scientific and technical translation in english - week 3

Scientific and Technical Translation in English: Week 3

Dr. Ron Martinez

General course outline• Week 1: Introduction to translation and CAPA• Week 2: Research article structure, common discourse problems• Week 3: Hands-on introduction to electronic tools• Week 4: Translation of research articles (1st assignment on e-folio)• Week 5: Disciplinary specificity; glossary building (e-folio)• Week 6: Review of 1st assignment, feedback from Writing V• Week 7: Midterm assessment (in-class)• Week 8: New teams, new “live” assignments• Week 9: Assignments continued• Week 10: Feedback from Writing V• Week 11: Completion of final translations• Week 12: Group presentations• Week 13: Group presentations• Week 14: Final exam (in-class)• Week 15: Final polishing of e-Portfolios

Discuss the articleQUOTE FROM ARTICLE QUESTION FOR DISCUSSION

“A misplaced preposition or poor choice of verb can ruin a convincing narrative, reducing the probability of publication in a top international journal and limiting the impact of the research.”

Do you agree? Is it possible to avoid? How?

“(M)any foreign scientists spend precious research funds on private translation services. But standard translators may not understand the science, the structure of scientific papers or the technical language.”

Does such knowledge of “science” and the “structure of scientific papers” really make a difference?

“(W)e suggest that university departments in non-anglophone countries could hire professional translators with a science background…”

What do you think about this solution?

Some comments from readers:

But there is a third skill that may well be overlooked in the rush to find someone who knows the languages and the subject area in sufficient depth. While mastery of two or more languages and an understanding of the science are two key elements, the act of translation itself is also a skill that must be learned and honed over many years of experience.

They often work closely with authors to ensure the accuracy of their work, and provide added value […].Moreover, ITI’s members must all adhere to a Code of Professional Conduct…

Research Article Structure

Prof. Dr. Ron Martinez - UFPR

Research Articles: A Look Inside

Research Articles: IMRaD

Introduction

Method

Results andDiscussion

Introduction

Method

Quick Survey:

According to research, which two IMRaD sections are usually the most difficult for non-native speakers of English to write in English?

“C.A.R.S.” (John Swales)

PRESENT SIMPLE

PRESENT PERFECT

PRESENT SIMPLE

PRESENT SIMPLE/PERFECT

PRESENT SIMPLE

C.A.R.S.- In IMRaD Abstracts

Abstracts: C.A.R.S. in IMRaD

Abstract-Intro Connections (article online)

Cohesion!

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION

Prof. Dr. Ron Martinez ronmartinez@ufpr.br

Always think:

OK, so what’s the story

What about in Portuguese?

• Online: Identify “CARS”

‘Claiming centrality’

Move 2?

Typical CARS problems

Homework

• Identify C.A.R.S. in 3 engineering articles (online) • Read the Eliana Hirano article on Brazilian

introductions (online)• Are you confident enough to suggest changes to an

article? Read the introduction to the “Corpus Linguistics” article. Any problems? Make notes on what you would tell the author; bring the suggestions to class.

• Read the Doherty article on translation technologies (online)

Discuss with a classmate:

1. What was Eliano Hirano trying find out?2. What did she find?3. In her opinion, what is the explanation for

the differences she found?4. Do you agree with her opinion? Is there

perhaps (also) another explanation?

“Despite the fact that the CARS model has been used to analyze RAIs in languages other than English, to my knowledge, no study has used the model to investigate RAIs in Brazilian Portuguese.”

Table 3 – Move structure of RAIs

Hirano (2009)

• “In summary, RAIs in The ESPecialist do not seem to follow a pattern in the organization of their rhetorical moves although there seems to be a preference for the M1–M3 type. In this type of structural organization, the authors establish a territory (by making topic generalizations and giving background information, for example) and then present their current study…” (p. 244)

What about in Portuguese?

• Online: Identify “CARS”

‘Claiming centrality’

Move 2?

