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Disturbing EPU News
06-06-2009, 02:58 PM
Gryphon's been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.
Announcement at the EPU Forums here.
-- Bob
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Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
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Well, crap.
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"V, did you do something foolish?"
"Yes, and it was glorious."
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... Jeebus fucking crispie.
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Sucrose Octanitrate.
Proof positive that with sufficient motivation, you can make anything explode.
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Yeah. At the moment I'm wondering what the state of the rat is as far as voice recognition software. Its been a long time since I played with the stuff and
I wasnt that impressed with it then. But Gryphon is known for his written words, both in fandom and in his RL professions. What happens if his MS affects his
abilty to type? Its bad enough what it means to Us RCW types, but what about Him? I know he doesnt want any sappy condolences posts, et all... but writing has
been a major part of his life for 20 years plus! How would not being able to write affect him?
And on a seeming non sequitur, do any of you watch Deadliest Catch on Discovery? cause the way Gryphon is playing big tough guy kinda reminds me of the whole
Cap'n Phill of the Cornilia Marie thing from last years Opie season...
Hear that thunder rolling till it seems to split the sky?
That's every ship in Grayson's Navy taking up the cry-
NO QUARTER!!!
-- "No Quarter", by Echo's Children
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Well, I'm given to understand that the 'Mad Wizard Weber' uses voice recognition to write his books, so I'd say that things've come pretty far. For that matter, I've personally run across phonebots that could handle verbal input, which is weird as all hell let me tell you.
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"V, did you do something foolish?"
"Yes, and it was glorious."
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Voice Recog on phones is pretty much a science these days. Speaking as someone who has set up, integrated, and SYSTEM TESTED the damn things, I know they work.
However, phone level Speech recog is easier than PC level mainly because the frequency range on phones is more limited. That said, PC based voice recognition
is up to the task as long as you train the system well.
However, the symptoms of MS are many, even affecting speech. Reading the Wikipedia page on it makes me shiver.
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um. wow.
MS can affect basically any function.... since it damages random parts of the brain, it can affect his ability to write (but not type), walk, run, touch his
nose, see or basically anything... here's hoping progression is slow and the treatments advance quickly.
self-serving:
i'm doing a ride for the National MS Society at the end of this month and am collection donations at http://NationalMSSociety.org/goto/Z
-Z, Post-reader at Medium
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If architects built buildings the way programmers write programs, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization.
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Wow... I can sympathize though. My Uncle has had MS all his life, and so I've grown up around someone with it and know what it's like.
There are different severities and there are treatments for it. Not cures, but it will make everyday life easier and slow the progression of the disease.
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Modern treament is pretty effective, and assuming they've caught it at the start his prognosis is really good for minimal problems and a long and healthy
life.
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Quote:Gryphon's been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.
Bloody hell. (My sister died from complications to MS, a bit over a decade ago now... I'm not dispassionate about this condition.)
Quote:At the moment I'm wondering what the state of the rat is as far as voice recognition software. Its been a long time since I played with the stuff and I wasnt that impressed with it then. But Gryphon is known for his written words, both in fandom and in his RL professions. What happens if his MS affects his abilty to type?
If - repeat, if - it gets that bad, it's probably affected his vocal cords as well...
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."
- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012
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Well that is good to know. Still sucks though, progressive degenerative diseases are all around bad.
-Terry
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"so listen up boy, or pornography starring your mother will be the second worst thing to happen to you today"
TF2: Spy
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yo all,
i'm riding 150 miles to raise money for MS research at the end of June. I've been doing this for a few years now, but this year it hits a little closer to home with someone I 'know' having been diagnosed. The National MS Society lets you ride "for" a person, and for the first time I'll be doing that: I get to wear a bandanna with Gryphon's name (and anything else he decides to write) on it.
I'm asking for y'all's support. No donation is too small (or too big!) and http://nationalmssociety.org/goto/Z]every little bit helps.
-Z, Post-reader at Medium
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If architects built buildings the way programmers write programs, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization.
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My maternal grandmother died of MS when my mother was a child. I grew up on Mom's stories of how she cared for grandma.
I sponsored a rider last year, Zojo, and I'm pretty sure it was you. I'll be doing the same this year.
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Sucrose Octanitrate.
Proof positive that with sufficient motivation, you can make anything explode.
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I do believe you're right, ECS. I think I sent an email early this year to everybody that sponsored me last year, hitting them up again. I think several
people around here were kind enough to sponsor me. I appreciate all of your support, financial and moral
-Z, Post-reader at Medium
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If architects built buildings the way programmers write programs, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization.
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