It is starting to look like Google's voice search recognition is rubbish. While it might work for robots it is not so hot at dealing with real voices.
AP ran Winston Churchill's famous 1940's wartime speech through the software. Instead of the British prime minister's reassurance that “we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets”, it got this cryptic translation back: “This is I John. Demitri. We shall fight on those ending grounds. We shall fight in the fields and in the streets.” The war might have gone a different way had Google been around and we would remember John Demitri instead of Churchill.
Hacks having fun came up with some other daft translations: Tom Hanks' Forrest Gump: “My mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.” Translation: “Oh mama it's dad last we'd like a box of chocolate you never know what you doing again.” Han Solo in Star Wars: “Hey Luke, may the force be with you”, Translation: “Hey Lou, we're working with you.” Lieutenant Colonel Bill Kilgore in Apocalypse Now: “I love the smell of napalm in the morning” Translation: “Hey Les, Pete come in the morning.”
Just ask Winston Churchill
Nick Farell
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