Siberian scientists preserve rare and endangered languages

According to UNESCO, the world every two weeks one language disappears. In Russia, are threatened with extinction dozens of languages, and about thirty of them - Siberian. Staff of three institutes of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences for the third year using scanner as a tool for the study and conservation of rare languages ​​of South Siberia.

There it is. The International Tomography Center, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ITC SB RAS), located in Novosibirsk Akademgorodok, come representatives of indigenous and endangered ethnic Altai, Kemerovo region, Tuva and other regions of southern Siberia. They were placed for several hours in the MRI scanner, where they repeat the words of the native language, trying as much as possible accurately and correctly pronounce each sound.

Specialists of the Institute of Philology of the SB RAS is fixed in motion and static articulation of indigenous media. The works have already participated more than sixty speakers, volunteers made more than 500 digital X-rays and 2, 5 thousand magnetic resonance tomograms. For fixing of the technology used in the movement of cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging. This technology is virtually harmless when compared to X-rays, and soft tissue (the sky, the vocal cords, tongue, pharynx, larynx) can be seen on our equipment is much better than the X-ray equipment.

To display the vocal apparatus in the dynamics of the ITC staff have developed a unique software, which produces about 10 images per second, the speech apparatus in six projections, and then conducts recording and image processing.

In addition to the soft tissue of the vocal apparatus to obtain a complete picture of articulation is necessary to fix the position of the teeth and jaws, but they are better seen on X-rays. To do this, scientists from the Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine provided malodoznuyu digital X-ray unit "Sibscan" developed at the Institute of Nuclear Physics. Budker SB RAS. In the world of these plants is used not only for medical purposes, but also for the inspection, for example, in airport terminals. In addition to the substantive work on a tomograph, researchers produce 36 more pictures on "Sibskane».

His aim, scientists see the creation of a universal voice-electronic model apparatus, a speech synthesizer rare and endangered languages. The equipment can not only store but also to teach the pronunciation of hundreds and thousands of languages, using the database of X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging, speech and record live sound chart.

Source: www.kommersant.ru

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