First European speech technology course in Leeuwarden

The Campus Fryslân of the University of Groningen will start after the summer with a new MA program at Leeuwarden in the field of speech technology. This is about the capabilities available to control devices that use voice, but it is also about the use of new technologies, for example language recognition or the detection of syndromes in the voice.

According to Campus Fryslân, the Voice Technology program is a unique master’s program in Europe. There is nowhere else for a teacher to focus completely on this topic. Training not only about current technology, but also about possible applications in the future, reports Omroup Freslin.

The onset of Parkinson’s disease

It is generally known that there is a known possibility of giving your mobile phone a “search” command with your voice. Apple has a virtual Siri assistant and smart speakers from companies like Google and Amazon that also work with speech technology. The new study is about this technology, but also about applications, for example, for people who cannot read and write well. They can then operate the devices with their own voices on which the device reads texts.

It goes further, says language researcher Jelski Dykstra of Campus Fryslân. “We are also working on an app that should recognize when someone has an early stage of Parkinson’s disease. You can hear it in someone’s voice. A device like this will soon detect it.”

Frisian as an endangered language

Dijkstra isn’t in Leeuwarden for nothing. She believes that voice technology can also be used to preserve endangered languages ​​such as Frisian, for example by developing applications that help people learn the Frisian language.

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“But there is also an intention to give Frisian a place on existing devices so that you can also use Frisian on these new platforms,” ​​says Dijkstra. “Google, Amazon and all of those others won’t do it themselves, so someone else will have to invest time in it.”

Winton Frazier

 "Amateur web lover. Incurable travel nerd. Beer evangelist. Thinker. Internet expert. Explorer. Gamer."

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