“Bitchin’ Betty” Says Farewell: Beloved Voice Behind Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet Retires
Boeing1 HN recommenders · 2016–2022
2.1M views · news · evergreen · Uploaded 2016-03-07
A short Boeing piece on the retirement of the voice behind the F/A-18 Super Hornet cockpit warning system, nicknamed Bitchin' Betty. It touches on why the stern voice alerts are used.
Cited as an example of effective alarm and voice-alert design and in discussions of reactions to female voices.
54:20Bret Victor - Inventing on Principle
Rui Oliveira
25:33Children Of The Magenta Line
Mossie Fly
37:54Mike Monteiro: F*ck You, Pay Me
CreativeMornings HQ
21:35Music Software & Bad Interface Design: Avid’s Sibelius
Tantacrul
11:38The Economics of Airline Class
Wendover Productions
13:29!!Con 2016 - How I Code and Use a Computer at 1,000 WPM!! By Sina Bahram
Confreaks
3:56:24David Fravor: UFOs, Aliens, Fighter Jets, and Aerospace Engineering | Lex Fridman Podcast #122
Lex Fridman
8:28The Fastest Way to Board a Plane Feels Like the Slowest
CGP Grey
3 comments from Hacker News
Along these same lines, one of my favorite examples of this type of work (human factors related to attention/alerting) is "Bitchin' Betty" and company - the female voice that makes up the "oral alert system" from the F/A-18 superhornet: [VIDEO] A lot of research went into everything from the gender to the tone of the voice so that pilots would know to immediately pay attention to the warning system above everything else. [0] - [LINK]
There is some science behind this. Studies have shown that people, both men and women, react differently to a female voice. Sometimes that reaction can make a real difference. [VIDEO]
Not just the USSR! The UK and US did the same too! For more info: [LINK] [VIDEO] My personal opinion is the "Bitching Betty" voice with its crisp instructions and authoritative tone makes us subliminally think of our mother giving us guidance or reprimand at an early age. It is a great design; it has saved a TON of pilot lives who otherwise would have accidentally perished.