This is a step in a new direction for the mighty Google, which is fast completing utter dominance of the  internet and follows their foray into machine translation with ‘Google Translate’. Google Translate received a fairly good reception when it was released, as being ‘not too bad’ as far as machine translation goes, if you need to get a very rough approximation of isolated sentences. It does surprise me that they’re now attempting to diversify into human translation, though. Perhaps they’ve seen the success of collaborative translation on open-source projects (by volunteer translators), and of subscription translator community sites such as ProZ and want a piece of the action.

But then, Google Translation Center doesn’t look like a translator community site, nor is there any mention of money changing hands, so I can’t help wondering what’s in it for them? Their stated aim is: “Google Translation Center is part of our effort to make information universally accessible through translation”, but surely, as a company as powerful and successful as theirs must have a profit-driven or market dominance-driven motive lurking behind everything it does, right?

According to Stephen Shankland:

“[...]the company also has technology called Cross Language Information Retrieval  (CLIR)  that builds            translation into its search engine.”

And:

“Google’s translation system uses a statistical model that works better the more it can compare the same text in two different languages. And Google evidently will track translation work in its database; according to the center’s introduction for translators, “our translation search feature matches your current translation with previous translations, so you don’t have to translate over and over again.”

Google is fervently interested in better machine translation. With it, it can use its search technology to link people with data around the world, regardless of language barriers, making its search engine significantly more powerful.”

Interesting stuff that may further enhance the way we search for information, not to mention the possibilities for a gigantic global translation memory. You can read Google’s own full explanation of what it’s all about here.

The conference is jointly sponsored by the ITI, the CIOL and ProZ, and the discussions will centre on the ‘practices and technologies of translation quality’.  I haven’t seen a conference with such a relevant and practical approach for ages, not to mention one with such distinguished speakers,  and I encourage people to register early to take advantage of the special offers (which include free membership of ProZ for 6 months). Check out the conference website here. Hopefully I’ll see you there!

True enough, there are many examples of poor grammar and spelling around, enough for many eagle-eyed writers to write entire books about them. I enjoy spotting these mistakes and chuckling about them as much as the next person; I am a massive fan of Lynne Truss and have read and re-read her books like old friends, and I applaud anyone who heightens awareness of language and grammar amongst the general public. As Truss demonstrates in the title of her book Eats, Shoots and Leaves, a wrongly placed comma can completely mislead a reader. This is amusing for native speakers, but a major comprehension problem for a non-native reader of English, and it is of course something translators must always be careful to avoid.

However, there is a difference between the language we use in official publications and translations, and the language we use to communicate via instant, informal methods such as text messages, social networking sites and emails. Think about it: in speaking on the phone to friends and relatives, only the proudest people would claim to be able to hold conversations free from mistakes in word order, use of the possessive, tense etc., every single time they pick up the phone.  We must all accept that we are human, that instant communication methods require us to think on our feet; our brains simply don’t have time to focus on the message of what we’re saying and the grammar within it. We have moved far beyond the era of telegrams and communicating solely by posted letter and we have adapted accordingly, as humans are so adept at doing.

Whilst in spoken language we have recourse to intonation, volume and tone, to ensure the clarity of our message in place of grammar, you might argue that is what we’re attempting to do in emails and text messages as well. We use emoticons, capital letters, italics, amongst other tools, to try to express what it is we’re saying when we don’t have a lot of time in which to do it. I happen to think that this is not a bad thing; we are unable to claw back much time these days, we’re all terribly busy, that’s a given, so we are adapting to that with time-saving methods.

My favourite linguist, David Crystal, recently wrote a fascinating article for The Guardian on text speak, in which he argues that it actually represents a highly creative use of an evolving language. Moreover, he makes the important point that writers such as Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, Walter Scott, DH Lawrence all used ‘deviant’ spelling in their novels, so it’s not something entirely new. A bit of trivia for you: ‘cos’ was first entered into the Oxford English Dictionary in 1828, and ‘wot’ in 1829.

Doom-mongers will be horrified to learn that there is now even a ‘text laureate’, but perhaps surprised that last year’s winner was in fact in her late 60s.

This may all sound like a horrific scenario for some people who delight at shutting down their email service when they log off their computers every evening, content that this will mean nobody will be able to ‘get them’.  But for those of us who show Generation Y tendencies towards non-stop communication and to having annoying short attention spans this is simply neat way of using ‘dead time’ effectively. Having got used to texting from a relatively young age, the impatient young upstarts that make up Generation Y are used to being contactable at most times and via multiple mediums. They are adept at organizing their time effectively in order to get the most out of their days; not content to just stand and wait like a lemon for another delayed train, or waste time on endless emails when they’re back in the office and have so many other things they need to do. They use ‘dead time’ as an opportunity to check their emails for anything that they could respond to now, rather than later.

