Kestrell

Kesteell in hospital

2024-02-10T21:32:19Z

...and has been for a week now. This is Alexx, writing on her behalf. More details and updates can be found on my Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alexx.kay/

comments

Free access to the latest issue of Gothic Studies: Gothic and Comics

2024-01-06T15:06:27Z

Edinburgh University Press is running a Literary Studies free access campaign throughout January. The free access campaign includes 25 literary studies journals - browse them all here: https://www.euppublishing.com/literarystudies

Of note to comics fans is the latest issue of Gothic Studies:

Gothic Studies: Vol 25, No 3
Gothic and Comics
https://www.euppublishing.com/toc/gothic/current

comments

Need some period music for your next Edwardian tea party?or just love old music?

2024-01-02T14:25:35Z

You should definitely give "The Beautiful Old" a listen.

Just when I begin to think I may have a grasp on Richard Thompson's eclectic discography (and I do have his
"Bones of All Men" album,
https://mainlynorfolk.info/richard.thompson/records/thebonesofallmen.html
I discover another album which I have never even heard of. I recently stumbled across this album while reading about Dave Davies (yes, Dave Davies of the Kinks), who also performs on this album.

The entire project is jaw-droppingly fantastic, not only in its sheer beauty and level of musical mastery but, most of all, in the fact that it exists at all.

You can hear clips from some of the songs in this
Youtube trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJfsDdLSYQ4

One of my favorite songs is "Long Time Ago," sung by Jimmy LaFave
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZGiSjRvSlI

This song reminds me of "I Wandered by a Brookside," recorded here by Fairport Convention
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6D2nLQ1aog
which is based on a poem by one of my very favorite dead guys, Richard Monckton Milnes, 1st Baron Houghton (1809-1885)].
https://mainlynorfolk.info/folk/songs/iwanderedbythebrookside.html

Here is an extensive review of the album that includes a brief history of the project.

Various Artists: The Beautiful Old
By
Nathan Huffstutter
June 25, 2013 | 3:56pm
Posted at
https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/various-artists/various-artists-the-beautiful-old

Various Artists: The Beautiful Old

Born aloft by vigorous performances from Garth Hudson, Richard Thompson, Kimmie Rhodes and Dave Davies, The Beautiful Old is one of those grand ideas that truly had no business getting off the ground. Recruiting a scattered cast to record faithful, front parlor versions of songs from the sheet-music era?
Yeah (condescending pause), good luck. Yet in defiance of logic, cynicism and geography, The Beautiful Old succeeds not only as a damn fine collection of music, but also stands as an enduring testament to overcoming the improbable.

The first barriers of skepticism are no minor obstacle. Scan the list of 100-200-year-old titles—ranging from familiar standards like “After The Ball”
(1892) and “The Band Played On” (1895) to melodies last hummed during the Taft administration—and you’ll likely suppress a yawn, expecting a dusty snooze through sepia-toned, preservation-society pieces. Even more cringe-worthy, the collection has the latent potential for pure novelty kitsch. With guest vocalists varying from young Irish folk singer Heidi Talbot to Austin lifer Will Sexton to acoustic blues traveler Eric Bibb, it’s easy to envision quaint old tunes covered as an array of Pier 1 knockoffs.

Remarkably, The Beautiful Old coheres into something neither dull nor precious, assembling a melting pot of players who downplay their individual country, jazz, blues and bluegrass influences while never sacrificing an ounce of personality. Instead, emphasizing period-appropriate rhythms and instrumentation, the performers pinpoint the heartbreak, lust, loss and flirtatious play loaded within the original compositions. These songs were never meant to age as museum pieces; they were written to touch and to entertain (and to move hundreds of thousands of copies of sheet music).

Across the collection’s 19 tracks, the artists tap into that stirring emotion and populist appeal. Kimmie Rhodes enfolds “A Perfect Day” (1910) with the
soothing lullaby sadness that cuts across generations of exhausted mothers; Dave Davies croons “After The Ball” in an Old Country croak that waltzes from Fool to Lear at the turn of a phrase; Jimmy LaFave, Floyd Domino and Richard Bowden bring nearly 200 years of barnstorming craftsmanship to “Long Time Ago” (1839), using voice, piano and violin to stretch the wistful ballad back and forth across the centuries.
( continued below cut )

comments

Elon Musk should not be allowed to develop brain-computer implants

2023-12-24T14:39:34Z

Why, in the name of all that is holy or unholy, would anyone consider allowing a man with his consistent record of both technological disaster and complete failure of ethics to have *anything* to do with brain-computer implants??

