1,221 research outputs found
A Cultural History of the Disneyland Theme Parks
The first comparative historical study of the six Disneyland theme parks around the world in five distinct cultures: the USA, Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong and Shanghai. Situates the parks in their respective historic contexts at the time of their opening, and considers the part that class plays in the success or failure of these ventures
Critique of Fantasy, Vol. 1
"Critique of Fantasy, Vol. 1: Between a Crypt and a Date Mark addresses both the style or genre of fantasy and the mental faculty, long the hot property of philosophical ethics. Freud passed it along in his 1907 essay on the poetics of daydreaming when he addressed omnipotent wish fantasy as the source and resource of the aspirations and resolutions of art, which, however, the artwork can never look back at or acknowledge. By grounding his genre in the one fantasy that is true, the Gospel, J.R.R. Tolkien obviated and made obvious the ethical mandate of fantasy’s restraining order.
With George Lucas’s Star Wars we entered the borderlands of the fantasy and science fiction genres, a zone resulting from and staggering a contest, which Tolkien inaugurated in the 1930s. The history of this contested borderland marks changes that arose in expectation of what the new media held in store, changes realized (but outside the box of what had been projected) upon the arrival of the unanticipated digital relation, which at last seemed to award the fantasy genre the contest prize.
Freud’s notion of the Zeitmarke (datemark), the indelible impress of the present moment that triggered the daydream that denies it, already introduced the import of fantasy's historicization. Science fiction won a second prize that keeps it in the running. No longer bound to projecting the future, the former calling which in light of digitization it flunked, science fiction becomes allegorical and reading in the ruins of its failed predictions illuminates all the date marks and crypts hiding out in the borderlands it traverses with fantasy. To motivate the import of an evolving science fiction genre, Critique of Fantasy makes Gotthard Günther's reflections in the 1950s on American science fiction – as heralding a new metaphysics and a new planetary going on interstellar civilization – a mainstay of its cultural anthropology with B-genres.
A Cultural History of the Disneyland Theme Parks
The first comparative historical study of the six Disneyland theme parks around the world in five distinct cultures: the USA, Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong and Shanghai. Situates the parks in their respective historic contexts at the time of their opening, and considers the part that class plays in the success or failure of these ventures
Prosodic and Voice Quality Cross-Language Analysis of Storytelling Expressive Categories Oriented to Text-To-Speech Synthesis
Durant segles, la interpretació oral de contes i històries ha sigut una tradició mundial lligada a l’entreteniment, la educació, i la perpetuació de la cultura. En les últimes dècades, alguns treballs s’han centrat en analitzar aquest estil de parla ric en matisos expressius caracteritzats per determinats patrons acústics. En relació a això, també hi ha hagut un interès creixent en desenvolupar aplicacions de contar contes, com ara les de contacontes interactius. Aquesta tesi està orientada a millorar aspectes claus d’aquest tipus d’aplicacions: millorar la naturalitat de la parla sintètica expressiva a partir d’analitzar la parla de contacontes en detall, a més a més de proporcionar un millor llenguatge no verbal a un avatar parlant mitjançant la sincronització de la parla i els gestos. Per aconseguir aquests objectius és necessari comprendre les caracterÃstiques acústiques d’aquest estil de parla i la interacció de la parla i els gestos.
