Don't Miss this #English #Learning #Seminar in #São Paulo on May 14

At a English learning seminar in São Paulo this Saturday hosted by Nativo Traduçôes, I have the distinct honor to address a select group of attendees.

Pronounce English Better

I plan to cover the following points on English pronunciation:

• Phonics - 44 Sounds of English
• 3 Challenges for Portuguese Speakers
• Native Pronunciation Tricks
• Intonation - Music of English
• Word and Sentence Stress

Participants should take away an immediate  increased ability to not only pronounce English better, but understand spoken English as well.

By understanding how native English speakers communicate (elisions, assimilation, etc), English learners can have a greater awareness to anticipate these linguistic features. 

In turn, a greater degree of fluency is achieved as well improved listening comprehension.

Legal English Primer

My colleague, Nasir Habib, plans to present a Legal English primer:

• What is Legal English?
• Legal Idioms
• Colors of Law
• Word Play
• Reading

Any lawyer or law student seeking an introduction or deeper understanding of Legal English should attend. Nasir is a Legal English specialist and always provides a lively presentation.

Together, we plan interactive and dynamic talks where participants are involved directly! Just like class, exercises are planned to serve up a "hands on" seminar.

Invitation

So, come join us to improve your English learning in São Paulo this Saturday, May 14! Let me know if you saw my blog post, too!

Please visit the seminar website for more information and to register today!


*** If you are in São Paulo and need English lessons, or Elite English Services including translations (Spanish/French/Portuguese to English), please contact Professor Winn by sending an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation. Buy your English-language texts today!

Colombia´s Bilingualism Campaign Boosted

Colombia continues to press ahead with its nationwide campaign for bilingualism - primarily paring its native-Spanish with English.

The campaign received a boost from the US Embassy in the city of Pereira, in the heart of the Andean country's Eje cafatero (Coffee Axis), the geographic region where rich soil and a perfect climate and altitude combine to provide the aromatic ''java'' consumed around the world.

source: noticias.com.co

Sesenta niños de 14 instituciones educativas públicas de Pereira recibieron el pasado sábado 29 de enero el certificado que los acredita como beneficiarios del Programa de Micro-becas de inglés Access, una iniciativa de la Embajada de Estados Unidos que le permite a jóvenes entre los 14 y los 18 años con rendimiento académico sobresaliente acceder a cursos intensivos de inglés durante dos años.

translation by mrenglish101:


United States promotes bilingualism in Colombia


Last Saturday (January 29) sixty children from 14 public educational institutions in Pereira received certificates granting them benefits under the micro-grants program, inglés Access. The initiative by the US Embassy allows young people between the ages of 14 and 18 with outstanding academic performance to attend intensive English classes for two years.

*** If you are in São Paulo and need English lessons, or Elite English Services including translations (Spanish/French/Portuguese to English), please contact Professor Winn by sending an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation. Buy your English-language texts today!

Translators Have Jobs, For Now

Machine or computer translation still stirs debate among translators.

Future employment is at stake after years of education, training, researching, and yes, rendering documents on time for clients.

End for human translators?
Despite decades of advances, one field where technology still trails humankind is translation.

Computers are marvelous in assisting translators in managing glossaries, TMs, and making the final document appear as mirror image of the source text.

However, when it comes to the intellectual firepower to apply the correct term and register, our faithful friend has not yet delivered.

The Test
So, I decided to test Google Translation, Babel Fish, and Reverso to satisfy a curiosity.

I copied and pasted the title of a section of a collective bargaining agreement from a recent Portuguese to English translation.

The phrase in Brazilian Portuguese is:  GARANTIA AO EMPREGADO EM VIAS DE APOSENTADORIA.

Google:                 GUARANTEE THE WAY IN EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT
Babel Fish:            GUARANTEE TO THE EMPLOYEE IN RETIREMENT WAYS
Reverso:                GUARANTEE TO THE EMPLOYEE IN RETIREMENT WAYS
Humble Human:     GUARANTEE TO EMPLOYEE NEARING RETIREMENT

The computer does not know the type of document. That is important because of the context and sometimes (many?) because of the vocabulary.

The computer is able to isolate the keywords correctly like ''guarantee,'' ''to employee,'' (except Google) and ''retirement.''

However, the humble human rendering the document knows ''en vías'' is in no ''ways'' in the document.

Experience, familiarity with labor contracts in Spanish and Portuguese, and outright knowledge lead the humble human to render the whole phrase to its acceptable translation.

The humble human's translation was submitted to Reverso as a suggestion for improvement.

Conclusion
So while the three computer translators above perform their functions to a point, the humble human still has the edge on acceptable translations while the debate rages on the need, efficacy, and of course, accuracy of machine or computer translation.

Companies and individuals who need an accurate translation without embarrassments still need to rely on the humble human.

*** If you are in São Paulo and need English lessons, or Elite English Services including translations (Spanish/French/Portuguese to English), please contact Professor Winn by sending an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation. Buy your English-language texts today!