Media
African researchers aim to rescue languages that Western tech ignores
Computers have become amazingly precise at translating spoken words to text messages and scouring huge troves of information for answers to complex questions. At least, that is, so long as you speak English or another of the world's dominant languages. But try talking to your phone in Yoruba, Igbo or any number of widely spoken African languages and you'll find glitches that can hinder access to information, trade, personal communications, customer service and other benefits of the global tech economy. "We are getting to the point where if a machine doesn't understand your language it will be like it never existed," said Vukosi Marivate, chief of data science at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, in a call to action before a December virtual gathering of the world's artificial intelligence researchers. American tech giants don't have a great track record of making their language technology work well outside the wealthiest markets, a problem that's also made it harder for them to detect dangerous misinformation on their platforms.
Amazon Echo Show 15 review: A big device for a small audience
Amazon's Echo Show line has been around for four years, but until now the screen sizes have ranged from five to 10 inches, making it ideal as a multipurpose bedside alarm or a companion screen in the kitchen. The 15-inch Echo Show 15, available now, is by far the largest size Amazon has attempted, and it's also notably the first Echo Show you can mount on your wall. Because of that, the company is betting some people will use it not just as a digital photo frame, but also as a family bulletin board. If that's specifically what you want out of a smart display, the Echo Show 15 could be a niche but very fitting match. Somehow, though, we suspect that's not most people.
Beatles documentary Get Back used custom AI to strip unwanted sound
The Beatles' rooftop performance from 1969 in Get Back Get Back, Peter Jackson's documentary about the making of the Beatles' album Let It Be and final public performance on the rooftop of their Savile Row office, would have been impossible without custom-made artificial intelligence, claim sound engineers who worked on the film. Sixty hours of film were recorded during the short period in 1969 but most of the audio was captured by a microphone that picked up the musicians' instruments in a noisy jumble rather than a carefully crafted mix.
"The Matrix Resurrections," Reviewed: The Reboot Picks Up Where the Trilogy Left Off--Alas
When a star's variety of hair styles is the real star of a movie, you know it's a sign of trouble. So it is, unfortunately, with "The Matrix Resurrections," which makes poignant use of hair cuts and color to mark the eighteen years separating the new film from the last installment in the "Matrix" trilogy. Little else in the new film is as moving. The action picks up where the last one left off. There, Neo (Keanu Reeves), having saved the last human city, the underground realm of Zion, died from the effort.