K-vec: A New Approach for Aligning Parallel Texts

Various methods have been proposed for aligning texts in two or more languages such as the Canadian Parliamentary Debates(Hansards). Some of these methods generate a bilingual lexicon as a by-product. We present an alternative alignment strategy which we call K-vec, that starts by estimating the lexicon. For example, it discovers that the English word "fisheries" is similar to the French "pe^ches" by noting that the distribution of "fisheries" in the English text is similar to the distribution of "pe^ches" in the French. K-vec does not depend on sentence boundaries.Comment: 7 pages, uuencoded, compressed PostScript; Proc. COLING-9

Technology and e-resources for legal translators : the LAW10n project

End User License Agreements are "those agreements as a result of which the licensee, purchaser of the license or user, receives from the licensor the right to use the programs under the terms agreed2"(Aparicio 2004:71). Software licenses first appeared in the United States of America. Translated into Spanish by the Licensor, and made available directly to users of the licensed software, these licensing agreements have now been incorporated into Spanish law. In legal translation ―in particular when translating End User License Agreements where the specificity of the cultural elements involved can lead to recurrent breakdowns in communication― an interpretative-communicative approach must be used, one in which the translator takes into consideration all the elements that directly impinge upon the decision-making process in translation, i.e., the client; target audience; legal or cultural context; legal requirements enforceable by law, etc. In practice, licensing agreements are translated as part of the process of localisation itself, i.e. semi-automatically. As a result, licensing agreements translated into Spanish do not reflect the spirit of the law underlying the source text; neither do they comply with the specific requirements of Spanish law. Although there is a gender of license agreements in Spanish -i.e. in patent law and other copyright law fields- this gender cannot be automatically applied to the case of software licenses because these licenses have special features. In this article we present the reason why the translation of software licence agreements deserves such a deep analysis and how existing legal e-resources are not enough to solve the translation challenges that this genre presents to translators. An English-Spanish bilingual corpus of translations has been created and analysed to evidence the legal implications of current translations and demonstrate the need to take into account not only the legal system of the target text but also translation proposals included in licences where the applicable law is that of the target culture. This article is addressed to translation lecturers and researchers interested in legal e-resources and instrumental translations

Multi-Retranslation Corpora: Visibility, Variation, Value, and Virtue

Variation among human translations is usually invisible, little understood, and under-valued. Previous statistical research finds that translations vary most where the source items are most semantically significant or express most ‘attitude’ (affect, evaluation, ideology). Understanding how and why translations vary is important for translator training and translation quality assessment, for cultural research, and for machine translation development. Our experimental project began with the intuition that quantitative variation in a corpus of historical retranslations might be used to project quasi-qualitative annotations onto the translated text. We present a web-based system which enables users to create parallel, segment-aligned multi-version corpora, and provides visual interfaces for exploring multiple translations, with their variation projected onto a base text. The system can support any corpus of variant versions. We report experiments using our tools (and stylometric analysis) to investigate a corpus of 40 German versions of a work by Shakespeare. Initial findings lead to more questions than answers

Multi-Retranslation Corpora: Visibility, Variation, Value, and Virtue

Variation among human translations is usually invisible, little understood, and under-valued. Previous statistical research finds that translations vary most where the source items are most semantically significant or express most ‘attitude’ (affect, evaluation, ideology). Understanding how and why translations vary is important for translator training and translation quality assessment, for cultural research, and for machine translation development. Our experimental project began with the intuition that quantitative variation in a corpus of historical retranslations might be used to project quasi-qualitative annotations onto the translated text. We present a web-based system which enables users to create parallel, segment-aligned multi-version corpora, and provides visual interfaces for exploring multiple translations, with their variation projected onto a base text. The system can support any corpus of variant versions. We report experiments using our tools (and stylometric analysis) to investigate a corpus of 40 German versions of a work by Shakespeare. Initial findings lead to more questions than answers

Exploring the use of parallel corpora in the complilation of specialised bilingual dictionaries of technical terms: a case study of English and isiXhosa