People should be looking at the history of vision implants: not only have blind people died of inflammation and infection during the experimental stage, but at least one company, which has blind people who had the implants installed and were using them in their everyday lives, just suddenly discontinued "supporting" that product, without notifying the users, who suddenly woke up one morning and had returned to being completely blind.

Worht repeating: most of these implants are penetrative implants, which means they are implanted deppin the brain, *beneath* the dura, which is the protective covering of the brain. The dura is there because it is really dangerous for things to be lodged in the brain, an occurrence which we normally work hard to avoid. In part, as with blind people and visual implants, I believe a lot of this risk is minimized because the lives of paralyzed people are so devalued, that participating int these highly risky experiments are considered "better than nothing." Is there a term for how certain groups of people are encouraged to take larger risks because they are considered more expendable than the mainstream group?

I used to think it was kind of gross that DARPA was funding most of this research although, both as a disability and technology scholar and as a MIT alum, I also need to acknowledge how much DARPA has contributed to the development of modern prosthetics. Perhaps it's just a matter of the Devil you know.

The Race to Put Brain Implants in People Is Heating Up
BY EMILY MULLIN
SCIENCE
DEC 23, 2023 7:00 AM
URL
https://www.wired.com/story/the-race-to-put-brain-implants-in-people-is-heating-up/

Thanks in part to Elon Musk, the field of brain-computer interfaces has captured both public and investor interest, with a cadre of companies now developing implantable devices.

In September, Elon Musk’s brain-implant company Neuralink announced the much-anticipated news that it would
start recruiting volunteers for a clinical trial
https://www.wired.com/story/everything-we-know-about-neuralinks-brain-implant-trial/
to test its device. Known as a brain-computer interface, or BCI, it collects electrical activity from neurons and interprets those signals into commands to control an external device. While Musk has said he ultimately wants to merge humans with artificial intelligence, Neuralink’s initial aim is to enable paralyzed people to control a cursor or keyboard with just their thoughts.

Rival efforts to connect people’s brains to computers are also moving forward. This year, Neuralink competitor Synchron demonstrated the long-term safety of its implant in patients. Other startups tested novel devices in human subjects, while new ventures came on the scene.

“It can definitely feel like a breakout year, but in fact it’s the result of decades of work in academia,” says Sumner Norman, a visiting researcher at the California Institute of Technology who’s also the cofounder and CEO of Forest Neurotech, which launched in October. “I think we’re really just starting to feel the effects of that exponential growth.”

The origins of BCIs stretch back to the 1960s and 1970s, when the
first ones were tested on lab animals.
Summary of over Fifty Years with Brain-Computer Interfaces—A Review - PMC
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7824107/
As researchers began to understand the brain better, these systems evolved to be more sophisticated, allowing paralyzed people to
move robotic arms,
https://www.wired.com/story/this-brain-controlled-robotic-arm-can-twist-grasp-and-feel/
play video games,
https://www.wired.com/story/this-man-set-the-record-for-wearing-a-brain-computer-interface/
and
communicate with their minds.
https://www.wired.com/story/the-long-search-for-a-computer-that-speaks-your-mind/
Once a largely academic pursuit, BCIs are now of interest to a growing cadre of companies that have emerged since Neuralink’s founding in 2016.

“Science and technology have reached a level of maturity where we can begin to have real, dramatic effects on the human condition,” says Jacob Robinson, CEO and founder of startup Motif Neurotech and a professor of engineering at Rice University. “People like Elon Musk recognize these inflection points and they put capital into commercializing it.”

Continued at original URL

comments

Article: The Personal, Political Art of Board-Game Design

2023-12-22T17:41:59Z

Kes: Fascinating article, and the featured designer is a queer autistic woman. Check out the game she is developing to explore queerness using Godzilla-type characters and other Kaiju. (I'm going to be investigating gothic elements in newer games[yes, I know that there are about a gazillion Lovecraft games out there, but I'm going to try to find some things outside of Lovecraft games]).

What can board games say that other art forms can’t?
By Matthew Hutson

December 21, 2023

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/annals-of-inquiry/the-personal-political-art-of-board-game-design#main-content

comments

My next tattoo: crows versus coyote

2023-12-17T15:54:05Z

I've been pretty much decided on getting a murder of crows going up my left forearm, but recently I began thinking of getting a coyote instead, since I really like the idea of having one of my tricksters on my skin.

