THROWING a sickie could be a thing of the past after boffins used artificial intelligence to tell from your voice if you are faking a cold.
They have decoded exactly how a caller with symptoms sounds and how that differs from a healthy person.
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Researchers analysed the recordings of 630 different voices, including from 111 people suffering from a cold.
Electronic engineer Pankaj Warule found that an infection which causes the vocal cords to become inflamed changes the sound properties of a voice.
By breaking down the speech into different wavelengths, an algorithm was able to identify the specific frequencies only found in those speaking with a sore throat.
The technique can correctly diagnose a cold in 70 per cent of cases, the team at the Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology in Surat, India, says.
Bosses could use the artificial intelligence software to detect if an employee calling in sick was really unwell or just trying to bunk off.
Perhaps more helpfully, scientists are also looking at ways other conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, depression, and cancer can affect the patterns of a person’s voice to help catch them early.
Artificial intelligence is increasingly being used in medical settings to help medics diagnose patients.
A program called MedAware used in the US stops doctors from accidentally prescribing the wrong medication.