Text in EnglishAbstracts in English, isiXhosa and AfrikaansThe Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act 108 of 1996, mandates the state to take practical and positive measures to elevate the status and the use of indigenous languages. The implementation of this pronouncement resulted in a growing demand for specialised translations in fields like technology, science, commerce, law and finance. The lack of terminology and resources such as specialised bilingual dictionaries in indigenous languages, particularly isiXhosa remains a growing concern that hinders the translation and the intellectualisation of isiXhosa. A growing number of African scholars affirm the importance of specialised dictionaries in the African languages as tools for language and terminology development so that African languages can be used in the areas of science and technology. In the light of the background above, this study explored how parallel corpora can be interrogated using a bilingual concordancer, ParaConc to extract bilingual terminology that can be used to create specialised bilingual dictionaries. A corpus-based approach was selected due to its speed, efficiency and accuracy in extracting bilingual terms in their immediate contexts. In enhancing the research outcomes, Descriptive Translations Studies (DTS) and Corpus-based translation studies (CTS) were used in a complementary manner. Because the study is interdisciplinary, the function theories of lexicography that emphasise the function and needs of users were also applied. The analysis and extraction of bilingual terminology for dictionary making was successful through the use of the following ParaConc features, namely frequencies, hot word lists, hot words, search facility and concordances (Key Word in Context), among others. The findings revealed that English-isiXhosa Parallel Corpus is a repository of translation equivalents and other information categories that can make specialised dictionaries more user-friendly and multifunctional. The frequency lists were revealed as an effective method of selecting headwords for inclusion in a dictionary. The results also unraveled the complex functions of bilingual concordances where information on collocations and multiword units, sense distinction and usage examples could be easily identifiable proving that this approach is more efficient than the traditional method. The study contributes to the knowledge on corpus-based lexicography, standardisation of finance terminology resource development and making of user-friendly dictionaries that are tailor-made for different needs of users.Umgaqo-siseko weli loMzantsi Afrika ukhululele uRhulumente ukuba athabathe amanyathelo abonakalayo ekuphuhliseni nasekuphuculeni iilwimi zesiNtu. Esi sindululo sibangele ukwanda kokuguqulelwa kwamaxwebhu angezobuchwepheshe, inzululwazi, umthetho, ezemali noqoqosho angesiNgesi eguqulelwa kwiilwimi ebezifudula zingasiwe-so ezinjengesiXhosa. Ukunqongophala kwesigama kunye nezichazi-magama kube yingxaki enkulu ekuguquleleni ngakumbi izichazi-magama ezilwimi-mbini eziqulethe isigama esikhethekileyo. Iingcali ezininzi ziyangqinelana ukuba olu hlobo lwezi zichazi-magama luyimfuneko kuba ludlala iindima enkulu ekuphuhlisweni kweelwimi zesiNtu, ekuyileni isigama, nasekusetyenzisweni kwazo kumabakala obunzululwazi nobuchwepheshe. Olu phando ke luvavanya ukusetyenziswa kwekhophasi equlethe amaxwebhu esiNgesi neenguqulelo zawo zesiXhosa njengovimba wokudimbaza isigama sezemali esinokunceda ekuqulunqweni kwesichazi-magama esilwimi-mbini. Isizathu esibangele ukukhetha le ndlela yophando esebenzisa ikhompyutha kukuba iyakhawuleza, ulwazi oluthathwe kwikhophasi luchanekile, yaye isigama kwikhophasi singqamana ngqo nomxholo wamaxwebhu nto leyo eyenza kube lula ukufumana iintsingiselo nemizekelo ephilayo. Ukutyebisa olu phando indlela yekhophasi iye yaxhaswa zezinye iindlela zophando ezityunjiweyo: ufundo lwenguguqulelo oluchazayo (DTS) kunye neendlela zokuguqulela ezijoliswe kumsebenzi nakuhlobo lwabasebenzisi zinguqulelo ezo. Kanti ke ziqwalaselwe neenkqubo zophando lobhalo-zichazi-magama eziinjongo zokuqulunqa izichazi-magama ezesebenzisekayo neziluncedo kuninzi lwabasebenzisi zichazi-magama ngakumbi kwisizwe esisebenzisa iilwimi ezininzi. Ukuhlalutya nokudimbaza isigama kwikhophasi kolu phando kusetyenziswe isixhobo sekhompyutha esilungiselelwe ikhophasi enelwiimi ezimbini nangaphezulu ebizwa ngokuba yiParaConc. Iziphumo zolu phando zibonise mhlophe ukuba ikhophasi eneenguqulelo nguvimba weendidi ngendidi zamagama nolwazi olunokuphucula izichazi-magama zeli xesha. Kaloku abaguquleli basebenzise amaqhinga ngamaqhinga ukunika iinguqulelo bekhokelwa yimigomo nemithetho yoguqulelo enxuse abasebenzisi bamaxwebhu aguqulelweyo. Ubuchule beParaConc bokukwazi ukuhlela amagama ngokwendlela afumaneka ngayo kunye neenkcukacha zamanani budandalazise indlela eyiyo yokukhetha imichazwa enokungena kwisichazi-magama. Iziphumo zikwabonakalise iintlaninge yolwazi olufumaneka kwiKWIC, lwazi olo olungelula ukulufumana xa usebenzisa undlela-ndala wokwakha isichazi-magama. Esi sifundo esihlanganyele uGuqulelo olusekelwe kwiKhophasi noQulunqo-zichazi-magama zobuchwepheshe luya kuba negalelo elingathethekiyo kwindlela yokwakha izichazi-magama kwilwiimi zeSintu ngokubanzi nancakasana kwisiXhosa, nto leyo eya kothula umthwalo kubaqulunqi-zichazi-magama. Ukwakha nokuqulunqa izichazi-magama ezilwimi-mbini zezemali kuya kwandisa imithombo yesigama esinqongopheleyo kananjalo sivelise izichazi-magama eziluncedo kwisininzi sabantu.Die Grondwet van die Republiek van Suid-Afrika, Wet 108 van 1996, gee aan die staat die mandaat om praktiese en positiewe maatreëls te tref om die status en gebruik van inheemse tale te verhoog. Die implementering van hierdie uitspraak het gelei tot ’n toenemende vraag na gespesialiseerde vertalings in domeine soos tegnologie, wetenskap, handel, regte en finansies. Die gebrek aan terminologie en hulpbronne soos gespesialiseerde woordeboeke in inheemse tale, veral Xhosa, wek toenemende kommer wat die vertaling en die intellektualisering van Xhosa belemmer. ’n Toenemende aantal vakkundiges in Afrika beklemtoon die belangrikheid van gespesialiseerde woordeboeke in die Afrikatale as instrumente vir taal- en terminologie-ontwikkeling sodat Afrikatale gebruik kan word in die areas van wetenskap en tegnologie. In die lig van die voorafgaande agtergrond het hierdie studie ondersoek ingestel na hoe parallelle korpora deursoek kan word deur ’n tweetalige konkordanser (ParaConc) te gebruik om tweetalige terminologie te ontgin wat gebruik kan word in die onwikkeling van tweetalige gespesialiseerde woordeboeke. ’n Korpusgebaseerde benadering is gekies vir die spoed, doeltreffendheid en akkuraatheid waarmee dit tweetalige terme uit hulle onmiddellike kontekste kan onttrek. Beskrywende Vertaalstudies (DTS) en Korpusgebaseerde Vertaalstudies (CTS) is op ’n aanvullende wyse gebruik om die navorsingsuitkomste te verbeter. Aangesien die studie interdissiplinêr is, is die funksieteorieë van leksikografie wat die funksie en behoeftes van gebruikers beklemtoon, ook toegepas. Die analise en ontginning van tweetalige terminologie om woordeboeke te ontwikkel was suksesvol deur, onder andere, gebruik te maak van die volgende ParaConc-eienskappe, naamlik, frekwensies, hotword-lyste, hot words, die soekfunksie en konkordansies (Sleutelwoord-in-Konteks). Die bevindings toon dat ’n Engels-Xhosa Parallelle Korpus ’n bron van vertaalekwivalente en ander inligtingskategorieë is wat gespesialiseerde woordeboeke meer gebruikersvriendelik en multifunksioneel kan maak. Die frekwensielyste is geïdentifiseer as ’n doeltreffende metode om hoofwoorde te selekteer wat opgeneem kan word in ’n woordeboek. Die bevindings het ook die komplekse funksies van tweetalige konkordansers ontknoop waar inligting oor kollokasies en veelvuldigewoord-eenhede, betekenisonderskeiding en gebruiksvoorbeelde maklik identifiseer kon word wat aandui dat hierdie metode viii doeltreffender is as die tradisionele metode. Die studie dra by tot die kennisveld van korpusgebaseerde leksikografie, standaardisering van finansiële terminologie, hulpbronontwikkeling en die ontwikkeling van gebruikersvriendelike woordeboeke wat doelgemaak is vir verskillende behoeftes van gebruikers.Linguistics and Modern LanguagesD. Litt. et Phil. (Linguistics (Translation Studies)

