Natural Language and Speech
(parts of Chapters 8 & 9)
Natural Language in
Computing
• Use of human languages
– Translation
– Commands to computer
– Queries
– Text Database Searching
– Text generation
– Games
Commands to Computer
• From computer-oriented to domain oriented
• May not be more efficient than selection
• Speech recognition may help
Natural Language Queries
• Limited form of commands to computer
• Actions able to be requested are database
queries (searches)
• Experienced users shorthand
• Things aren’t as grim as Shneiderman makes it
seem
Text Database Searching
• DB contains text as main content
• Common goal is retrieval of relevant records using
natural language question
• Meaning vs matching
• Statistical
• Pre-processing
• Information retrieval contests
• Information Push, E-mail filtering
Natural Language Text
Generation
• Output in text, frequently from data
• Generation of poems and stories
• Conversational systems
Games
• Command based games
Speech Recognition, Digitization
and Generation
• Speech recognition progress is slow
• Challenges – background noise, speaker
variation
• Drawbacks – human memory use
• Benefits – accommodation of disabilities,
environment/task requirements
• Growth – now many products
Discrete Word Recognition
• Sentences spoken is slow deliberate manner –
with words being discrete entities, rather than
run together (continuous)
• Not tolerable for most people
• Discrete word recognition is easy
• Continuous speech recognition is harder
Speech Store and Forward
• Store and forward spoken messages
• Could be used for groupware – computer
supported cooperative work
Speech Generation
• Very feasible – done all the time
• Can be annoying / noisy
• Valuable for handicapped
• Completely computer generated vs human
sounds pieced together vs stored words
When to Use Speech
•
Message is simple
•
Message is short
•
Message will not be referred to later
•
Message deals with events in time
•
Message requires an immediate response
•
Visual channels of communication are overloaded
•
Environment is unsuitable for transmission of visual info
•
User must be free to move around
Audio Tones and Music
End Speech and Natural
Language