I was trying to find out if any Boston area tattoo artists had done any coyote tats, but instead came across this thread of Reddit folks discussing a Boston-area sighting of a coyote a year or so ago
https://www.reddit.com/r/boston/comments/wt931l/spotted_a_coyote_at_the_target_near_suffolk_downs/

I love the comment "And his hair was perfect."

I had my ivy vine done at Good Faith Tattoos before Covid, but I'm not sure if anyone there does animals really well. If anyone can recommend someone locally, feel free to post here.

comments

Research/Access Assistant Job Posting at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

2023-11-09T15:43:55Z

Kes: Anyone who has worked with Access Services at any of the local SF conventions might have the experience to consider applying for this job. Also, if anyone amongst my readers would like a Zoom call for me to explain some of the accessibility terms and processes, I'm willing to do that.

Research/Access Assistant Job Posting at Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution
https://careers-whoi.icims.com/jobs/2193/research-access-assistant/job?hub=8&_gl=1*fu3s2l*_ga*MTc2NzA3NDc0Ni4xNjk1NDI3Nzc2*_ga_5Y2BYGL910*MTY5OTQ1MTg0Ni4yLjAuMTY5OTQ1MTg0Ni4wLjAuMA..&mobile=false&width=1090&height=500&bga=true&needsRedirect=false&jan1offset=-300&jun1offset=-240

Research/Access Assistant
Job ID 2023-2193
Job Summary
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) is currently searching for a Research/Access Assistant to join the Physical Oceanography Department. This is a full-time, non-exempt position, and is eligible for benefits. This position will last two years with the potential to extend longer depending on productivity. Onsite employment is preferred but hybrid will also be considered.

Approximately half of the position involves assisting Dr. Bower, who is blind, with accessing information pertinent to her research. This includes but is not limited to modifying electronic documents for screen reader accessibility, describing inaccessible graphics, and rendering some graphics in accessible format. The other half of the position involves providing standard research assistance on a variety of physical oceanographic projects. The group researches deep ocean currents in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans using various in situ instruments such as acoustically tracked floats and moored current meters, as well as satellite observations of ocean surface properties.

The internal working title for this position could be either Research Assistant (RA) I or Research Assistant (RA) II. The final level of the position will be determined commensurate with the selected candidate's level of education & experience.
( more details below cut )

comments

Article: Why Dizziness is Still a Medical Mystery

2023-10-12T15:49:57Z

Kes: I began getting vestibular migraines a few months into the pandemic--I had already been treated for standard migraines for over a decade--and my description goes like this: imagine being stuck on the most nausea-inducing ride in the amusement park for two hours, and every time you think it's slowing down, it starts up again. I haven't heard of anyone else experiencing the level of intense nausea that I do. I accidentally came across the info that magnesium supplements can help alleviate migraines, and since starting to take magnesium about a year ago, at least the severe nausea seems to have been alleviated, although I still get the vertigo migraines, just less intensely.
So, my recommendation: try magnesium supplements, as they have many positive benefits (I've heard this from a number of nurses and doctors, and there are also studies).

Article:

Balance disorders like vertigo can be devastating for patients—but they’re often invisible to the doctors who treat them.
By Shayla Love

October 10, 2023

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/annals-of-inquiry/why-dizziness-is-still-a-mystery#:~:text=staff%20ruled%20out%20anything%20life,a%20sensation%2C%20not%20a%20disease.

comments

Question for sound design folks + The Halloween Dragon!

2023-10-11T15:06:46Z

I'm going to be a maenad for Halloween, and I would like to put together a spooky woods sound effects MP3 thing that I can play on an Echo dot and turn on and off using the Alexa app on my iPhone.

However, just looking through the sound effects MP3s on Amazon has gotten me only a handful of MP3s that I feel are suitable to "spooky woods," and I am wondering if there are resources online that sell something more suitable, like a 45-minute or hour-long MP3 of a theme such as "spooky woods."

I remember I used to have some readers who did sound design for local radio plays and similar project when I was on LJ: are you guys still out there? Any advice?

Sounds I'm searching for: wind and trees rustling, owls and other animals screeching, women/witches chanting and occasionally screaming...what other sounds say "spooky woods"? I figure after the first slow hour of trick or treating, the sound will be drowned out by the screaming of actual small demons, i.e., live children.

