computer science

SILVIA

SILVIA is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand SILVIA rather than just read about it. In short: Symbolically Isolated Linguistically Variable Intelligence Algorithms (SILVIA) is a core platform technology developed by Cognitive Code. SILVIA was developed and designed to recognize and interpret speech and text, and interact with applications and operating systems.

Key takeaways

SILVIA belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect SILVIA to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of SILVIA from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Symbolically Isolated Linguistically Variable Intelligence Algorithms (SILVIA) is a core platform technology developed by Cognitive Code. SILVIA was developed and designed to recognize and interpret speech and text, and interact with applications and operating systems. The technology can operate from the cloud, as a mobile application, as part of a network, or on servers.

Overview

History Leslie Spring founded Cognitive Code in 2007 and is the inventor and architect of Cognitive Code’s SILVIA Platform. Before founding Cognitive Code, Leslie worked for companies such as Electronic Arts, Disney, and Sony, heading up their software development teams responsible for building graphics systems, 3D game engines, and custom software developer tools. Cognitive Code is privately held by a consortium group of private equity investors. Cognitive Code received venture capital funding from New York investment firm Channel Mark Ventures, which maintains majority ownership of the company.

Features SILVIA was developed to recognize and interpret any human interaction through text, speech, and any other human input. The platform allows an application of it in all applicable and possible applications, which then allows natural and intuitive human interaction. It has a set of graphical user interface tools which can aid in developing intelligent objects or entities and has an array of API scripts that can be embedded in any compatible applications. The platform can be used in different computing platforms and operating systems, which allows easy transfer of data. SILVIA uses a non-command-based system wherein inputs are based on normal human conversational language, not on pre-coded commands like what Google's Google Now and Apple Inc.'s Siri used.

Components SILVIA is composed of several components:

SILVIA Core: A runtime engine which can be configurable for use for any user, server, or mobile system. It can also be embedded. SILVIA Server: A configurable system of SILVIA Cores for automated management. SILVIA Voice: A modular component designed for accepting voice input and rendering voice output. It can be used within an application, web page, or as part of SILVIA server for optimization of media streaming. SILVIA API: Programmers are allowed to create applications and plug-in-based functionality. SILVIA Studio: A graphical system for application-specific behavior development.

Use SILVIA can be used in several applications, including call centers, smart phones like the iPhone and Android devices, and voice search or other voice-related applications. SILVIA responds to its users in complete sentences. SILVIA has been used by companies such as Northrop Grumman. Northrop Grumman used the technology in order to aid the company's employees to communicate with computers and mobile devices using natural language. The company also utilizes the technology in the development and military training applications deployment. As of 2012, SILVIA had been considered for use in training and simulation applications for the US Military. The platform can also be used in gaming through its SILVIA Unity platform, and as of 2007 had been introduced for use in toys.

Recognition Cognitive Code and its technology platform were included in the list of TechCrunch's TechCrunch40 in 2007.

References

External links Official website

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with SILVIA

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what SILVIA claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to SILVIA before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about SILVIA ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of SILVIA

In research: SILVIA appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses SILVIA in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: SILVIA is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Automatic identification and data capture, Computer-related introductions in 2008, Natural language processing software, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for SILVIA outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study SILVIA in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what SILVIA means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain SILVIA out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is SILVIA in simple terms?

Why does SILVIA matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study SILVIA?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on SILVIA.