How does Steven Hawking Talk?

dave 27

just watched a documentary on tv featuring hawking..how does he actually talk?

is there something connected into his brain which sends a message to the computer or is there someone who types before the camera records or what?!

Bodhidharma

He can twitch a muscle in his cheek which is connected to a computer which can communicate what he's trying to say.

dr.bollocko

The DECtalk DTC01 voice synthesizer he uses, which has an American English accent, is no longer being produced. Asked why he has still kept it after so many years, Hawking mentioned that he has not heard a voice he likes better and that he identifies with it. Hawking is said to be looking for a replacement since, aside from being obsolete, the synthesizer is both large and fragile by current standards. As of mid 2009, he was said to be using NeoSpeech's VoiceText speech synthesizer.[33]

In Hawking's many media appearances, he appears to speak fluently through his synthesizer, but in reality, it is a tedious drawn-out process. Hawking's setup uses a predictive text entry system, which requires only the first few characters in order to auto-complete the word, but as he is only able to use his cheek for data entry, constructing complete sentences takes time. His speeches are prepared in advance, but having a live conversation with him provides insight as to the complexity and work involved. During a Technology, Entertainment, & Design Conference talk, it took him seven minutes to answer a question.[34]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Hawking#Illness

Conor108

He can move his cheek muscle to select letters on that computer on the chair. Its like predictive text that gets sent through a voice syntheziser (sp?). Don't think he can do it as fast as it appears on TV, there all scripted, apparently it takes a good while for long sentences

starbelgrade

He

---

talks---like--this.

Sparks43

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GdbBrT1aT0

Ulysses Gaze

From the man himself:

Before the operation, my speech had been getting more slurred, so that only a few people who knew me well, could understand me. But at least I could communicate. I wrote scientific papers by dictating to a secretary, and I gave seminars through an interpreter, who repeated my words more clearly. However, the tracheotomy operation removed my ability to speak altogether. For a time, the only way I could communicate was to spell out words letter by letter, by raising my eyebrows when someone pointed to the right letter on a spelling card. It is pretty difficult to carry on a conversation like that, let alone write a scientific paper. However, a computer expert in California, called Walt Woltosz, heard of my plight. He sent me a computer program he had written, called Equalizer. This allowed me to select words from a series of menus on the screen, by pressing a switch in my hand. The program could also be controlled by a switch, operated by head or eye movement. When I have built up what I want to say, I can send it to a speech synthesizer. At first, I just ran the Equalizer program on a desk top computer.

However David Mason, of Cambridge Adaptive Communication, fitted a small portable computer and a speech synthesizer to my wheel chair. This system allowed me to communicate much better than I could before. I can manage up to 15 words a minute. I can either speak what I have written, or save it to disk. I can then print it out, or call it back and speak it sentence by sentence. Using this system, I have written a book, and dozens of scientific papers. I have also given many scientific and popular talks. They have all been well received. I think that is in a large part due to the quality of the speech synthesiser, which is made by Speech Plus. One's voice is very important. If you have a slurred voice, people are likely to treat you as mentally deficient: Does he take sugar? This synthesiser is by far the best I have heard, because it varies the intonation, and doesn't speak like a Dalek. The only trouble is that it gives me an American accent.

cherryghost

MY EYESIGHT MEANS A LOT TO ME.

starbelgrade

dr.bollocko wrote: »

During a Technology, Entertainment, & Design Conference talk, it took him seven minutes to answer a question.

And they only asked him if he wanted a cup of tea.

knird evol

A bit like this

consultech

He doesn't, he has neuro-muscular dystrophy.

Fart

knird evol wrote: »

A bit like this

Ha thats brilliant.

mink_man

the computer speaks for him cos hes too lazy...

Standard Toaster

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1kI5eCABdU

Dennis the Stone

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2hFD1s_F1k

humanji

He can still kick it though

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMrwxme6VEs

edit: DAMN YOU DENNIS!!!! This was going to be my greatest moment!

Dennis the Stone

You can still change it to his other song, what we need more of is science

tony1kenobi

dave 27 wrote: »

just watched a documentary on tv featuring hawking..how does he actually talk?

He doesn't......he is the front for a propaganda machine.....sadly,Stephen Hawking is just a spastic.

Pace2008

Two hundred years ago he would probably have been seen as a bit "touched", and kept out of sight when respectable company was around.

tony1kenobi

Pace2008 wrote: »

Two hundred years ago he would probably have been seen as a bit "touched", and kept out of sight when respectable company was around.

200 years ago he wouldn't have lived past 21.

starbelgrade

tony1kenobi wrote: »

200 years ago he wouldn't have lived past 21.

That's quite true. He was taken ill recently too.








Ambulance driver wasn't sure whether to take him to A&E or PC World.

Bonito

Binary and morse.

Dennis the Stone

starbelgrade wrote: »

That's quite true. He was taken ill recently too.








Ambulance driver wasn't sure whether to take him to A&E or PC World.

One of his enemies stuck a memory key in his USB port and infected him with a nasty virus.

m@cc@

"Steven Hawking? Pretentious. Comes from Kent but speaks with an American accent"

OutlawPete

Whenever I think of Stephen Hawking, I inevitably think about Guido Nasi.

He was and Italian student in Dublin and was just 17 when a scumbag hit him in the head with a bottle in Fairview Park.

Eleven years later he is still in pretty much the same condition, brain damaged to the point where speech is impossible and is almost totally wheelchair bound.

To communicate he seems to use this portable text-2-speech device.

Hard to believe that was eleven years ago now.

jd007

starbelgrade wrote: »

That's quite true. He was taken ill recently too.








Ambulance driver wasn't sure whether to take him to A&E or PC World.

He really should update his Anti Virus software more often.

whiteboy

seems like a right clever bloke LOL

SugarHigh

Through his fecking arse. "Big Bang" what bloody nonsense, it was more of a mild pop and it's been causing me hassle ever since.

tony1kenobi

SugarHigh wrote: »

Through his fecking arse. "Big Bang" what bloody nonsense, it was more of a mild pop and it's been causing me hassle ever since.

Perhaps you should call that guy.The exit pop is natural but the hassle suggests an std.........it probably wasn't Hawking though,

melekalikimaka

Dennis the Stone wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2hFD1s_F1k

i was just bout to post this, i was only listening to him today

Bonito

Dennis the Stone wrote: »

One of his enemies stuck a memory key in his USB port and infected him with a nasty virus.

He's gay? :eek: He has HIV?

Hi, I'm Virtual.

:eek:

Duggy747

He speaks with the help of some AA batteries

:pac:

jd007

Bonito wrote: »

He's gay? :eek: He has HIV?

Hi, I'm Virtual.

:eek:

Hiv? No I think it was a trojan :pac: