Human Speech Communication
John N. Holmes, Wendy J. Holmes · 2002
Advances in electronic and computer technology are causing an explosive growth in the use of machines for processing information. In most cases this information originates from a human being, and is ultimately to be used by a human being. The invention of written forms of language came long after humans had established systems of speech communication, and individuals normally learn to speak long before they learn to read and write. The study of how human speech sounds are produced and how they are used in language is an established scientific discipline, with a well-developed theoretical background. The normal aim of a talker is to transfer ideas, as expressed in a particular language, but putting that language in the form of speech involves an extremely complicated extra coding process. Phonologists can differ in how they analyse speech into phoneme sequences, especially for vowel sounds. Pitch, intensity and timing are also important in human speech communication.