Speech recognition has glamour. Funds have been available. Results have been less glamorous. “When we listen to a person speaking much of what we think we hear is supplied from our memory. [W. James,Talks to Teachers on Psychology and to Students on Some of Life's Ideals(Holt, New York, 1889), p. 159]. General‐purpose speech recognition seems far away Special‐purpose speech recognition is severely limited. It would seem appropriate for people to ask themselves why they are working in the field and what they can expect to accomplish.