Interface Evolution:

The communication between computers and man has progressed from
machine code to assembly language, high level language, and
finally fourth generation language.  Natural language processing
is a departure from this progression, representing a new approach
to the man/machine interface.  Natural language processing is no
more precise than language itself, with the context of language
being essential to understanding the meaning of the words. 
Speech recognition is an essential component of natural language
processing, as the computer must have the capability to hear,
recognize, and differentiate individual words.  The advent of a
sophisticated voice interface will particularly facilitate
interaction between man and the computer environment. 
Developments in chip design and storage media have enhanced the
viability of natural language processing and voice recognition
systems.  Machines will soon be capable of word recognition
surpassing the average human vocabulary.  Machine vocabulary will
recognize "every language from English to Chinese and Hebrew to
Arabic" (Cetron and O'Toole, 1982).

<ffile38>   User Interface