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Task 3: Voice to Text Task

Recited work, transcribed by the Recorder app on a Google Pixel

A few years ago, I went on a trip to New York with my wife. It was a very fun trip and we went for about 7 days. We were lucky because we had a friend who owned an apartment, right near Times Square. And she happened to be going away for a trip and we were able to stay at her place and house, sit her cats for her. This made the trip, much more affordable for us. And we were very grateful. My wife and I are really big fans of musicals. So we were able to actually see nine musicals in seven days, which was awesome. The first musical we ended up seeing was just 2 hours after we landed at the airport. It was Moulin Rouge. Uh, and it was starring, Derek kleena. Who at the time we weren't very familiar with but we actually really enjoyed seeing his performance. Unfortunately, we won the lottery for that musical and the tickets that we got weren't very good. But it was still a really awesome experience. The reason why we actually planned the trip in the first place was because there was a special production of into the woods. The Sondheim musical, uh, starring, uh, quite a few famous Broadway, actors such, as Philip, assu patina, Miller Sara Bareilles Brian RC James Gavin creel and Joshua Henry. Uh it was really quite something to see that production and we were really grateful that. There were no understudies as well. So we were very uh very very happy To watch it and it's definitely one of my favorite memories of that trip. Um but we're also both really into food and really into restaurants. So another thing that we did while we were there was um, eat at some Michelin starred restaurants. So we went to two the first one we went to was the modern Restaurant, which was Um, the MoMA. And we only went there for lunch because it was uh well cheaper, but it was very delicious. And then we also went to um our first three star Michelin restaurant on this trip called La Bernaden. And Wow. That was just an incredible experience all together from the service, the plating, the food. And the number of people who were there kind of to explain all the things you're eating. It was definitely one of my favorite meals that I've had in a long time. For sure. Yeah and Also, on this trip, we did a lot of exploring we visited museums. We went to the met and the mom while we walked through Central Park. Um, there were two cats that we house set and one was quite shy and the other was very friendly. In fact, he was, uh, always looking for pets, but the other one would always Scurry and hide away, which was sad because we actually didn't see much of that cat at all during the trip, even though it would just come out and eat when we were outside of the house. One thing that things that I want to do next time when I go to New York or maybe explore Coney Island, or Brooklyn, we didn't spend a lot of time in. We spent a lot of time in Manhattan. The first time we went, which although is very fun. I think that there's probably lots to explore.

And there's definitely places we want to go back to as well. So, Um, this summer, we're planning on going to another New York again. But Or else I'm gonna visit Montreal. Uh, it's somewhere. That's uh, special to my family and Uh, we're very excited to kind of. I've never, I've only been there once actually for a short amount of time. On a business trip. I was accompanying my dad but this time I'll be going with my wife. And we're gonna take in all the sites that Montreal has to offer really explore. I don't really know much about it. So I'm kind of going in uh with an open mind and I'm not sure what there is to do there but we also might plan a small trip to Quebec City which I'm very excited about. And then, So, on this trip, we'll also go back to New York. To visit our friend and also to take in some more musicals. I know last time we saw nine in seven days, which is so crazy. So maybe this time it'll be a little more reasonable. Uh, but we don't really know yet who's performing and what new musicals will be on Broadway. So it's a little hard at this time to decide what we will and will not see Last time we did like many same-day discount tickets, and it'll probably be the same for this upcoming trip. In fact we might do more lotteries and 70 discount tickets than last time because We're not really sure what we want to watch. So yeah, that'll be our trip in the summer. I'm a little. Hopefully it won't be too hot, but Overall, I think this will be really fun and, uh, I'm looking forward to it.

How does the text deviate from conventions of written English?

The text includes a lot of verbal pauses and interjections that were captured, such as “um”, and “yeah”. As well, there is heavy misuse of both commas and periods in weird spots, as well as random capitalizations. The text-to-speech struggled with some names, such as “Derek Klena” and “Patina Miller”, but also got many names correct as well. This output also shows how different written language is to oral language – and how much feels left out when we “read” oral language. Ong (2002) writes, “Writing, commitment of the word to space, enlarges the potentiality of language almost beyond measure” (p. 7). Without reading body language, gestures, or even just witnessing my oral performance visually, the text can be jarring to read as a standalone work.

What is “wrong” in the text? What is “right”?

The formatting of the text is horrendous, but for the most part the text is very accurate. Upon re-reading it, there were very little inaccuracies in the actual words being written, but rather the commas, periods, and capital letters are incorrectly placed and very distracting. 

What are the most common “mistakes” in the text and why do you consider them “mistakes”?

The most common errors I found in this output were comma, period, and capital letter placement. These errors are littered throughout the work – no doubt the result of numerous verbal pauses, too confusing for a computer to understand. There are also mistakes with the names of people and places, such as famous broadway stars, museums, and restaurants. 

What if you had “scripted” the story? What difference might that have made?

If the story was scripted, there would have been far fewer interjections, but I believe that the text would still read as oral text. When we write speeches, we do not write them the same manner in which we would write an email. So although the output may be cleaner with less errors in a scripted scenario, I still think that there would be many of the same issues discussed above. In my previous experience using these sorts of tools (some years ago), often times I resorted to literally saying the word “period” or “comma” to insert one into the text output. At the time, I found this to be the only way to get accurate punctuation in my text. After using it again for this assignment, I can’t say I am any more confident than the last time I used it.

