sowing social seeds: voice technology connects india's farmers - scott klemmer, stanford...

Sowing Social Seeds: Voice Technology

Connects India’s FarmersNeil Patel, Scott Klemmer, and Tapan Parikh

Stanford eDay, July 2011

19901992

19941996

19982000

20022004

20062008

2010

Internet Users

1B

2B

World

United States

Source: World Bank Development Indicators

3B

...

3by incomedream@Flickr

Most of the world’s poor depend on agriculture

In India, 600 millionMajority smallholders (< 3 acres)

Earning < $750/yr; Debts > $300/yr

Over 2 billion agriculture-dependent lives worldwide

Agricultural Extension

Dissemination of expert advice and technologies to rural communities

100,000 extension o!cers in India

Not on-demandNot comprehensive

Development Support CentreRural development organization for natural resource management and

agricultural productivity enhancement

4

Give people a voice

A case for voice interaction

Why voice?

Works with all phones

Overcomes illiteracy

Voice preferred to text[Sherwani, PhD thesis 09][Medhi, et al., CHI 09]

0

10

20

30

40

50

1999 2001 2003 2005 2007

Developing Regions

% in

habi

tant

sSource: International Telecommunications Union, www.itu.int

Mobiles

Broadband

Low barrier to content creation

http://www.itu.int

http://www.itu.int

Avaaj Otalo (“voice stoop”)

For information access and sharingUsers: low/no education, low literacy, computer novices

Interactive voice response (IVR) in GujaratiDial a number, navigate automated prompts

Record question; listen to posted questions; answer a question

w/ IBM IRL, DSC, UC Berkeley [CHI 09]

Listening to questions on AO


AO: <tune> Welcome to Avaaj Otalo!

You can get to the information by saying a single word.

To ask a question, say ‘question’.

To listen to announcements, say ‘announcements’.

To listen to the radio program, say ‘radio’.

User: Question.

AO: Okay, you want to ask a question.

To record a question, say ‘record’.

To listen to other farmers’ questions and answers, say ‘questions’.User: Questions.

AO: Okay, you’ll now hear the most recently posted questions & answers. Here is the first question...

Piloting Avaaj Otalo

Goals Observe real-world usageUncover design and researchExperience for DSC

Participants 63 males (all but 2 were farmers)Across 4 geographic regions of GujaratNative Gujarati speakersAge 18 - 60 (median: 29)80% no more than high school educationNo experience with computers or IVRs

Implementation Toll-freeIBM Voice Site [Kumar et al., NSDR 2007]


Three features

announcements radio archive question and answer


0

163

325

488

650

Jan-15

Jan-29Feb-12

Feb-26

Mar-12

Mar-26Apr-9

Apr-23May-7

May-21Jun-4

Jun-18 Jul-2

Cal

ls

Novelty e"ect

New participants added

Calls over time


Nearly 20% of callers made 80% of calls

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10

100

1000

10000

1 6 11 16 21 26 31 36 41Caller

Cal

ls

Top ten: 80% of calls Top 3 callers10th grade education or lessGeographically remoteUnder age 30


<farmer’s name>, emidacloplete is for controlling large sucking pests, and will not be e!ective for [green and black] sucking pests. Instead of that you can use phosphamidon or metasystock. This would be more e!ective. DDVP that you sprayed will also do.

Salute to farmer friends, <name> from Kolava. For an earlier question about green and black sucking pests, which pesticide should be sprayed? We received answer from elsewhere that emidacloplete with carbon sulphide can kill green and black sucking pests. Also, when SAT with DDVP is applied the green and black sucking pests die.

Q&A


Experience Sharing

Hello. <name> speaking from Beyok village, Vav taluka, Banaskantha district. Mobile number <number>. I want to inform all farmer friends that for summer vegetable crops, if you find insects, then you should create supports for birds to sit. They can control heliothis. If you use a light at night, then other insects can also be controlled. This can be done in lucerne fodder. We have done this experiment in winter mustard crop.


Entertainment

Songs

Jokes

MP3 Player


Social Dynamics

Introductions


Introductions

Hello, I am <name> speaking from Rajkot district, taluka Jasdan, village Vangadhra. My mobile number is <number>...

65% of questions included at least name


Social Dynamics

Introductions

Moderation


Salute to farmers. I want to inform farmer friends that questions asked should be useful to all farmers. Film songs or jokes in between should not be posted. If the question asked is good, all farmer friends will also enjoy listening.

