Who is VAaS?

The purpose of this blog is to detail the creation of VAaS, an audio-based neural net whose purpose is to detect and stop drug-based overdoses purely based on vocal data.

VAaS is my (Niko Kompella's) passion project.

In this drug, I hope to also provide information on drug research in the San Francisco Bay Area. At the end, I will publish a guide on another site (prototype here) for parents and educators in the SF Bay Area detailing guides on the different drugs a high schooler may encounter, as well as preventative measures for addiction.

Why VAaS?

VAaS is a name with two meanings - an acronym, and an allegory.

VAaS, firstly, stands for Vocal Analysis for abuse of Substance. The acronym captures everything the project aims to do pretty concisely.

VAaS is also named after Vaas Montenegro, the acclaimed antagonist of the game Far Cry 3. I chose Vaas for two reasons. 

First of all, he's a pretty accurate depiction of the horrors of drug abuse - he literally heads a group of violent pirates who aim for nothing but drug money.

Also, he makes a great speech on the Definition of Insanity which pretty accurately depicts the state of the drug epidemic in the United States.


"Did I ever tell you what the definition of insanity is?
Insanity is doing the exact... same fucking thing... over and over again expecting... shit to change...
That. Is. Crazy.
The first time somebody told me that, I dunno, I thought they were bullshitting me, so, boom, I shot him. The thing is... he was right.
And then I started seeing, everywhere I looked, everywhere I looked all these fucking pricks, everywhere I looked, doing the exact same fucking thing... over and over and over and over again thinking: "This time is gonna be different. No, no, no please... This time is gonna be different."
I'm sorry, I don't like... The way... you are looking at me...
Okay, Do you have a fucking problem in your head, do you think I am bullshitting you, do you think I am lying?
Fuck you! Okay? Fuck you!...
It's okay, man. I'm gonna chill, hermano. I'm gonna chill...
The thing is... Alright, the thing is I killed you once already...and it's not like I am fucking crazy.
It's okay... It's like water under the bridge.
Did I ever tell you the definition... of insanity?" - Vaas Montenegro 

People always look the other way to drug addictions, and the simple fact is that the majority of measures put into place do not work. And hundreds of thousands die in vain to overdoses annually.

VAaS may not stop this, but I can only hope it's a step in the right direction.

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