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Voice of Thomas Edison's talking doll, after 123 years scientists crack code of metal ring
DailyMail.U.K. ^ | 15th July 2011 | John Stevens

Posted on 07/17/2011 6:25:08 AM PDT by SanFranDan

FULL TITLE: Voice of Thomas Edison's talking doll is heard again after 123 years as scientists crack the code of mysterious metal ring

For decades it lay in the bottom of a secretary's desk drawer, its purpose unknown.

But now, 123 year after it was made, the secret of this bent metal ring, which was found in Thomas Edison's laboratory, has finally been uncovered.

Scientists have found that the microscopic grooves on the ring make up the tune of 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star' and mark the world's first attempt at a talking doll and the dawn of America's recording industry

Using advanced imaging technology they have recovered a 12 second sound recording of woman reciting a verse of the children's song.

They believe the tin ring was intended to be the key component of one of Thomas Edison's talking dolls. Historians think Edison hired the woman to make the recording less than two years before he unsuccessfully put the first talking doll on the market.

'Based on the date of fall 1888, it is the oldest American-made recording of a woman's voice that we can listen to today,' said Patrick Feaster, a historian at Indiana University in Bloomington.

Mr Feaster pored over historical documents and 19th-century newspaper reports to piece together the story behind the recording.

Edison hoped to mass-produce the toys, but the era's rudimentary technology meant that to make 100 dolls, Edison would have to get artists to recite the lullaby 100 times.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Philosophy
KEYWORDS: doll; edison; godsgravesglyphs; inventions; science; stringtheory; talkingdoll; talkytina; thomasedison; toy
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To: SanFranDan

Words fail.

This is truly awesome.

All of our entertainment, much of our world’s sights and sounds that we can share with each other came from this man’s genius.

Not bad for a greedy, dead white guy.


21 posted on 07/17/2011 7:32:45 AM PDT by Adder (Say NO to the O in 2 oh 12)
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To: SanFranDan

Not as good as the Talking Dog saying “I wuv you”.


22 posted on 07/17/2011 7:35:19 AM PDT by Ann Archy (Abortion is the Human Sacrifice to the god of Convenience.)
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To: SanFranDan

Not as good as the Talking Dog saying “I wuv you”.


23 posted on 07/17/2011 7:35:32 AM PDT by Ann Archy (Abortion is the Human Sacrifice to the god of Convenience.)
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To: SanFranDan

“Math class is tough!”

- Barbie, July, 1992


24 posted on 07/17/2011 7:40:29 AM PDT by Right Wing Assault (Dick Obama is more inexperienced now than he was before he was elected.)
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To: SanFranDan

The oldest recorded voice is from France in the 1860’s. A woman’s voice recorded on smoked glass.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7318180.stm


25 posted on 07/17/2011 7:46:07 AM PDT by SkyDancer (You know, they invented wheelbarrows to teach FAA inspectors to walk on their hind legs.)
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To: SanFranDan; flaglady47; mickie
Kinda eerie in a way....but the voice appears to have a definite Brooklyn accent, LOL.

Leni

26 posted on 07/17/2011 8:08:18 AM PDT by MinuteGal
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To: SanFranDan

I remember reading long ago that speakers had to shout and enunciate very clearly with Edison’s early recording technology. You can hear that in the woman’s voice. It is indeed eerie — who was the woman? What was her life like?


27 posted on 07/17/2011 8:35:54 AM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom
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To: Junior_G

Researchers say that women’s shapes have changed just since WWII. Look at Marilyn Monroe, she’d be consider fat nowadays and women’s voices have dropped an octave or so.


28 posted on 07/17/2011 9:02:09 AM PDT by Jabba the Nutt (.Are they stupid, malicious or evil?)
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To: SanFranDan

“Edison hoped to mass-produce the toys, but the era’s rudimentary technology meant that to make 100 dolls, Edison would have to get artists to recite the lullaby 100 times.”

He didn’t think to simply replay the original to create a new copy?


29 posted on 07/17/2011 9:16:06 AM PDT by RockyMtnMan
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Thanks SanFranDan.

Just adding to the catalog, not sending a general distribution.

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30 posted on 07/17/2011 10:36:00 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (Yes, as a matter of fact, it is that time again -- https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: AdmSmith; bvw; callisto; ckilmer; dandelion; ganeshpuri89; gobucks; KevinDavis; Las Vegas Dave; ...

Thanks SanFranDan. There would have been a pull-string, so, relevant to the list. ;')


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31 posted on 07/17/2011 10:38:32 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (Yes, as a matter of fact, it is that time again -- https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: SanFranDan

6,500 year old voices - voices from 6,500 recording extract

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lulnv7klDBs


32 posted on 07/17/2011 10:42:03 AM PDT by bvw
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To: RockyMtnMan

As bad as the original recording sounded, copies of it probably wouldn’t be recognizable as a human voice.


33 posted on 07/17/2011 1:42:42 PM PDT by exDemMom (Now that I've finally accepted that I'm living a bad hair life, I'm more at peace with the world.)
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To: SanFranDan

34 posted on 07/19/2011 9:20:22 PM PDT by Beowulf9
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