In what ways does oral storytelling differ from written storytelling? 

Oral storytelling is also in many ways a form of visual storytelling. Gnanadesikan (2011) explains, “Writing is generally done more deliberately than speaking, so finished written pieces are much more carefully crafted than a typical spoken sentence” (p. 5). Oral storytelling relies on things such as tone, expression, body language and gestures to convey the story, while written storytelling relies solely on the words used to achieve the same result. This is why it is so unusual to read oral storytelling in written format, because it is simply the wrong medium! In written communication, we use metaphors and other literary devices, that would be odd to use orally. For example, we do not often describe someone’s hair to be “as bright as the sun” in an oral story, but when written, it helps the reader imagine and connect with the text.

References

Gnanadesikan, A.E. (2011). The first IT revolution. In The writing revolution: Cuneiform to the Internet (pp. 1-12). John Wiley & Sons.

Ong, W.J. (2002). Orality and Literacy: 30th Anniversary Edition (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203426258

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Tasks

Task 1: What’s in your bag?

Hi Everyone!

My name is Tristan Wong, I’m currently an eLearning developer for a local municipality in British Columbia. I am not often “on-the-go”, but when I am, I frequently need to be able to work from wherever I am going. This image shows what I usually have packed with me in these kinds of situations.

What is your daily need for the items in your bag? 

It is essential that I carry my laptop (charger not pictured), earbuds, and the classic phone, keys, wallet combination with me on these excursions. I also carry an external battery which can be used to charge my phone or laptop, sunglasses, an electronic hand warmer, and a thermos with iced peach tea + espresso (you have to try it!). These contents allow me to have a portable workstation ready to go wherever I travel.

How might these items be considered “texts” and what do they say about you, the places you inhabit, the cultures with which you engage, and/or the activities you take up? What do the items in your bag say about the literacies you have?

Although the picture does not contain much, it demonstrates my reliance on technology in my everyday life. Half of the objects pictured are digital or electronic in nature – which could indicate substantial literacy with technology. Other than that, the bag does not give a more private glimpse into any other interests or hobbies I might have.

Still, one could paint a pretty clear picture of what I might do with this bag, when I might use it, and what kind of work I would be doing with it. It may come of as no-nonsense, business-y, or even café-hopping in nature.

Thinking about the title of the course, what are the “text technologies” in your bag, if any? What do these items say about how you engage with language and communication?

My bag does not contain a notebook or a pen as I do not often take written notes. The reason for this is two-fold:

  • I have horrendous handwriting; and
  • I often misplace my notebook, or wish I had the notes I wrote in a digital format

Both my phone and computer allow me to connect with others digitally. My phone is even displaying notifications from both WhatsApp and Microsoft Teams – two apps specifically designed for text communication. I also have earbuds in my bag, which might suggest I speak with people orally using a combination these technologies. The two main forms of printed text I have in my bag consist of an old gas receipt, and credit/loyalty cards of varying nature.

This bag indicates that I rely very little on written/physical text technologies, and that the bulk of my work and life takes place on these digital devices. The image alone barely contains any text on it save for the granola bar and receipt. If you were to explore my phone and laptop in more detail, you would find a well-used Google Keep list, as well as a very cluttered but idea-full Notion workspace – two other technologies that I use heavily to record important notes.

One could also garner ideas about what my work is like from this image. It requires no reference material or physical content. If I saw these belongings, I would assume the person worked in a tech or digital field.

How does the narrative of the (private) contents of your bag compare with the narrative produced by the image you have of yourself or the image you outwardly project?

I think that while this bag shows the kind of person I am while working, it does not accurately depict my hobbies and interests outside of work. In addition, this picture may give the impression that I am rather organized and clutter-free, which is absolutely not the case.

What would this same bag have looked like, say, 15 or 25 years ago? How do you imagine an archeologist aiming to understand this temporal period might view the contents of your bag many years in the future?

15-25 years ago, this bag would have been significantly larger, as any laptops and phones available then would not be as compact. Besides the outdated technology, the rest of my bag could realistically look exactly the same. My wallet itself may be almost 10 years old, so it could certainly have existed in a bag of the past. I think that this would be a very straightforward bag for an archeologist to analyze, as it has a clear theme, and does not contain many personal belongings.

Reflection and Final Thoughts 

This turned out to be a much more interesting exercise than I expected when I read it. My initial reaction was to the challenge was “but my bag is really boring”. However, it turns out you can gain a lot of knowledge (or assumptions) about someone just by what they carry around somewhere. This made me think of people-watching, and what makes it entertaining/interesting. Through this activity, you are able to get a glimpse into someone’s life. You don’t know how big or small that glimpse is, and you don’t know anything else about that person, yet you can feel connected to them or like you know them just by viewing the contents of their bag. Overall, I really enjoyed this exercise.

Fun Question: Does anyone have any guesses about things that might be my non-work hobbies or interests? What in my bag suggested this idea?

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