Miluga

There wis a lad.

Ae day during his second year o high schule, he went tae a wee hilltop shop on an errand. It wis a wee shop run by an auld couple. Inside, there wis a lassie o similar age wha seemed tae be lookin for somethin, but the lad didnae pay muckle attention and tried tae buy whit he needed and leave.

At that moment, the shop owner, an auld wumman, called the lad ower. She handed him a wee piece o paper and asked him tae read whit wis written on it.

The note had ‘Miluga’ written on it.

The lad thought o a word he could guess. He could only think o ‘flour’ and suggested it micht be flour. The wumman wis grateful, and the lad returned hame.

Hooever, he kept thinkin aboot it. ‘The shop owner probably kens how tae read…’

The next day, the lad went back tae the shop.

“The ‘Miluga’ written on the note ye showed me yesterday, wisnae it written by that lassie near the entrance?”

The wumman wis surprised and asked hoo he kent. The lassie had a disability that made verbal communication difficult. She wrote ‘Miluga’ on the paper because she couldnae communicate tae buy a bag o flour.

That day, the lad made up his mind. If he ever found himsel in a position tae help someone, he would first help those wha are physically challenged or lack educational opportunities, those wha are socially vulnerable.

[The Korean Today] ‘Miluga’ — A story that began from a lad’s memory © The Korean Today Editorial

35 Years Later

35 years hae passed. The lad founded SmileStory Inc. in Sooth Korea in 2009 and established WIA (World Certification Industry Association) in Estonia in 2018. Wi the intention o benefitting the warld wi the maist advanced technology o humanity, he has been creatin technology tae keep that promise.

WIA Talk — A universal sign language platform that allows communication wi onybody usin a single 3D sign language, without the need tae learn different sign languages (ASL, KSL, BSL…) for each kintra. And WIA Braille (wiabraille.com) — A universal braille system based on IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) that allows readin in 7,000 languages once learned. For the deaf, there is WIA Talk, and for the blind, there is WIA Braille. When these two meet, the deaf and blind can communicate directly without an interpreter. This has no been realized anywhere yet.

The technology is ready. The 3D avatar shows sign language, moves lip-sync, and expresses emotions. But for this avatar tae move mair naturally — data o actual human hand movements is needed.

It took 35 years. Durn that time, there must hae been someone wha turned awa without bein able tae buy a bag o flour. If it had been faster, it could hae reached one mair person sooner.

Now, volunteers are bein recruited simultaneously frae 254 language regions.

[The Korean Today] WIA Talk 3D Sign Language Volunteer Program Guide © The Korean Today Editorial

Hoo tae Participate in Volunteering

Ye can dae it frae hame, wi juist a web browser. Nae special skills or sign language experience is required.

Videos Are No Saved — Only Numbers Remain

This is the maist frequently asked question. Isnae the video saved when filming wi a webcam?

Video files are no saved. Our proprietary technology extracts twa things in real-time.

Only these numbers are saved. Yer face image or video file will no remain on the server. The number coordinates and facial expression values are the key data that bring the 3D avatar tae life, and they are sufficient.

Onybody Can Participate

[The Korean Today] WIA Talk Volunteer Program Recruiting Simultaneously frae 254 Language Regions Worldwide © The Korean Today Editorial

The Change Participation Brings

The hand coordinate data ye provide becomes the gestures o the 3D avatar. This avatar is embedded in the e-books o WIA Books (wiabook.com), allowin the deaf tae read books in sign language. This is somethin that has never existed anywhere in the warld before.

Hooever, there is ae mair thing ye need tae ken aboot this story.

Miluga — The Name That Started frae ‘Miluga’

The lassie wha wanted tae buy flour but could only write ‘Miluga’ on a note. We dinnae ken her name. But those three letters hae noo become the name o the accessibility program o WIA Books (wiabook.com) 35 years later.

Miluga — A program that provides free access rights tae a’ published books for UNHCR verified refugees, severely hearin-impaired, and severely visually impaired individuals.

Yer participation is directly reflected in the 3D sign language books o the Miluga program. When a deaf reader opens an e-book, the 3D avatar shows the book content in sign language — each gesture o that avatar is created frae yer data.

Application Guide

It’s okay if ye cannae participate directly. Juist spreading this news tae those aroond ye can be a great help. Sharin on social media or tellin someone interested in sign language would be appreciated.

“There wis a lassie wha wanted tae buy flour but could only write ‘Miluga’. Now, 35 years later, technology is bein created that allows folk like her tae read books, communicate, and connect wi the warld.”

#WIA_Talk  #3DSignLanguage  #Volunteer  #弘益人間  #Deaf  #SignLanguageBooks  #WIA_Book  #Miluga  #Refugees  #254Languages