On the Line

▰ Suit Up:

Kirin said Acknowledged at the same time all the others on the strike team did, their voices blending into a single sound that the suit parsed for him — their names going from yellow to green on his display.

I’m always interested in the role of sound in user interfaces — even if those interfaces are in fiction, and especially if it’s science fiction. This bit is from the new novella Livesuit, by James S.A. Corey (also author of the Expanse series, and actually two authors — Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck — who use one shared name). 

. . .

▰ Queen’s Throat:

I’m always frustrated because my DynaVox is monotone. Because of my sass, I would like to show more emotions. When I say, "Darling it’s lovely to see you, may I please have a friendly kiss on each cheek?," my DynaVox Maestro isn’t as flamboyantly gay as I am.

That is Mark Steidl. “Steidl has cerebral palsy and speaks through an augmentative and alternative communication (or A.A.C.) device, which can make ordinary interactions painfully slow.” He is the star and co-librettist (with Katherine Skovira) of an opera, The Other Side of Silence, composed by Robert Whalen (New York Times gift link). The work involves “a generative synthetic voice taught to sing opera.” (Thanks, Rich Pettus!)

. . .

▰ House Music:

Then the wee hoursawake in bed,rocking and meditating,strangely blissful lonelinessand insomnia, the sound of my ownhumming and the house ticking,the first tears afterthe first death—

That’s a segment of the poem “Meaning of the Word ‘Never’” by Deborah Garrison. It was published on October 21, 2024, by the New Yorker. There is something beautiful about the “house ticking,” all the more so because the section preceding this one introduces a clock, which suggests a tick, which doesn’t arrive until now.