Build and Run

One "quiet" evening in the lab, two developers sit side by side. Code and numbers flash before their eyes. Sweat bristles at their united brow. The mouse cursor slowly rolls across the screen, the suspense unbearable. It finds the plain, humdrum button. The button that toys with developers emotions the world over. The button that can create utter despair and scrap an entire project, but can also give the clicker a euphoric rush crackling with happiness and elation. They glance at each other, a wry smile escapes Rich's poker face. Andy frowns, knowing there is no room for emotion here, no room for mistake. This is the very eye of the development storm. Dark clouds rumble overhead. A bolt of lightening forks above the Plymouth landscape, igniting the workstation for a split second. Rich's finger hovers over the gleaming surface of his magic mouse, all muscles in his hand tense. His hand seems to move in slow motion as the finger descends on the mouse and releases with an audible 'click!'. Their mouths hang open as the compiler streaks messages in front of them….compiling 5 of 7 header files…building…running. A continuous stream of numbers appear before their eyes. Silence grips the room. Will they be held aloft by friends, or downtrodden by enemies? Does it work? Rich bellows a primal "Yaaaargh!". A deep, throaty, pirate bellow, genetically perfected from generations of Cornish pirates. The stream is interrupted for a fraction of a second as pitch and volume are displayed in numerical form in front of them. Electricity and warmth builds inside them. They jump from their chairs, happiness gripping their very cores. Their eyes meet, tears blur each others outlines. The other Mutants clamber from their desks, glance at the screen and realisation dawns. They've done it, they've succeeded!

We've rerouted the encryptions and hacked into the vocal mainframe. We've oscillated the watercraft of physics. We've found ourselves rummaging around in our lofts at home, poring over dusty A-level Maths textbooks, finding the very equations we sought (after pulling apart pages stuck together with fossilised chewing gum) and committing them to physical and virtual memory. This painstaking research has led us to smash the biggest milestone on the horizon, analysing a voice through the dimensions of volume and pitch on a multitude of devices. A new age dawns herein. The time for basic vocal dissection nears its completion. The time for deeper sound analysis begins…