Many people will also see Blackberries as inducing obsessive, addicted behaviour in their owners. But their owners/users can always, always choose when to use them; Blackberries can be set so that you don’t receive an irritating beep on receipt of a new email (and you therefore have to actually look at the thing to know about it), plus you can use filters to select the types of messages you DON’T want to receive when you’re out of the office.  Moreover, remember that you can turn them off.  Repeat after me “you - can - turn - them - off - you - have - the - power”.

More than that though, it’s about the user prioritizing their lives, and knowing when and when isn’t a good time to be engaging in a little cheeky email checking. A conversation with a loved one in which they are telling you something vitally important or highly personal is probably a good example of non-good time.

Penelope Trunk discussed self-discipline and Blackberries the other day. Actually, in doing so she called into question the idea of of work-life balance. This is a very interesting, and probably 100% accurate, view of 21st century careers. Speaking as a freelancer, ‘work-life balance’ is nothing but a myth. I don’t mean that to sound negative, far from it. Although the intersection between work and ‘life’ has become blurred, I see it more as being that my career is synced in with my life. My non-work life is busy and full too, but I don’t think of it as entirely separate to my career. There is a point in every day and weekend when I ignore my Blackberry altogether or turn it off; we all need a little down time. However, my career is inextricably part of my life, and vice versa. I don’t see how it could work any other way, and I don’t want it to. Rather than running my life, my Blackberry helps me control and manage the two intertwining strands of life and work as if they were one and allows me to maximize my time in order to spend it doing the things I love, rather than spending vital time at my desk checking emails.

The wording of the the petition is as follows: ‘If the government really wants to promote language learning, it not only needs to encourage more pupils to take languages at GCSE, but also to support language departments at a higher level. Allowing these departments to close will be detrimental to the government’s long-term language objectives’.

A bit of background information: following the Government decision a few years ago to remove languages from the list of compulsory subjects at GCSE, the number of students choosing to study a language at GCSE, A-level and consequently, degree-level in the UK is said to have plummeted. In my opinion, that Government decision was a huge mistake. The value of studying another language and the insight that gives you into other cultures cannot be underestimated.  It is also a grave concern in terms of the future of professions such as translating and interpreting.

And finally…the second link I found on the Naked Translations blog and it made me giggle. It is an excerpt from the ITV program ‘Headcases’ showing French President Nicolas Sarkozy (he’s getting to be a recurring topic of my posts here).  Laugh away, but don’t forget about the petition!

Before I get too excited though (complacency is a dangerous trap to fall into, after all), it’s important to take stock of what this ‘qualification’ really means, and what it doesn’t. Whilst MITI status is not a qualification as such, in the same way an MA in Translation is, it’s probably the most widely-recognized mark of experience and expertise across the British translation industry. The criteria for the route I took are:

• At least 3 years’ translation experience (usually expressed in number of words)
• A pass in the ITI membership exam, which includes a text of the examiners’ choice (you only get to select the general subject area, so when you do receive the test document it’s a nice - read terrifying - surprise ). The exam also requires you to write a ‘linguistic commentary’ about the translation.

It’s a tough process to get through, as it should be, but MITI status should not be a badge that says a translator is definitely a wondrous human being and is 100% certain to be the best translator in the world ever. To quote a saying (sort of), you’re only as good as your last translation. Incidentally, it doesn’t mean that Associate members of the ITI aren’t just as good. They might even be better in some cases, and just haven’t chosen to upgrade to MITI membership (oh, it costs twice as much as Associate membership, too).

I always seen a lot of debate both offline and in the blogosphere about translation qualifications, and which is the ‘best’ one to get. In general, whilst of course qualifications are no substitute for real, practical experience, I am wholly in favour of more ‘letters after your name’ if they have a clear professional purpose. I will come back to the topic of translation qualifications, and plan to provide a brief overview of MAs vs. the DipTrans.

In the mean time, take a look at There’s Something About Translation for more details of the requirements for MITI status, and information on the Chartered Institute of Linguists’ new Chartered Linguist qualification.  I am also considering applying for Chartered Linguist status at some point in the future, so there’ll probably be more on this later. Watch this space.

Interestingly, a slightly different viewpoint is expressed on Brazen Careerist today. A platform for debate…