Vowel Corner
One of the efforts of the SPA Labs is to share the research findings with a wider audience, reaching out to all who are not necessarily speech professionals but who wish to get basic understanding of the type of investigation being done in our labs.
The highlights from our work on vowels are presented in the Vowel Corner, which is still under development and will expand as the research progresses. Vowel Corner consists mostly of audio-visual demonstrations. The SPA Labs personnel may be contacted for further inquiries.
Demonstration 1: Vowel dynamics in three dialects of American English.
As you listen to individual vowels, please notice the change in the sound over each vowel's duration. From the displayed trajectories for each vowel, it will be apparent how the sound changes over time (the trajectories are tracked at five equidistant locations, corresponding to 20-35-50-65-80% point across the duration of the vowel). For each vowel (click on the word), compare the amount and direction of the spectral change in examples from North Carolina, Ohio, and Wisconsin. You will find amazing cross-dialectal and inter-speaker differences!
| North Carolina | Ohio | Wisconsin |
|---|---|---|
| female, 61 yrs old | female, 50 yrs old | female, 62 yrs old |