Talking Kitchen

A Newcastle University has created a device that delivers cooking instructions in French to help language learning. The talking kitchen follows a user's actions with motion sensor and communicates in a similar way to satellite navigation systems. It’s designed for schools, universities and homes; it should be available by the end of 2012.

By international standards, the UK is low down on the league table when it comes to learning languages - a problem that inevitably has an economic impact. Following the creators, an overriding objective is to reverse the trend by making language learning more enjoyable.

They believe that simultaneously developing skills in a country's language and its cuisine will be also more effective, and by linking it to learning another life skill, more educational too.

Talking kitchen is fitted with a computer which allows users to choose the French recipes they want to follow. There are digital sensors built into utensils, containers and other equipment that communicate with the computer to make sure the correct instructions will be given at the right time. An instruction or piece of information can be repeated, or translated into English on the user’s request.

Isn’t great? Cooking sophisticated meal and chatting with your oven, fridge or microwave in French at the same time?