Launched in September 2013 , the ‘ Seeing Speech ’ website will give students and teachers the best understanding yet of the processes that take place when we speak . Led by Dr Eleanor Lawson , with speech researchers at QMU , the University of Glasgow , University of Strathclyde , University of Aberdeen , and the University of Edinburgh , the ‘ Seeing Speech ’ website demonstrates the use of ultrasound and MRI technology to show 2D images of tongue movements . In the past , knowing exactly what the tongue is doing during speech has been something of a mystery . However , this type of advanced imaging allows students to view the complex movement of the tongue inside the mouth when speech is taking place .

The new online resource brings together the vocal tract imaging expertise of QMU , the expertise in digital database construction of the University of Glasgow , and the phonetics expertise of the three other Scottish universities . It contains over a 1,000 articulatory videos ( people actively producing speech sounds ) - some by speech experts and others by untrained English speakers . The website also has an extensive collection of clips showing speakers with different English accents .

This work builds on years of speech research carried out at QMU and some of the partner universities . Particularly , it makes use of QMU ’ s work in ultrasound technology , and its more recent collaborative research ( the QMU-based Ultrax project ) involving MRI technology ,

to create clearer videos of tongue movements inside the mouth during speech .

Jim Scobbie , Professor of Phonology and Phonetics at Queen Margaret University , has been leading research in ultrasound tongue imaging for ten years . It is a comparatively new technique that uses medical ultrasound machines to record an image of the surface of the tongue during speech . He explained : “ Normally , someone who has a speech difficulty has to rely on their auditory skills to identify where a speech problem is occurring . They must listen to their speech , and that of a speech therapist , and try to modify their own speech to create the correct sound . But that doesn ’ t always work because the client can find it difficult to identify where they are going wrong . With ultrasound technology people can see the movement and shape of their own tongue inside their mouth in real time and use this visual information to help them create the correct sound . Ultrasound therefore has the potential to provide powerful information about typical and disordered speech and can help speakers modify their own incorrect tongue movements .”

A video database showing accent differences in speech production across varieties of English is also part of the website . Twenty-three different English accents are showcased . It is believed that this will be useful to individuals studying accents and accent change , as well as providing normative data for speech therapists , for example showing

the strategies that different speakers have for producing particular speech sounds . Videos of speech sounds are also produced by expert phoneticians Dr Janet Beck from QMU and Dr John Esling from the University of Victoria , British Columbia .

Dr Eleanor Lawson , Researcher in Phonetics and Sociolinguistics at QMU and the University of Glasgow , has spent the last two years working on the project . She said : “ Currently , there are no such comprehensive resources that visualise what is happening inside the mouth when we speak . The team is therefore delighted to be involved in a project that advances the teaching and learning of phonetics and linguistics , but which may also be of interest to speech therapists , learners of English as a foreign language and acting students who want to learn an accent . The ‘ Seeing Speech ’ website is a great starting point and one that we aim to develop into a more substantial teaching and learning resource in the future .”

The ‘ Seeing Speech ’ project , which has taken over two years to complete , was funded by the Carnegie Trust .

To find out more visit : www . seeingspeech . arts . gla . ac . uk ❒

STOP PRESS : QMU is delighted to confirm that the Arts and Humanities Research Council has committed £ 188,587 to develop further the ‘ Seeing Speech ’ website .