Pel que fa a caracterÃstiques acústiques de la parla de contacontes, la literatura relacionada ha treballat en termes de prosòdia, mentre que només ha estat suggerit que la qualitat de la veu pot jugar un paper important per modelar les subtileses d’aquest estil. En aquesta tesi, el paper tant de la prosòdia com de la qualitat de la veu en l’estil indirecte de la parla de contacontes en diferents idiomes és analitzat per identificar les principal categories expressives que la composen i els parà metres acústics que les caracteritzen. Per fer-ho, es proposa una metodologia d’anotació per aquest estil de parla a nivell de oració basada en modes de discurs dels contes (mode narratiu, descriptiu, i dià leg), introduint a més sub-modes narratius. Considerant aquesta metodologia d’anotació, l’estil indirecte d’una història orientada a una audiència jove (cobrint versions en castellà , anglès, francès, i alemany) és analitzat en termes de prosòdia i qualitat de la veu mitjançant anà lisis estadÃstics i discriminants, després de classificar els à udios de les oracions de la història en les seves categories expressives. Els resultats confirmen l’existència de les categories de contes amb diferències expressives subtils en tots els idiomes més enllà dels estils personals dels narradors. En aquest sentit, es presenten evidències que suggereixen que les categories expressives dels contes es transmeten amb matisos expressius més subtils que en les emocions bà siques, després de comparar els resultats obtinguts amb aquells de parla emocional. Els anà lisis també mostren que la prosòdia i la qualitat de la veu contribueixen prà cticament de la mateixa manera a l’hora de discriminar entre les categories expressives dels contes, les quals son expressades amb patrons acústics similars en tots els idiomes analitzats. Cal destacar també la gran relació observada en la selecció de categoria per cada oració que han fet servir els diferents narradors encara quan, que sapiguem, no se’ls hi va donar cap indicació.
Per poder traslladar totes aquestes categories a un sistema de text a parla basat en corpus, caldria enregistrar un corpus per cada categoria. No obstant, crear diferents corpus ad-hoc esdevé un tasca molt laboriosa. En la tesi, s’introdueix una alternativa basada en una metodologia d’anà lisi orientada a sÃntesi dissenyada per derivar models de regles des de un petit però representatiu conjunt d’oracions, que poden poder ser utilitzats per generar parla amb estil de contacontes a partir de parla neutra. Els experiments sobre suspens creixent com a prova de concepte mostren la viabilitat de la proposta en termes de naturalitat i similitud respecte un narrador de contes real.
Finalment, pel que fa a interacció entre parla i gestos, es realitza un anà lisi de sincronia i èmfasi orientat a controlar un avatar de contacontes en 3D. Al tal efecte, es defineixen indicadors de força tant per els gestos com per la parla. Després de validar-los amb tests perceptius, una regla d’intensitat s’obté de la seva correlació. A més a més, una regla de sincronia es deriva per determinar correspondències temporals entre els gestos i la parla. Aquests anà lisis s’han dut a terme sobre interpretacions neutres i agressives per part d’un actor per cobrir un gran rang de nivells d’èmfasi, com a primer pas per avaluar la integració d’un avatar parlant després del sistema de text a parla.Durante siglos, la interpretación oral de cuentos e historias ha sido una tradición mundial ligada al entretenimiento, la educación, y la perpetuación de la cultura. En las últimas décadas, algunos trabajos se han centrado en analizar este estilo de habla rico en matices expresivos caracterizados por determinados patrones acústicos. En relación a esto, también ha habido un interés creciente en desarrollar aplicaciones de contar cuentos, como las de cuentacuentos interactivos. Esta tesis está orientada a mejorar aspectos claves de este tipo de aplicaciones: mejorar la naturalidad del habla sintética expresiva a partir de analizar el habla de cuentacuentos en detalle, además de proporcionar un mejor lenguaje no verbal a un avatar parlante mediante la sincronización del habla y los gestos. Para conseguir estos objetivos es necesario comprender las caracterÃsticas acústicas de este estilo de habla y la interacción del habla y los gestos.
