back to article Researcher hopes to teach infants with cochlear implants to speak – with an app

Getting an AI to understand speech is already a tough nut to crack. A group of Australian researchers wants to take on something much harder: teaching once-deaf babies to talk. Why so tough? Think about what happens when you talk to Siri or Cortana or Google on a phone: the speech recognition system has to distinguish your “ …

  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    It's a lot harder than having an app

    First off the stats that cochlear always quote as to how wonderful they are need some very careful unpacking.

    It's not 80% of all those that get an implant are successful. It's 80% of those that get an implant and complete the years of follow up speech therapy. If the recipient rejects the implant because , well hey, they are going nuts like their head is about to explode. Then they are deemed to have dropped out of the program. And are thus removed from the stats part. That's why when you go to a deaf school you will find lots of kids with implants they don't use, and they are not counted in cochlear's stats.

    Why don't they just suck it up I hear you ask. Mainly because it's akin to having an untuned radio screeching and delivering that directly into your brain 24/7 unless your brain manages to adapt and start to work out how to decode the signals it's getting from the implant. And a lot of the time that just never happens. It's not like you can 'try harder'

    And tbh to see a comment which is pretty much the researcher saying she can;t be arsed working with her child to teach her to speak because it's a bit hard and she needs some sort of electronic babysitter to do it for her is pretty much a deplorable statement.

    1. salamba

      Re: It's a lot harder than having an app

      Hi, I'd like to respond to the comment:

      "pretty much the researcher saying she can;t be arsed working with her child to teach her to speak because it's a bit hard and she needs some sort of electronic babysitter to do it for her".

      For the record, I know this family, the child in question speaks beautifully. The researcher dedicated time and effort over 18 an month period teaching her daughter to speak. This app will give the same opportunity for parents who can't afford to do the same.

      1. druck Silver badge

        Re: It's a lot harder than having an app

        But it wont though. A 12 month old child might be fascinated by flashing lights in an app, but they won't make the connection between learning and reward that they do in the interaction with their parents or other adults.

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