Talking to machines - 6 Minute English

Rob: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute

English. I'm Rob.

Dan: And I'm Dan.

Rob: Hey Dan. What’s the time?

Dan: Time you got a new watch?

Rob: Now I didn’t ask you that just for a

joke or a sarcastic comment now did I?

Dan: Well no, but look there’s a clock over

there, and you are wearing a watch, you

have a smartphone and a computer,

all of which show the time.

So why are you asking me?

Rob: Dan! I was trying to introduce today’s

topic which is all about virtual assistants

or bots.

You seemed to have forgotten the script.

Dan: Oh yes, sorry. We’re talking about

software that you talk to and that can talk

back to you. Like Apple’s Siri, Google’s

Assistant, Amazon’s Alexa and

Microsoft’s Cortana.

It might be on your phone or computer or

even a speaker in your house.

Rob: Now before we hear more about this

topic, here is today’s quiz question:

Do you know when was the first computer

which could recognise speech, launched?

Was it in a) 1951 b) 1961, or c) 1971.

Dan: I have found my script, so I’ve seen

the answer but I have to say I was

surprised.

Rob: Don't tell anybody Dan, OK. We’ll give

the answer for the listeners at the end of

the programme. We’re going to hear now

from Tom Hewitson, who is a

conversation designer, working in the field

of virtual assistants, talking on BBC Radio

4's Word of Mouth programme.

He talks about the whole idea of virtual

assistants and how they are changing the

way we interact with technology.

How does he describe our existing

relationship with computers?

Tom Hewitson: It changes the way that

we think about computers.

To date we’ve thought of them largely as

tools. They’re just an advanced version

of a calculator. They’re something you

kind of use to get a specific thing done,

whereas this is kind of changing them

more into like an agent. They’re an active

participant in the kind of interaction and in

guiding you to make the right decision.

Rob: How did he describe our existing

relationship with computers then?

Dan: He said that to date, which is an

expression which means 'up until this

point in time', we have thought of them

as advanced calculators.

Rob: Yes, that’s right, we use them as a

tool to get things done. But he says that

modern technology is turning them into

an agent.

This doesn’t mean a secret agent, like

James Bond! In this sense an agent is

something that has agency and that

means it has the ability to act individually

and make its own decisions.

Dan: I’m not sure I’d like my phone to have

agency. It probably wouldn’t like being

in my pocket all day.

Rob: Who would Dan? But I’m not sure

Hewitson is suggesting our devices would

become that clever but he did say they

could become more active in our lives.

Dan: Maybe. I imagine, for example,

telling us if we are spending too much

time in fast food restaurants?

Rob: Maybe in your case Dan. Mine would

be telling me I spend too much time in the gym!

Hewitson goes on to explain how

the way we will talk to our virtual

assistants will develop.

What does he say we don’t need to do?

Tom Hewitson: We will develop our own

kind of vernacular for speaking with

machines that will be subtly

different from how we speak to other

people because as you rightly point out

you don’t need to make the machine like

you don’t need to kind of make random

chit-chat that’s just filling the time. It can

be much more brusque and to the point.

Dan: A lot of what we say in human

communication is to do with our

relationship with the person we’re talking to.

Rob: We say things and talk about things

that are maybe not directly relevant to our

point. With a digital virtual assistant, we

don’t need to do that, so we don’t need to

make the machine like us.

Dan: Hewitson said that we will develop

our own vernacular, this is a general word

for a native language. This vernacular will

be a little bit different from our everyday

vernacular because, as we said, we don’t

need to maintain a social relationship

with the artificial assistant.

Rob: This means that we won’t need

chit-chat. Chit-chat is another expression

for small talk: conversation topics which

aren’t important but are part of everyday

social communication, like talking about

the weather.

Dan: And because we don’t need to be

friends with our virtual assistants, we can

be brusque and to the point. Both of these

mean being very direct and not very

polite.

Rob: Well Dan, I don’t mean to be brusque but

it is time for the answer to this week’s

quiz question. Earlier I asked when was

the first computer which could recognise

speech, launched. The options were:

a) 1951, b) 1961, or c) 1971.

Well actually the first computer which

could recognise speech was launched in 1961.

Dan: Yep! It was called the IBM Shoebox and

could recognise 16 words and the

numbers zero to nine. That’s nearly as

many as you!

Rob: Cheeky! Right enough of this

chat-chat. Let’s recap today’s vocabulary.

Dan: Well chit-chat was one of today’s

expressions. Meaning 'small talk', but we

also had the expression to date. That

means ‘up until this moment in time’.

Rob: Then we had the noun agent. This

refers to something that has agency. And

that is the ability to think, make decisions

and act independently.

Dan: The next word is vernacular, another

word for language, particularly when

talking about a native language.

Rob: And finally there was brusque

meaning 'direct and not polite' and to the

point, which also means 'direct and without

unnecessary information'.

Dan: Hey Rob

Rob: Yes, what can I do for you Dan?

Dan: End the programme.

Rob: Certainly Dan. Well that’s all from us

today, be sure to check us out on all the

usual places: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram

and YouTube, and of course please don't

forget our website

bbclearningenglish.co m. Bye for now!

Dan: Bye!