10-30 11:22 · Score: 5, Funny

Would the CEO now be responsible for committing a hate crime, merely because this device mistranslated what he said, and output racist remarks?
I will not repeat what Babelfish made of your post when it translated it into Dutch, but suffice to say you'll be hearing from my lawyer.

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If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
Re:At last, a babelfish by ScrewMaster · 2005-10-30 11:24 · Score: 3, Funny

I hope they don't use it for diplomatic purposes, though:

U.S. Official discussing a movie: "In that case, I'd have to say that it bombed royally."

Foreign dignitary upon hearing translation: "Look out! He's got a bomb in his case and he's trying to kill the King!"

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The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
yes. by artifex2004 · 2005-10-30 12:29 · Score: 3, Funny

As soon as my girlfriend slips her tongue in my mouth, it becomes multi-tongued and French.

And then I wake up.
Re:How could it translate? by UberDork · 2005-10-30 12:43 · Score: 3, Funny

I just did exactly this (translate from English to German to English).

I now understand how several of my coworkers write their emails.
Are you a terrorist? by DroopyStonx · 2005-10-30 14:50 · Score: 3, Funny

Why would you want to speak something other than American? Are you a terrorist?

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