Game On? Smoking Cessation Through the Gamification of mHealth: A Longitudinal Qualitative Study

BACKGROUND: Finding ways to increase and sustain engagement with mHealth interventions has become a challenge during application development. While gamification shows promise and has proven effective in many fields, critical questions remain concerning how to use gamification to modify health behavior. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to investigate how the gamification of mHealth interventions leads to a change in health behavior, specifically with respect to smoking cessation. METHODS: We conducted a qualitative longitudinal study using a sample of 16 smokers divided into 2 cohorts (one used a gamified intervention and the other used a nongamified intervention). Each participant underwent 4 semistructured interviews over a period of 5 weeks. Semistructured interviews were also conducted with 4 experts in gamification, mHealth, and smoking cessation. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematic analysis undertaken. RESULTS: Results indicated perceived behavioral control and intrinsic motivation acted as positive drivers to game engagement and consequently positive health behavior. Importantly, external social influences exerted a negative effect. We identified 3 critical factors, whose presence was necessary for game engagement: purpose (explicit purpose known by the user), user alignment (congruency of game and user objectives), and functional utility (a well-designed game). We summarize these findings in a framework to guide the future development of gamified mHealth interventions. CONCLUSIONS: Gamification holds the potential for a low-cost, highly effective mHealth solution that may replace or supplement the behavioral support component found in current smoking cessation programs. The framework reported here has been built on evidence specific to smoking cessation, however it can be adapted to health interventions in other disease categories. Future research is required to evaluate the generalizability and effectiveness of the framework, directly against current behavioral support therapy interventions in smoking cessation and beyond