Intro to Voice Technology syllabus

Introduction

In this course, we will explore the foundations of speech synthesis and recognition, delving into the interplay between technology and language.

Learning outcomes

Upon the successful completion of the course “Introduction to Voice Technology”, you will be able to:

1. explain the history of voice technology.
2. explain the basic elements of speech synthesis and recognition.
3. identify data resources for voice technology applications and know where to find them.
4. describe data management requirements for collecting and storing speech and speaker data.
5. elaborate on the value and relative importance of data management, licensing and privacy issues concerning speech and speaker data.
6. describe core aspects within speech production and feature extraction.
7. discuss with peers how human factors and relevant aspects of context affect the interaction between humans and voice technology systems.
8. describe how the user acceptance of a voice technology application can be investigated.

Course structure

The course runs for 8 weeks. Each week has 2 classes of 1 hour 45 minutes (with a 15 minute break in the middle).

Classes are on Tuesday and Wednesday, 13:15 -- 15:00.

Guest speakers

The following guest speakers will contribute to this course.

• Dr Laurent Besachier, Principal Scientist and NLP Group Lead at Naver Labs (EU).  Topics of interest
• Dr. Loredana Cerrato, Project Manager Nuance - Microsoft. See blog post.
• Dr Leigh Clark, Senior UX Researcher - Bold Insight UK
• Dr Jide Edu, Security Researcher at the Alan Turing Institute (London, UK)
• Dr Frederic Robinson, Founder of LeapTech (Basel, Switzerland)

Practical Information

Literature

We will mostly be reading literature that is available online. Obligatory readings are either accessible through open access or online through SmartCat of the library.

Brightspace

We use the virtual learning environment “Brightspace” as the main platform for communication. If there is any necessary change on the syllabus, I will announce it in class and in Brightspace.

Assessment

Assignment	%
Wiki page 1	20
Wiki page 2	20
Wiki page 3	20
Talking clock	10
Talking clock presentation	10
Participation activities	20
TOTAL	100

Cheating and plagiarism

Cheating and plagiarism are academic offenses, with severe consequences. They are acts or omissions by students to partly or wholly hinder accurate assessment. As per the Teaching and Examination Regulations, cases of cheating and plagiarism are reported by the instructor to the Board of Examiners, which will decide on the consequences.

Contact information

Your instructors for the course are Dr Matt Coler (m.coler@rug.nl) and Dr Joshua Schäuble (j.k.schauble@rug.nl). For general questions or suggestions you can contact the Educational Secretary or Student Service Desk (cf-sec@rug.nl, +31(0) 58 205 5009).

Planning

Week 1: Intro to intro

We start the journey with an overview of the whole program and consider the field of voice technology in terms of academic disciplines. You will be able to:

• see the MSc Voice Technology from a broader perspective.
• have a basic idea of speech synthesis and speech recognition
• give an overview of the research field of voice technology

Class I: Getting started  (Sept 5)

Welcome! In this first class we will get to know one another. You will learn about the MSc Voice Tech program, the team of researchers, visiting scholars, and PhDs, hear more about the events and guest lectures scheduled, and acquire an understanding of the final thesis project.

Preparation

• Read the syllabus, and provide your questions and comments here.
• Complete this questionnaire.

In class activities and participation

There are multiple ways to participate in class aside from talking. Therefore participation will be assessed in an inclusive way taking into account your engagement in group/individual activities, your connections with guest speakers, any additional peer review activities, and the way in which you support the class overall. To those ends, I’ll take into account your self-assessment which you will deliver to me via a form.