Hirano (2009)“A possibility that appears more plausible for the present study regards solidarity with the local research community, as discussed in Taylor and Chen (1991), who compared Anglo-American and Chinese RAIs. These authors explain that Chinese scholars are not comfortable identifying gaps and shortcomings in previous research. Likewise, Jogthong (2001) claims that Thai writers tend ‘‘to avoid direct criticism on the work of others” (p. 72). de Rezende and Hemais (2004), going in the same direction, posit that Brazilian writers may avoid the strategy of establishing a niche for one’s research because doing so exposes a state of ignorance on the part of the scientific community, which may invoke a negative attitude from other researchers.” (p. 245)

Hirano (2009)

“Besides the possible explanations discussed above, it is important to recall the ‘‘rather simpler and more prosaic explanation” put forward by Taylor and Chen (1991, p. 332). They refer to the access researchers have (or do not) to bibliographic resources. […] Among other reasons, Salager-Meyer (2008) mentions the cost of scientific publications. In my own personal experience doing research in Brazil from 2001 to 2003, I remember having to go through hard copies of journals, most of which were local, and reading each individual abstract to find articles that would be relevant to my study.” (p. 246)

Hirano (2009)

“Besides the possible explanations discussed above, it is important to recall the ‘‘rather simpler and more prosaic explanation” put forward by Taylor and Chen (1991, p. 332). They refer to the access researchers have (or do not) to bibliographic resources. […] Among other reasons, Salager-Meyer (2008) mentions the cost of scientific publications. In my own personal experience doing research in Brazil from 2001 to 2003, I remember having to go through hard copies of journals, most of which were local, and reading each individual abstract to find articles that would be relevant to my study.” (p. 246)

What about Brazilians writing in English?

“There were only three (articles written in English by a Brazilian). One had a 1–2–1–2–1–2–1–3 move structure and the other two had a M1–M3 pattern. The latter two introductions, then, employed the rhetorical conventions that were found to be the most popular in the BESP subcorpus, with an occurrence of 40%. It is arguable that these authors transferred the rhetorical organization they would use in Portuguese to their articles in English. The resulting effect, an introduction without a clear gap statement, might have difficulty getting accepted in a journal like English for Specific Purposes, considering the results of the present study.” (Hirano, 2009, p. 246).

What about Brazilians writing in English?

“There were only three (articles written in English by a Brazilian). One had a 1–2–1–2–1–2–1–3 move structure and the other two had a M1–M3 pattern. The latter two introductions, then, employed the rhetorical conventions that were found to be the most popular in the BESP subcorpus, with an occurrence of 40%. It is arguable that these authors transferred the rhetorical organization they would use in Portuguese to their articles in English. The resulting effect, an introduction without a clear gap statement, might have difficulty getting accepted in a journal like English for Specific Purposes, considering the results of the present study.” (Hirano, 2009, p. 246).

Homework

Typical CARS problems

Abstracts: C.A.R.S. in IMRaD

Cohesion!

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION

Cohesion!

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION

COHERENCE!

Always think:

OK, so what’s the story

But what does all this have to do with translation?

• Cohesion• Coherence• Identify the root of misunderstandings• Alert author(s) and recommend changes• We are not translating for sake of translation –

but as “literacy brokers” (people who have a role in the path to publication)

Introduction

Method

An example: (though clearly not enough...)

But what does all this have to do with translation?

• Cohesion• Coherence• Identify the root of misunderstandings• Alert author(s) and recommend changes• We are not translating for sake of translation –

but as “literacy brokers” (people who have a role in the path to publication)

LEVELS OF PUBLICATIONS SUCCESS (or rejection)

Language (vocabulary, grammar, etc.)

Discourse (cohesion, organization, clarity)

Research (relevant theme, appropriate

method, etc.)Prof. Dr. Ron Martinez - UFPR

DIFFERENT LEVELS OF IMPORTANCE!Languag

e (vocabulary, grammar,

Discourse (clarity, organization)

Research (appropriate method, etc.)

Ron Martinez 83

Ron Martinez 84

MAIN ISSUE NOT ‘ENGLISH’

You try!1. Do the translation.2. Keep track of all the steps you take and tools you use.3. When finished, compare with a partner. Also compare steps taken.

Is Google Translate(and Bing, etc.) a good thing?

Homework

Exercise: “Can you tell the difference?”

1. Go to the exercise on our class webpage (“Which one did Google do?”).

2. When finished, discuss with a classmate.

Doherty (2016)

HOMEWORK FOR NEXT WEEK

1. Download the Site Translation text (online).2. If you are assigned number “1”: translate the

text manually (no MT). TIME YOURSELF. Note the time, bring printed version of translation to next class.

3. If you are assigned number “2”: Use MT (e.g. Google Translate) and post-edit the text. TIME YOURSELF. Note the time, bring printed version of translation to next class.

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