Also: I had a $50 gift card for Target and, although I can never find anything I want at Target, this month they had lots of Halloween stuff, including a five foot tall inflatable black dragon! Now, if you know any of the occupants of Melville Keep, you will probably agree with me that a giant inflatable dragon is totally us (failing the fact that we can't acquire an actual live dragon, that is). And it will look pretty kickass with the fog from my fog machine curling around it.

comments

From bird taxidermy to eTextiles: online courses from Atlas Obscura

2023-09-15T13:53:54Z

Also, lockpicking, how to make a sampler, all about Halloween (taught by horror author Lisa Morten), and all sorts of other spooky and nerdy subjects, beginning as soon as tomorrow
https://www.atlasobscura.com/online-courses

comments

new list to discuss 3D printing accessibility

2023-09-09T15:31:08Z

Judy Dixon has previously written many books about technology for blind and visually impaired users published through the National Braille Press nbp.org .

Judy Dixon has created a new mailing list on groups.io for the discussion of accessibility issues related to 3d printing by people who are blind.
The list is called 3d-printing-access. Discussion topics include the selection and use of 3d printers, finding or creating models to 3d print, accessibility of slicing software, and other topics related to 3d printing accessibility by people who are blind. To join the list, send an email message to 3d-printing-access+subscribe@groups.io, or go to https://groups.io/g/3d-Printing-Access.

comments

Euripides' Bacchae - Warwick Ancient Drama Festival 2022

2023-08-28T15:31:27Z

This is kind of a rock opera version, with the text being interspersed with songs: I really like the first women's chorus to Dionysus, which begins at about 3:30.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-YMALXAo_I

comments

If you haven't seen this Gene Roddenberry movie

2023-08-21T14:28:42Z

I highly recommend it

Spectre (1977)
Here is a review
https://filmschoolrejects.com/spectre-1977/

This review does not, however, mention the slashy goodness, which is baarrrly subtext. Everything about this movie is over the top.
While not nearly as outrageously camp, but rather played as a more traditional supernatural detective story, a natural pairing for Spectre would be Baffled (1973), starring Leonard Nimoy, as the American psychic detective trying to solve a murder in England. Here is a review
https://filmschoolrejects.com/baffled-1972/
(and, yes, I have seen this movie about half a dozen times and Nimoy does do the lifted eyebrow thing in it, happy sigh).

comments

Byron: The Clothing of a Regency Poet

2023-07-22T15:44:08Z

I'm currently attempting to answer the question of whether Byron always walked with a cane and, in the process, came across this amazing article which not only includes detailed descriptions of the corrective boot Byron wore, but detailed descriptions of various clothing he wore during different periods of his life. The article also includes various fascinating resources on men's Regency clothing, which is definitely one of my obsessions (am I the only one who thinks waistcoats are sexy? And did anyone else read the K. J. Charles queer Regency romance involving the valet, and all the descriptions of clothing?)
https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/full/10.3366/cost.2021.0200

comments

This is the guitar played by the Queen of the Unseelie Court

2023-06-24T16:05:18Z

And with my narrative fetish for all things involving spooky woods, I would like someone to write a story about this
https://www.guitarworld.com/news/guitar-made-from-10000-leaves#main

comments

Survey question: What do you grab when your fire alarm goes off?

2023-06-24T14:17:12Z

We have these *really* sensitive fire alarms, which go off not only at the first sign of smoke--as in, someone is cooking steaks on the stove--but also for all sorts of mystery things. Case in point: approximately at 9:45 this morning, with no trace of smoke, leaving housemates--half of them woken up against their will and *really* not morning people--guessing at what they should be looking for to *MAKE THAT NOISE STOP*. (Did I mention, our alarms also announce "Fire Fire Fire" in a calm but firm female voice every few seconds?).

So I'm standing there taking guesses at what might have set off the alarms, but what I think really set off the alarms is the 91% humidity because yes, if your alarm setting is very sensitive, the water content in the air can set it off.

Anyway, because our alarms go off so often without it being a real fire, I have gotten really good at deciding what I consider the essentials to grab in case of fire. These are: phone, wallet, ebook reader, and Coke. If it comes right down to it, it's the housekey with my mini-Leatherman tool on it, wallet, ebook reader, and a Coke. Note: I usually have one or two unopened bottles of Coke in my room, so I don't lose time in grabbing these on my way out of the aerye. Also, I hadn't seen Alexx emerge from his room, so I opened his door and checked that he was awake and moving.

This makes me curious what other people consider the important things to grab in case of emergency evacuation: your laptop? a favorite book or musical instrument? a significant momento?

comments

But what if you can't die

2023-04-09T15:29:14Z

so your soul can find neither rest nor resurrection?

