The Challenge of Spoken Language Systems: Research Directions for the Nineties

A spoken language system combines speech recognition, natural language processing and human interface technology. It functions by recognizing the person's words, interpreting the sequence of words to obtain a meaning in terms of the application, and providing an appropriate response back to the user. Potential applications of spoken language systems range from simple tasks, such as retrieving information from an existing database (traffic reports, airline schedules), to interactive problem solving tasks involving complex planning and reasoning (travel planning, traffic routing), to support for multilingual interactions. We examine eight key areas in which basic research is needed to produce spoken language systems: (1) robust speech recognition; (2) automatic training and adaptation; (3) spontaneous speech; (4) dialogue models; (5) natural language response generation; (6) speech synthesis and speech generation; (7) multilingual systems; and (8) interactive multimodal systems. In each area, we identify key research challenges, the infrastructure needed to support research, and the expected benefits. We conclude by reviewing the need for multidisciplinary research, for development of shared corpora and related resources, for computational support and far rapid communication among researchers. The successful development of this technology will increase accessibility of computers to a wide range of users, will facilitate multinational communication and trade, and will create new research specialties and jobs in this rapidly expanding area

The Challenge of Spoken Language Systems: Research Directions for the Nineties

A spoken language system combines speech recognition, natural language processing and human interface technology. It functions by recognizing the person's words, interpreting the sequence of words to obtain a meaning in terms of the application, and providing an appropriate response back to the user. Potential applications of spoken language systems range from simple tasks, such as retrieving information from an existing database (traffic reports, airline schedules), to interactive problem solving tasks involving complex planning and reasoning (travel planning, traffic routing), to support for multilingual interactions. We examine eight key areas in which basic research is needed to produce spoken language systems: (1) robust speech recognition; (2) automatic training and adaptation; (3) spontaneous speech; (4) dialogue models; (5) natural language response generation; (6) speech synthesis and speech generation; (7) multilingual systems; and (8) interactive multimodal systems. In each area, we identify key research challenges, the infrastructure needed to support research, and the expected benefits. We conclude by reviewing the need for multidisciplinary research, for development of shared corpora and related resources, for computational support and far rapid communication among researchers. The successful development of this technology will increase accessibility of computers to a wide range of users, will facilitate multinational communication and trade, and will create new research specialties and jobs in this rapidly expanding area

Development and Testing of a Pilot Integrated Mental Health and Nutrition Education Program for Low-Income Families in Southern California

Development of an Integrated Mental Health and Nutrition Education Program for WIC Participants Background: The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is a national program that aims to improve nutrition and health behaviors in low-income mothers and children through nutrition education, breastfeeding promotion and support, medical and social service referrals and supplemental food packages. All of these services are essential for improving health outcomes in this population, however research has shown that nutrition knowledge and food packages alone do not guarantee healthier participants. One established reason for this is that stress and depressive symptoms can lead to poor food choices and habits. Methods: This pilot program combines mental health education and nutrition education in a group setting in order to provide much needed support to WIC participants and improve health outcomes. The program is based on Cognitive Behavioral Theory and was developed in the form of 6 reusable modules and handouts, which eliminates the cost-prohibitive need for mental health practitioners. It was implemented through a partnership of PHFE-WIC, Pepperdine Graduate School of Education and Psychology, and Seaver College (Nutrition Program), and provides hands on training for students along with free service delivery for participants. This program was piloted at 2 WIC clinics in Los Angeles – one in the format of a consecutive 6-week program with the same group of participants each week, and the other in a monthly class where anyone can attend, to determine if there is a difference in efficacy depending on the format. Results & Implications: Due to low attendance rates, statistical measures of the efficacy of the program are not available; however, participant and provider feedback were positive and suggest the program has potential to be beneficial. The next steps are to correct advertising mistakes that may have led to low attendance, pilot this program again in the summer, and seek funding to test the curriculum next year. Module Title Topics Covered 1 Making Healthy Habits Nutrition Basics & Habit Formation 2 Stress Management & Self-Care Stress Management & Self-Care 3 Organize Your Life Reducing Household Chaos & Meal Prep 4 All About Mindfulness Mindfulness and Mindful Eating 5 Changing Negative Thinking Changing Negative Thinking 6 Getting What You Want Communication Skill