En cuanto a caracterÃsticas acústicas del habla de narradores de cuentos, la literatura relacionada ha trabajado en términos de prosodia, mientras que sólo ha sido sugerido que la calidad de la voz puede jugar un papel importante para modelar las sutilezas de este estilo. En esta tesis, el papel tanto de la prosodia como de la calidad de la voz en el estilo indirecto del habla de cuentacuentos en diferentes idiomas es analizado para identificar las principales categorÃas expresivas que componen este estilo de habla y los parámetros acústicos que las caracterizan. Para ello, se propone una metodologÃa de anotación a nivel de oración basada en modos de discurso de los cuentos (modo narrativo, descriptivo, y diálogo), introduciendo además sub-modos narrativos. Considerando esta metodologÃa de anotación, el estilo indirecto de una historia orientada a una audiencia joven (cubriendo versiones en castellano, inglés, francés, y alemán) es analizado en términos de prosodia y calidad de la voz mediante análisis estadÃsticos y discriminantes, después de clasificar los audios de las oraciones de la historia en sus categorÃas expresivas. Los resultados confirman la existencia de las categorÃas de cuentos con diferencias expresivas sutiles en todos los idiomas más allá de los estilos personales de los narradores. En este sentido, se presentan evidencias que sugieren que las categorÃas expresivas de los cuentos se transmiten con matices expresivos más sutiles que en las emociones básicas, tras comparar los resultados obtenidos con aquellos de habla emocional. Los análisis también muestran que la prosodia y la calidad de la voz contribuyen prácticamente de la misma manera a la hora de discriminar entre las categorÃas expresivas de los cuentos, las cuales son expresadas con patrones acústicos similares en todos los idiomas analizados. Cabe destacar también la gran relación observada en la selección de categorÃa para cada oración que han utilizado los diferentes narradores aun cuando, que sepamos, no se les dio ninguna indicación.
Para poder trasladar todas estas categorÃas a un sistema de texto a habla basado en corpus, habrÃa que grabar un corpus para cada categorÃa. Sin embargo, crear diferentes corpus ad-hoc es una tarea muy laboriosa. En la tesis, se introduce una alternativa basada en una metodologÃa de análisis orientada a sÃntesis diseñada para derivar modelos de reglas desde un pequeño pero representativo conjunto de oraciones, que pueden ser utilizados para generar habla de cuentacuentos a partir de neutra. Los experimentos sobre suspense creciente como prueba de concepto muestran la viabilidad de la propuesta en términos de naturalidad y similitud respecto a un narrador de cuentos real.
Finalmente, en cuanto a interacción entre habla y gestos, se realiza un análisis de sincronÃa y énfasis orientado a controlar un avatar cuentacuentos en 3D. Al tal efecto, se definen indicadores de fuerza tanto para gestos como para habla. Después de validarlos con tests perceptivos, una regla de intensidad se obtiene de su correlación. Además, una regla de sincronÃa se deriva para determinar correspondencias temporales entre los gestos y el habla. Estos análisis se han llevado a cabo sobre interpretaciones neutras y agresivas por parte de un actor para cubrir un gran rango de niveles de énfasis, como primer paso para evaluar la integración de un avatar parlante después del sistema de texto a habla.For ages, the oral interpretation of tales and stories has been a worldwide tradition tied to entertainment, education, and perpetuation of culture. During the last decades, some works have focused on the analysis of this particular speaking style rich in subtle expressive nuances represented by specific acoustic cues. In line with this fact, there has also been a growing interest in the development of storytelling applications, such as those related to interactive storytelling. This thesis deals with one of the key aspects of audiovisual storytellers: improving the naturalness of the expressive synthetic speech by analysing the storytelling speech in detail, together with providing better non-verbal language to a speaking avatar by synchronizing that speech with its gestures. To that effect, it is necessary to understand in detail the acoustic characteristics of this particular speaking style and the interaction between speech and gestures.
Regarding the acoustic characteristics of storytelling speech, the related literature has dealt with the acoustic analysis of storytelling speech in terms of prosody, being only suggested that voice quality may play an important role for the modelling of its subtleties. In this thesis, the role of both prosody and voice quality in indirect storytelling speech is analysed across languages to identify the main expressive categories it is composed of together with the acoustic parameters that characterize them. To do so, an analysis methodology is proposed to annotate this particular speaking style at the sentence level based on storytelling discourse modes (narrative, descriptive, and dialogue), besides introducing narrative sub-modes. Considering this annotation methodology, the indirect speech of a story oriented to a young audience (covering the Spanish, English, French, and German versions) is analysed in terms of prosody and voice quality through statistical and discriminant analyses, after classifying the sentence-level utterances of the story in their corresponding expressive categories. The results confirm the existence of storytelling categories containing subtle expressive nuances across the considered languages beyond narrators' personal styles. In this sense, evidences are presented suggesting that such storytelling expressive categories are conveyed with subtler speech nuances than basic emotions by comparing their acoustic patterns to the ones obtained from emotional speech data. The analyses also show that both prosody and voice quality contribute almost equally to the discrimination among storytelling expressive categories, being conveyed with similar acoustic patterns across languages. It is also worth noting the strong relationship observed in the selection of the expressive category per utterance across the narrators even when, up to our knowledge, no previous indications were given to them.