While others have been preoccupied with resurrection and the afterlife, I've been attempting to find legends regarding people who are too evil to die, who have a literal inability to cease living, no matter how burdened by their own sins they may become, and the very ground itself refuses to allow them to be buried in it.

Specifically, I've been obsessed with this Josh Ritter song
"Ground Don't Want Me"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuadfchdsiI
which is about a gunslinger who is cursed by his dying mother to "go to Hell real slow," while the chorus and the title dwell on the theme of someone who is so evil that he cannot die, and the very ground itself refuses to hold and shelter him.

This theme seems like its a really old legend or piece of religious folklore, but I'm drawing a blank when I try to think of legends or stories that have used it. Kudos to Ritter for creeping me out in just a few verses.

comments

Am I the only one who wishes the M3gan persona was available on the Amazon Echo?

2023-04-08T13:47:19Z

Also, the movie trailers that play the Taylor Swift song are exponentially creepier *and* I want to find out where I can get a pair of those purple sunglasses. Those sunglasses are one of the most brilliant touches in M3gan's entire persona: I could write a paper on the semiotics of her sunglasses alone.
Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kBqEmXSW-A

comments

I'm pretty sure this is a me problem

2023-04-04T16:03:00Z

I'm still trying to find where the sighted housemates hid the stopper for the bathroom sink so that I can plug it in order to rinse out my prosthetic eyes without worrying that they are going to drop down the drain into whatever lies down in the ancient pipes of our old Victorian house, and then we will have to call the special plumbers who still know how to fix things in very old Victorian houses in order to retrieve my very expensive eyeballs from the eldritch horror of whatever lives in the abyss.

So, yes, one of my few nagging anxieties is that I will lose my eyeballs down the bathroom sink, and checking that I know where the plug for the sink is is a thing I do on a regular basis. And this plug is a heavy metal stopper, it isn't easy to lose, so really, people *sigh*...

I probably wouldn't be so freaked if I hadn't read all those Clive Baeker stories in which he goes into *excruciating* detail about things that can live in your bathroom pipes...

comments

Nearly Half of Young Women Report Negative Interactions with Health Care Providers

2023-02-23T16:44:10Z

Published: Feb 22, 2023

https://www.kff.org/womens-health-policy/press-release/nearly-half-of-young-women-report-negative-interactions-with-health-care-providers/

Nearly Half of Young Women Report Negative Interactions with Health Care Providers

Among women ages 18-35 with a clinical visit in the past two years, more than four in 10 (46%) report experiencing a negative interaction with a health care provider, according to a new analysis of 2022 KFF Women’s Health Survey (WHS) data. These interactions included a provider either dismissing patients’ concerns, assuming something about them without asking, believing they were lying, blaming them for their health problems, or discriminating against them because of their age, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, or some other personal characteristic.

Similar rates of women in low-income households (45%), uninsured women (46%), and women with a disability or ongoing health condition (45%) experienced at least one of these negative interactions. Negative interactions with health care providers can lead to poorer health outcomes, distrust of the health care system, and health inequities.
Analysts also found some statistically significant differences in the experiences of men and women. Somewhat more women than men report that their health care providers either dismissed their concerns (29% vs. 21%), didn’t believe they were telling the truth (15% vs. 12%) or discriminated against them during their visit (9% vs. 5%).

Additional findings from the analysis include the following:

Menopause received little attention in clinical visits. Only one-third (35%) of women ages 40-64 say their health care provider ever talked to them about what to expect in menopause, ranging from 42% of women who have gone through menopause, 39% of those currently going through menopause, and 19% of premenopausal women.

Screening for social determinants of health is infrequent in clinical settings, despite their impact on the health and wellbeing of patients. While nearly three in five (58%) women who have visited a health care provider in the past two years say they were asked about the kind of work they do, only one in five (20%) were asked about their ability to afford food or their access to reliable transportation.

The KFF WHS is a nationally representative survey of 5,145 self-identified women and 1,225 self-identified men ages 18 to 64, conducted May 10 – June 7, 2022

comments

Who are the Mardi Gras Indians?

