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"No one has ever produced a statement of fact that was technically true. The most accurate statements of science we have today are accurate to only 15 decimal places."
- Bart Kosko
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| Spot-Wavex Scrambler | ||
| Provides a more personalized experience of television, by letting the announcers talk to you personally. |
Mass media is fine, as far as it goes; certainly there are products that we all need to know about. But wouldn't it be better if my television talked to me, called me by name? In fact, personalization of that kind might be enough to get me to watch regardless of the quality of the programming.
| Montag turned and looked at his wife, who sat in the middle of the parlor talking to an announcer, who in turn was talking to her. "Mrs. Montag," he was saying this, that, and the other. "Mrs. Montag-" Something else and still another. The converter attachment, which had cost them one hundred dollars, automatically supplied her name whenever the announcer addressed his anonymous audience, leaving a blank where the proper syllables could be filled in. A special spot-wavex scrambler also caused his televised image, in the area immediately about his lips, to mouth the vowels and consonants beautifully. He was a friend, no doubt of it, a good friend. |
| From Fahrenheit 451,
by Ray Bradbury. Published by Doubleday in 1953 Additional resources -
|
Although there is no equivalent product (as far as I know) a company called face2face has a product that allows very easy synchronization of a computer graphic character to lip synch with a real-time narration by an actual person. I've seen this technology demonstrated, and given the increasingly realistic CGI effects in movies like Final Fantasy, it won't be long before the characters in your TV will call you by name.
This item is an accessory for the parlor walls, the original big screen TV that we can't do without.
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Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from Fahrenheit 451
More Ideas
and Technology by Ray Bradbury
Tech news articles related to Fahrenheit 451
Tech news articles related to works by Ray Bradbury
Spot-Wavex Scrambler-related
news articles:
- Spice Girls Live Digital Enhancement
- Interactive TV Patent From Sony
- Face2Face Is Bradbury's Spot-Wavex Scrambler
- Researchers Make You Say Anything in Videos
- Modern App Provides Video Technology From Bradbury's 'Fahrenheit 451'
| 'Courier Commons' By Tomorrow Lab, From Karl Schroeder (and Bruce Sterling?) |
| Mouth Haptics Invented By Frederik Pohl In 1965, CMU Now Has Prototype |
| True Crime Live Podcasting In Fiction |
| Zoom Adds Real-Time, Live Translation |
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'LET ME TELL YOU HOW MUCH I'VE COME TO HATE YOU SINCE I BEGAN TO LIVE.'
'...a rolled-up sheet of a thin, dark metal strange to them.'
'... his contract with Space Industries required him to work summers in their orbital factory complex.'
'Space-weather men had been placed at their disposal...'
With each successive print, our model needed to incorporate more structural ingredients to minimize print failures.
'... Wendis stared thoughtfully at the brilliant lines on the spectroscope screen.'
'A special spot-wavex scrambler also caused his televised image, in the area immediately about his lips, to mouth the vowels and consonants beautifully.'
'... it was as if the upper part had been removed, like a cut deck of cards.'
Sumomo will get those office workers into good shape!
