环球英语 — 76：The Human Speechome Project

　　Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for Spotlight¹. I’m Liz Waid.
Voice 2
And I’m Joshua Leo. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
When Owen was born, his mother, Janice, took many pictures of him. Her camera was always busy! She took pictures of Owen wearing funny hats. She took pictures of Owen taking a bath. She took pictures of Owen at the play area, in the car, with other babies, and with the family’s cats. Sometimes Janice also recorded Owen with a moving picture, or video, camera. She watched her video recordings³ over and over. She wanted to remember how Owen looked and acted as a baby. She wanted to keep these memories for a very long time. When Owen grows older, he can also watch these videos of himself as a baby.
Voice 2
Professor Deb Roy also takes pictures and video of his baby, John.* But Professor Roy has a different reason. Professor Roy is trying to discover how human babies learn language. He wants to discover how a baby’s environment shapes human development and learning⁴.
Voice 1
Today’s Spotlight is on the Human Speechome Project.
Voice 2
The Roy family lives in Massachusetts, in the United⁵ States. Professor Roy works⁶ with computers. He tries to build computers that can learn to communicate in human-like ways. This means⁷ he first observes how humans communicate. Then he tries to build a computer model of their behaviour. Building computer models helps him and his research team to understand how people learn to communicate.
Voice 1
In August 2005, Professor Roy and his wife had their first baby - a boy. Professor Roy thought that this happy event could also be an interesting chance to learn. He could observe a human baby learning language from the very beginning. So, when his son John was born, Professor Roy began ‘The Human Speechome Project’.
Voice 2
Speechome is not a real word. But it combines the words ‘speech’ and ‘home.’ That is because Professor Roy will observe his son learning speech in his home. He expects that John will develop language skills normally⁸ - like any other child. And Professor Roy will use his observations⁹ to make a model of the way people learn language.
Voice 1
No one really knows how human babies learn language. Experts do know that communication is an important part of human development. And they know that babies learn and understand their first language quickly. Children listen to the speech of their parents, brothers and sisters, and other family and community members. They try to make sounds of their own. They even try to form the words they hear. But many experts agree that listening is not the only way that children learn a language. So, how do babies learn to speak? That is the question that the Human Speechome Project is trying to answer.
Voice 2
The Human Speechome Project will try to record baby John as he learns new words. How will John’s learning be recorded? Well, Professor Roy has set up microphones¹⁰ and video recording² devices¹¹ all around his house. He put eleven [11] cameras in different rooms. These cameras will record videos of people who enter or leave the room. He also put up fourteen [14] microphones in rooms around his house. These microphones will record all of the sounds in his house.
Voice 1
The cameras and microphones record data information for twelve [12] to fourteen [14] hours every day. They record three hundred and sixty five [365] days a year. The recorded information goes to a main storage¹² computer in Professor Roy’s house. After a few days, Professor Roy’s research team takes the stored information to their laboratory¹³. There, several computers and human researchers all study it.
Voice 2
There is a lot of information. So, computers do much of the work. Some computers look for simple repeated processes or events that happen during the day. For example, the computers can recognize simple actions like cleaning the dishes after a meal. Researchers can see if these everyday, normal events affect language learning. And the computers keep the information organized. Researchers can then spend more time studying important events like parent and child play time or feedings.
Voice 1
Some computers simply show how and where people move through Professor Roy’s house. But other computers are able to find repeated speech. Repeated speech patterns could be very important in the process of learning language.
Voice 2
As baby John grows older he will begin to form words. What will John’s first words be? Who used those words when he was present? Where were they when the person used those words? What was John doing when he learned¹⁴ the words? Researchers will be able to look through their computer records for the answers to these questions.
Voice 1
With all this information, Professor Roy wants to build another, final, computer as a model. He will enter the collected information into the computer. Then the computer will model John’s experiences as a baby. Hopefully, the computer will ‘learn’ by ‘hearing’ and ‘seeing’ the same sounds and images that John saw as a baby. The computer will learn words and sentence structure¹⁵ just like John did. And hopefully, the computer will be able to show Professor Roy and his research team the process of how John, or any baby, learns language.
Voice 2
Professor Roy plans to record his son until he is three [3] years old. A healthy human baby can usually speak his first language by this age.
Voice 1
Language is an important part of every person’s life. Without language, people could not communicate with each other. So, Professor Roy’s work with language is very valuable. Success in the Human Speechome Project could lead to better treatment for people who have trouble learning language. Or it could lead to computer programs that can learn to speak.
Voice 2
Observing a baby learning language offers wonderful opportunities. But it also presents questions. Is it acceptable¹⁶ for Professor Roy to study his son’s development like this?
Voice 1
And if the project succeeds, what will Professor Roy and his research team learn from the information they collect? Will they begin to understand more about how people learn language? Will they be able to teach computers to learn a new language? For now, no one really knows the answers to these questions. But in the future, people may begin to understand more about how people learn language.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

3 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐

4 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

5 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

6 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

7 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

8 normally   

adv.正常地，通常地

参考例句：

• I normally do all my shopping on Saturdays.我通常在星期六买东西。
• My pulse beats normally.我脉搏正常。

9 observations   

n.观察资料( observation的名词复数 )；观察力；注意；言论

参考例句：

• His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion. 他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He made valuable observations on the prices. 他对物价问题提出了宝贵的意见。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 microphones   

n.扩音器，麦克风( microphone的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They descended from the plane into a forest of microphones and cameras. 他们从飞机上走下来，迎接他们的是数不清的麦克风和照相机。 来自辞典例句
• The music was amplified with microphones. 音乐声通过麦克风被放大。 来自辞典例句

11 devices   

n.设备；装置( device的名词复数 )；花招；（为实现某种目的的）计划；手段

参考例句：

• electrical labour-saving devices around the home 节省劳力的各种家用电器
• modern labour-saving devices such as washing machines and dishwashers 诸如洗衣机和洗碗机之类的现代化省力设备

12 storage   

n.存储器，储藏，保管，库存，仓库

参考例句：

• How much will you have to pay the warehouse for storage?你得付多少仓库保管费？
• He is charging a storage battery.他在为蓄电池充电。

13 laboratory   

n.实验室，化验室

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a laboratory.她捐款成立了一个实验室。
• Our laboratory equipment isn't perfect,but we must make do.实验室设备是不够理想，但我们只好因陋就简。

14 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

15 structure   

n.结构，构造，建筑物；v.构成；

参考例句：

• Doctors study the structure of the human body.医生研究人体构造。
• A flower has quite a complicated structure.一朵花的结构相当复杂。

16 acceptable   

adj.可接受的，合意的，受欢迎的

参考例句：

• The terms of the contract are acceptable to us.我们认为这个合同的条件可以接受。
• Air pollution in the city had reached four times the acceptable levels.这座城市的空气污染程度曾高达可接受标准的四倍。