Moderation

Hello. Earlier, <farmer name> had [made recordings] like this. Are you making fun of DSC by asking such questions? Or are you asking for information useful to farming? You have not been given this number for such fun or for timepass...


Social Dynamics

Introductions

Moderation

Intermediated access


Intermediated Access

Hello. <name> speaking from Beyok village. Three farmer friends here have asked this question. They had [planted] psyllium. It was time of harvesting cumin. Due to unseasonal rains and cyclone, there is 60-80% loss in cumin. For this if it has to be presented to government, then on preliminary basis how can the presentation be done? Request to give answer.


Social Dynamics

Introductions

Moderation

Intermediated access

Social status


I’m always the first one [in the village] to implement new methods and technology in agriculture. I have everything in terms of technology here. Everybody comes to see things at my place. Even Avaaj Otalo — I am the first one to get it in this place. So many experts and scientists are friends with me and I tell them about AO. When they are here they ask to see it and I show them how AO works. They are impressed by how much modern technology and knowledge I have. It is a matter of pride for my family.

Interviewee:

Gaining status


Why would I use such a system [like AO]? Everybody’s answer has the same value no matter how correct or incorrect it is. I am already respected in my community as someone knowledgeable in agriculture and my answers on [AO] will be treated just like anyone else’s o! the street. How does AO benefit people like me? In fact it does not even recognize the knowledge and wisdom I have gathered over the years.

Challenging social status?


People preferred answers from authorities over peers

Who do you prefer receiving answers from?65% DSC only 35% DSC and farmers0% Farmers only(n = 36)

[Only] when these other farmer’s questions will be answered by an expert, then I will get to learn from [answers]. Farmers don’t know everything, right? What most of the farmers talk about is common knowledge to us. So I am interested in listening to what the experts say about the questions on AO.


Experiment: E"ects of varying info source

Scientist Peer Farmer

Same tips recorded by scientists and farmers

Two farmers from di!erent districts

record

Two retired professors from local ag universities

record

Tip 1: Vaccinations

Tip 2: Mealybug

Tip 3: Pest eggs

Tip 4: Root rot

Tip 5: Orchards

Tip 6: Soil testing

Tip 7: Animal feed

w/ Savani, Klemmer, Parikh

More followups to peer tips

(z = 2.08, p < .05)

0%

3%

7%

10%

13%

Peer Scientist

Follow-up Rate

w/ Savani, Klemmer, Parikh

Changes after the pilot

Unrestricted access

Touchtone

Administration interface

The biggest change

Toll-free -> Local number60 paise ~= 1 cent/min

0

163

325

488

650

Jan-15

Jan-29Feb-12

Feb-26

Mar-12

Mar-26Apr-9

Apr-23May-7

May-21Jun-4

Jun-18 Jul-2

Cal

lsPilot (63 farmers) v. 2011 (488 farmers)

Toll-free: 240 calls/week

Metered: 94 calls/week

Lower call duration by 60%

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450

600

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l Dur

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n (s

)

Time

Toll-free

Metered

Subsidize public goods through “freebies”

Greetings! Here’s today’s information of the day

<Spotlighted info>

Your feedback is very important to us...

Please hold to be connected to AO...

Please record a question, comment, or feedback...

Please rate this message according to this scale...

w/ Klemmer and Parikh

More social interaction with free calls and free recording

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free call free rec

Msg

s/Pa

rtic

ipan

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no sig. di!erence

Looking ahead...

Awaaz De (“Give your voice”)

Agriculture

A Mission For Organic Farming

Q&A, experience sharing, market and weather, buying and selling, ...

Education

Reaching village school teachers and parents

Women’s and Youth Empowerment

Awareness campaigns for human rights

A Farmer Responds

So much gratitude to you, and also if I want to sow something now, I’ve got a little extra water, so what should I sow that would be best suited for me?

In the seven years I have been farming this is the first and only time that I have received satisfactory information.

I give praise to Avaaj Otalo. I will be forever in your debt for the knowledgeable response you gave to my question ... Farmers will learn so much if an ordinary person is able to ask a question and you send me a message while I am sitting in my house.

Thanks!

For more info, visit http://awaaz.de

http://hci.stanford.edu/research/otalo

http://hci.stanford.edu/research/otalo