A simple voice test could help doctors distinguish between a sore throat and
something more serious—like a cyst or a tumour. Although people’s voices
can be very different, scientists at UMIST in Manchester and the city’s Christie
Hospital, Withington, have trained a neural network program to recognise the
characteristics of a healthy voice. If a lump forms on the larynx, the voice’s
characteristics are different—though the change may not be obvious to the
ear. “What we’ve got is the makings of a screening tool,” says Tim Ritchings of
UMIST.
More from New Scientist
Explore the latest news, articles and features

ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû1000¼¯ºÏ
Woman with Alzheimer's starts conversing again after taking psilocybin
News

Life
New-to-science spider builds trap that flings ants into the air
News

ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû1000¼¯ºÏ
How menopause radically changes the brain – and what happens after
Features

Mind
‘Fusogenic’ neurosurgery let paralysed pigs walk again – are we next?
Comment
Popular articles
Trending New Scientist articles
1
Woman with Alzheimer's starts conversing again after taking psilocybin
2
How menopause radically changes the brain – and what happens after
3
A promising natural technique to remove CO2 could backfire
4
Most portable air conditioners suck – but there's an easy fix
5
Faecal transplant makes the brains of old mice act young again
6
People training new AI models admit they just get chatbots to do it
7
New-to-science spider builds trap that flings ants into the air
8
Can prebiotics, probiotics or postbiotics help your ageing microbiome?
9
Fully autonomous drones have killed human soldiers for the first time
10
‘Fusogenic’ neurosurgery let paralysed pigs walk again – are we next?