In order to translate all these expressive categories to a corpus-based Text-To-Speech system, the recording of a speech corpus for each category would be required. However, building ad-hoc speech corpora for each and every specific expressive style becomes a very daunting task. In this work, we introduce an alternative based on an analysis-oriented-to-synthesis methodology designed to derive rule-based models from a small but representative set of utterances, which can be used to generate storytelling speech from neutral speech. The experiments conducted on increasing suspense as a proof of concept show the viability of the proposal in terms of naturalness and storytelling resemblance.
Finally, in what concerns the interaction between speech and gestures, an analysis is performed in terms of time and emphasis oriented to drive a 3D storytelling avatar. To that effect, strength indicators are defined for speech and gestures. After validating them through perceptual tests, an intensity rule is obtained from their correlation. Moreover, a synchrony rule is derived to determine temporal correspondences between speech and gestures. These analyses have been conducted on aggressive and neutral performances to cover a broad range of emphatic levels as a first step to evaluate the integration of a speaking avatar after the expressive Text-To-Speech system
Recommended from our members
The Search for an Internationalist Aesthetics: Soviet Images of China, 1920-1935.
This dissertation examines images of China produced in early Soviet culture, focusing in particular on the mid-to-late 1920s, a period of heightened Soviet involvement in Chinese politics. It argues that China became in this period the primary testing ground for the creation of an "internationalist aesthetics": a mode of representation that might express horizontal solidarity over vertical dominance, and inscribe China into the global map envisioned by Marist-Leninist theories of revolution. Seeking to produce a new China to replace the exotic Orient, Soviet artists and writers experimented with multiple genres and media--reportage, film, theatre, biography--in their search for the correct mode for internationalist aesthetics. The struggle over how to represent the world for a revolutionary society thus coalesces, in this period, around the question of how to represent China.
Such an aesthetics is inevitably interconnected with politics, and internationalist aesthetics encountered and expressed the same ambiguities as the political project of Soviet internationalism: a liberatory, anti-imperial ideology that simultaneously sought to control political and historical narratives from the world revolution's proclaimed centre in Moscow. Consequently, these disparate images are united by an insistence on the privileged position and perspective of the Soviet observer, who looks at Chinese reality with a combination of advanced modern knowledge, sympathy with oppression, and revolutionary experience that is purportedly inaccessible to other Europeans, or indeed to the Chinese themselves. This privileged perspective on China undergirds the claims of internationalist aesthetics to present a true image of the world. The search for an authoritative mode for internationalist aesthetics is hampered, however, by recurrent issues of access, mediation and translatability, and by lingering parallels between this avowedly anti-imperialist discourse and the imperial systems of knowledge production it supposedly replaces
February 6, 1998
The Breeze is the student newspaper of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia
Proceedings of the VIIth GSCP International Conference
The 7th International Conference of the Gruppo di Studi sulla Comunicazione Parlata, dedicated to the memory of Claire Blanche-Benveniste, chose as its main theme Speech and Corpora. The wide international origin of the 235 authors from 21 countries and 95 institutions led to papers on many different languages. The 89 papers of this volume reflect the themes of the conference: spoken corpora compilation and annotation, with the technological connected fields; the relation between prosody and pragmatics; speech pathologies; and different papers on phonetics, speech and linguistic analysis, pragmatics and sociolinguistics. Many papers are also dedicated to speech and second language studies. The online publication with FUP allows direct access to sound and video linked to papers (when downloaded)
Empire and Politics in the Eastern and Western Civilizations
The volume includes the proceedings of the 2nd Roma Sinica conference held in 2019 and aims to compare some features of the ancient political thought in the Western classical tradition and in the Eastern ancient thought. The contributors propose new patterns of interpretation of the mutual interactions and proximities between these two cultural worlds and offer also a perspective of continuity between contemporary and ancient political thought
- …