2023-02-21T15:08:35Z

If you're listening to WWOZ.org you may hear about the Mardi Gras Indians, which are the highlight for many New Orleanians. Here are a couple of videos to explain about the Indians

How Mardi Gras Indians Rebel Against History
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ffn_bo9nuY8

Black Masking Indians: A historical New Orleans Carnival tradition
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsOxxz4h1rU

Yesterday was Lundi Gras, and a lot of the Indians were still working on their suits right through from yesterday until this morning.
A song I heard dedicated to them was
Glue Stick Situation by Alex McMurray
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BY39TmWVFuk

The first song many people hear on Mardi Gras morning is
Indian Red
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayr-Sp944J0
which is
a traditional chant
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Red#:~:text=Indian%20Red%20is%20traditionally%20sung,Gras%20Indians%20in%20New%20Orleans.
sung at the beginning of gatherings of Mardi Gras Indians

The compliment you give a Mardi Gras Indian who has made a suit that you think is exceptionally beautiful is "You're the prettiest!" (I love the fact that this is a culturally acceptable thing to say to men during Mardi Gras.)

comments

Happy Mardi Gras!

2023-02-21T13:30:09Z

Happy Mardi Gras!

Listen to some great New Orleans music
https://www.wwoz.org

Wear some purple, green, and/or gold

Eat something delicious, maybe with some rice, or red beans, or shrimp, or pecans, or just something that makes today feel like a celebration.

comments

This teaser for the Amazon Superbowl commercial

2023-02-11T16:12:46Z

reminds me of guide dogs I have known, especially that final line. This year's Amazon commercial is going to break the trend of the past few years and, instead of being about Alexa, focus on a family and it's rescue dog returning to quote normal unquote life in a post-Covid world.
Amazon dog auditions
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3eBRB6ssdE

Watch Amazon's 2023 Super Bowl Commercial Before the Big Game
https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/amazon-super-bowl-commercial-2023

You can also get a peek at many of the other Superbowl commercials here, which includes a number of really witty mini-epics: it's as if Superbowl commercials have evolved to what MTV used to be, and there is even some serious overlap in the familiar (if somewhat more weathered) faces
https://www.cnet.com/culture/sports/watch-2023-super-bowl-commercials-before-the-big-game-best-ads-so-far/

comments

Microsoft’s VALL-E copies original speakers’ voices, emotions to synthesize personalized speeches

2023-01-11T12:40:23Z

Excerpted from https://mspoweruser.com/vall-e-copies-speakers-voices-to-synthesize-speech/

In an experiment detailed in a paper (Cornell University), VALL-E was tested and led to favorable results.

“Experiment results show that VALL-E significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art zero-shot TTS system in terms of speech naturalness and speaker similarity,” the paper reads. “In addition, we find VALL-E could preserve the speaker’s emotion and acoustic environment of the acoustic prompt in synthesis.”

In some of the samples shared, the synthesized speeches using acoustic prompts sound almost flawless. VALL-E managed to copy the same tones and emotions from the original speakers and even used them in delivering a very different personalized speech. For instance, it was able to produce recordings of the same sentence (“We have to reduce the number of plastic bags“) delivered in different moods or tones, such as anger, sleepiness, neutrality, amusement, and disgust.

Despite this exceptional performance, Microsoft probably has further plans to improve VALL-E more in the future to help it provide a more impeccable performance. And while it can be useful for various case scenarios, the technology can also be dangerous under the hands of the wrong individuals. Thankfully, it is currently unavailable to the public, which could give the Redmond company more time to think about how and where it will offer this technology.
https://mspoweruser.com/vall-e-copies-speakers-voices-to-synthesize-speech/

In an experiment detailed in a paper (Cornell University), VALL-E was tested and led to favorable results.

“Experiment results show that VALL-E significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art zero-shot TTS system in terms of speech naturalness and speaker similarity,” the paper reads. “In addition, we find VALL-E could preserve the speaker’s emotion and acoustic environment of the acoustic prompt in synthesis.”

In some of the samples shared, the synthesized speeches using acoustic prompts sound almost flawless. VALL-E managed to copy the same tones and emotions from the original speakers and even used them in delivering a very different personalized speech. For instance, it was able to produce recordings of the same sentence (“We have to reduce the number of plastic bags“) delivered in different moods or tones, such as anger, sleepiness, neutrality, amusement, and disgust.

Despite this exceptional performance, Microsoft probably has further plans to improve VALL-E more in the future to help it provide a more impeccable performance. And while it can be useful for various case scenarios, the technology can also be dangerous under the hands of the wrong individuals. Thankfully, it is currently unavailable to the public, which could give the Redmond company more time to think about how and where it will offer this technology.

comments

We're getting closer to the guide dog of my dreams

2023-01-06T13:06:08Z

Actually, if this app was accessible, I would consider getting one of these
https://www.cnet.com/tech/we-found-the-most-adorable-new-gizmo-of-ces-2023/

comments