"What's that, Fido? I'm ticking you off?"
Posted by Cordite on Fri 28 Mar 2003 - 11:34
Last year Tokyo based Takara Co. Ltd. unveiled their "Bowlingual" dog translation device in Japan, where it sold about 300,000 of the units. Now, they're bringing the product to the U.S., where they hope sales will boom despite the $120 price tag. Bowlingual uses a collar-mounted microphone to pick up the dog's vocalizations and "translates" them into appropriate phrases via a palm-sized receiver.
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Dogs are about the most expressive creatures out there. I can't imagine the need for this product.
But, for those who need it, I provide the following canine-English translation:
Dog picking up a leash, laying it at your feet, running back to the door, barking at it, and trying to dig under the door: I'm about to have a little 'accident'.
Dog staring closely and intently at what you're eating, watching every bite, breaking only occasionally to look at you and whine: You haven't trained me not to beg.
Dog jumping on top of you, licking your face enthusiastically, tongue getting up your nose. You still have food left from your meal on your face.
Any more suggestions?
I guess soon they'll have translators for parents who just can't understand their kids, too ;). Seriously, is technology a replacement for the human mind?.. (apparently so, at least when the mind in question is no smarter than a few circuit boards and a chip)..
"I wanna suck your nose."
"I want what the dog's eating!"
"This leash demeans us both."
"Hey! Hey! Hey!"
"Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeey!"
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