Vox Ex Machina: A Cultural History of Talking Machines by Bell, Sarah A.

Vox Ex Machina: A Cultural History of Talking Machines

How today's digital devices got their voices, and how we learned to listen to them. From early...
€93,11 EUR
€93,11 EUR
SKU: 9780262546355
Product Type: Books
Please hurry! Only 0 left in stock
Author: Sarah A. Bell
Format: Paperback
Language: English
Subtotal: €93,11
10 customers are viewing this product
Vox Ex Machina: A Cultural History of Talking Machines by Bell, Sarah A.

Vox Ex Machina: A Cultural History of Talking Machines

€93,11

Vox Ex Machina: A Cultural History of Talking Machines

€93,11
Author: Sarah A. Bell
Format: Paperback
Language: English
How today's digital devices got their voices, and how we learned to listen to them.

From early robots to toys like the iconic Speak & Spell to Apple's Siri, Vox Ex Machina tells the fascinating story of how scientists and engineers developed voices for machines during the twentieth century. Sarah Bell chronicles the development of voice synthesis from buzzy electrical current and circuitry in analog components to the robotic sounds of early digital signal processing to today's human sounding applications. Along the way, Bell also shows how the public responded to these technologies and asks whether talking machines are even good for us.

Using a wide range of intriguing examples, Vox Ex Machina is embedded in a wider story about people--describing responses to voice synthesis technologies that often challenged prevailing ideas about computation and automation promoted by boosters of the Information Age. Bell helps explain why voice technologies came to sound and to operate in the way they do--influenced as they were by a combination of technical assumptions and limitations, the choices of the corporations that deploy them, and the habits that consumers developed over time.

A beautifully written book that will appeal to anyone with a healthy skepticism toward Silicon Valley, Vox Ex Machina is an important and timely contribution to our cultural histories of information, computing, and media.

Author: Sarah A. Bell
Publisher: MIT Press
Published: 09/24/2024
Pages: 256
Binding Type: Paperback
ISBN: 9780262546355

About the Author
Sarah A. Bell is a writer and professor who studies the impacts of information technologies on society. She earned a PhD in Communication from the University of Utah in 2015.


This title is only available via back order

Returns Policy

You may return most new, unopened items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. We'll also pay the return shipping costs if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.).

You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, in many cases you will receive a refund more quickly. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days).

If you need to return an item, simply login to your account, view the order using the "Complete Orders" link under the My Account menu and click the Return Item(s) button. We'll notify you via e-mail of your refund once we've received and processed the returned item.

Shipping

We can ship to virtually any address in the world. Note that there are restrictions on some products, and some products cannot be shipped to international destinations.

When you place an order, we will estimate shipping and delivery dates for you based on the availability of your items and the shipping options you choose. Depending on the shipping provider you choose, shipping date estimates may appear on the shipping quotes page.

Please also note that the shipping rates for many items we sell are weight-based. The weight of any such item can be found on its detail page. To reflect the policies of the shipping companies we use, all weights will be rounded up to the next full pound.

Related Products

Recently Viewed Products