Generalizing linguistic structures under high attention demands.

We explored whether the generalization of rules based on simple structures depends on attention. Participants were exposed to a stream of artificial words that followed a simple syllabic structure (ABA or AAB), overlaid on a sequence of familiar noises. After passively listening, participants successfully recognized the individual words present in the stream among foils, and they were able to generalize the underlying word structure to new exemplars. Yet, when attention was diverted from the speech stream (by requiring participants to monitor the sequence of noises), recognition of the individual words fell dramatically irrespective of word structure, whereas generalization depended on stimulus structure. For structures based on vowel repetitions across nonadjacent syllables (ABA; Experiment 1), generalization was affected by attention. In contrast, for structures based on adjacent repetitions (AAB; Experiment 2), generalization capacity was unaffected by attention. This pattern of results was replicated under favorable conditions for generalization, such as increased token variability and the implementation of the rule over whole syllables (Experiments 3 and 4). These results suggest a differential effect of attention on rule learning and generalization depending on stimulus structure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The ITU-T Software Tool Library

The advancement of speech coding technology has led to new and improved standards. The Telecommunication Standardization Sector of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU-T) has been a leader in developing speech coding standards for telecommunications applications. To increase the efficiency of the coding standard selection process, a group called User's Group on Software Tools (UGST) was established in 1990 to produce a framework of speech coding-related software tools that would allow a common ground for activities across different organizations. Over the years, this group produced a high-quality software tool library (STL), which has been used in the definition of ITU and non-ITU standards, such as G.723.1, G.729, half-rate and enhanced full-rate GSM, among others. However, despite its usefulness, the ITU-T STL is largely unknown outside the telecommunications standards community. This paper introduces the ITU-T STL concepts and functionalities to the wider communications community.     

Philosophically Based Limitations to Freedom of Speech in Virtual Communities

This paper applies political philosophy to the question of freedom of speech in virtual communities. It takes as its starting point the philosophical justifications given for freedom of speech in (Greenawalt, in Computers, Ethics and Social Values, Prentice-Hall, 1995). For each of these justifications I discuss the types of speech to which they apply, and implications for virtual communities. The justifications imply several limitations to freedom of speech within a well-run virtual community. I give some examples in which the existence of virtual communities can be used to reflect on extant philosophical arguments and practices. By applying the list of steps for thinking about systems given in (Churchman, in The Systems Approach, New York: Dell Publishing Co., Inc., 1968), I obtain a classification framework for thinking about the merits and demerits of a particular speech act, and describe a justification for freedom of speech, missing from Greenawalt's list, that this classification helped me to identify. I give a summary of practical suggestions for administrators of virtual communities. Finally, I discuss why I consider the question of how to regulate speech in virtual communities matters, from a global perspective.     

The talking cure: About language.

This article reviews the panel held at the 20th Annual Spring Meeting, Division of Psychoanalysis (39), American Psychological Association, April 6, 2000, San Francisco. The panelists were Judith Butler and Adrienne Harris, and the moderator was Jeanne Wolf Bernstein. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The minor third communicates sadness in speech, mirroring its use in music.

There is a long history of attempts to explain why music is perceived as expressing emotion. The relationship between pitches serves as an important cue for conveying emotion in music. The musical interval referred to as the minor third is generally thought to convey sadness. We reveal that the minor third also occurs in the pitch contour of speech conveying sadness. Bisyllabic speech samples conveying four emotions were recorded by 9 actresses. Acoustic analyses revealed that the relationship between the 2 salient pitches of the sad speech samples tended to approximate a minor third. Participants rated the speech samples for perceived emotion, and the use of numerous acoustic parameters as cues for emotional identification was modeled using regression analysis. The minor third was the most reliable cue for identifying sadness. Additional participants rated musical intervals for emotion, and their ratings verified the historical association between the musical minor third and sadness. These findings support the theory that human vocal expressions and music share an acoustic code for communicating sadness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of the external regulator’s absence on children’s speech use, manifested self-regulation, and task performance during learning tasks

The present study was conducted to explore the effect of the absence of the external regulators on children’s use of speech (private/social), task performance, and self-regulation during learning tasks. A novel methodology was employed through a computer-based learning environment that proposed three types/units of encouragement with only two sequences of instructional conditions, Verbal-Gesture-Silent (VGS) versus Silent-Gesture-Verbal (SGV). The Knowledge of response (KR) was applied as: verbal KR feedback with verbal encouragement during the verbal unit, visualization-representation of KR without verbal encouragement during the gesture unit, and no KR feedback without any encouragement during the silent unit. Three measurements were used: speech analysis, novel criteria to measure self-regulation and task performance, and a computer-based friendly chat questionnaire to measure children’s satisfaction. Forty preschool children were divided by their teachers between the two conditions equivalently. It was hypothesized that children in the VGS condition were more speech productive, manifested higher self-regulation, task performance, and satisfaction. The results showed significant differential effect on the speech intensity and manifested self-regulation with no significant differential effect on task performance and satisfaction during learning tasks. However, the results were not confirmed Vygotsky’s view as it were supported (neutralizing, at best) to Piaget’s view of self-regulation development.     

嵌入式语音控制选单系统的实现与应用

采用ARM处理器$3C2440A构建嵌入式系统，利用音频芯片UDA1341TS对语音信号进行编解码，应用语音识别技术实现语音控制。介绍了系统设计原理和工作机制，并阐述了控制选单的软硬件设计方案和识别算法原理，给出测试方法。实验结果表明，系统能实现特定指令的语音控制，识别率高、实时性好，可适应复杂的工作环境。     

922E型电动铲运机的研制与使用

系统论述了我国最新研制成功的922E型电动铲运机的主要参数、结构特点、与国内同类型的比较及在矿山的使用情况.     

基于SAPI的双驱双向AGV语音控制系统的设计

为降低企业自动化设备操作的复杂性,提高工业生产效率,设计了一种基于SAPI(The Microsoft Speech API)的双驱双向AGV语音控制系统。以微软的Speech SDK5.1语音包为基础,将语音信息采集和识别,并结合双驱双向AGV底层运动控制函数库,实现了用现场语音控制双驱双向AGV的运动。结果表明,该系统语音模块具有较高识别率,在安静环境下的正确识别率达90%,能够满足双驱双向AGV语音控制的要求,具有广泛的应用前景。     

一种适用于井下通信的自适应滤波器研究

针对煤矿井下严重的环境噪声影响，文章论述了一种受话音频谱控制的自适应动态滤波器。它可以有效地减小井下环境噪声对话音信号的影响，达到改善通信质量，增加通信距离的效果。