ACL4 Machine Translation Exam 2000

Andy Way and Lynne Bowker
Dublin City University

Attempt five questions. All questions carry equal marks.

Q 1.
There is a widespread misconception among translators that computer-assisted translation will cause many of them to be replaced. In the light of the following quote:
``... it is the translator's skill, not the mode of work, that determines the quality of the final translation product'', (Vasconcellos & Bostad, 1992:68).
discuss the introductory statement. Provide insights on this issue from your practical experience of using MT systems.

Q 2.
How can different types of knowledge help us resolve cases of structural ambiguity? Give examples.

Q 3.
Discuss the suitability of any two grammar formalisms and parsing algorithms you know about for incorporation into a rule-based MT system.

Q 4.
(a) Give possible structural transfer rules for the following cases, using a notation of your choice:

He likes the book --> Le livre plaît à lui.
    Das Buch gefällt ihm.
     
I like swimming --> Ich schwimme gerne.
    Ik zwem graag.
     
She is called Mary --> Elle s'appelle Mary.
    Sie heißt Mary.
     
She drove into town --> Elle entra dans la ville en voiture.
(b) Where translations are given for more than one language, it may be argued that it suffices to provide a rule for one of the alternatives only. Why?

(c) Explain how the task of mapping between interface representations for this data would be simplified using an interlingual system.

Q 5.
There are many proponents of rule-based methods as opposed to the statistical corpus-based approaches to MT. Discuss how elements from each methodology might be combined into a hybrid system capable of outperforming either.

Q 6.
(a) Briefly describe how a translation memory system works and outline some of the benefits that translators gain by using such a system.

(b) In what type of environment would a translation memory system be more useful than a machine translation system and vice versa?

(c) In the context of Localization Quality Assurance, what types of cultural and linguistic conventions need to be checked during locale testing? Provide examples.

Q 7.
(a) Explain what is meant by the term controlled language.

(b) What are the advantages of using a controlled language in the context of machine translation?

(c) Consider the English source text below and its translation into either French or German. What modifications would you make to the source text in order to try to improve the quality of the target text?

Original English text:

Passengers will beyond a shadow of a doubt be afforded a higher degree of personal safety (not to mention peace of mind!) when they find themselves riding in vehicles which have built in front and back anti lock braking systems provided by the manufacturer to prevent accidents that may be caused by skidding on such things as black ice or oil spills.


French translation (as produced by Alta Vista's web translation service):

Les passagers veulent au delà d'une ombre d'un doute soient permis un degré plus élevé de sûreté personnelle (pour ne pas mentionner la paix de l'esprit!) quand ils se trouvent équitation dans des véhicules qui ont construit dans des circuits de freinage de serrure d'avant et de dos anti fournis par le constructeur pour empêcher les accidents qui peuvent être provoqués par l'ensabotage sur des choses telles que des flaques noires de glace ou de pétrole.


German translation (as produced by Alta Vista's web translation service):

Passagiere willen über einem Schatten eines Zweifels hinaus werden geleistet ein höherer Grad persönliche Sicherheit (Frieden des Verstandes nicht erwähnen!) wenn sie Riding in den Trägern sich finden, die Frontseite und Rückseite Anti-Verriegelung in den Bremssystemen aufgebaut haben, die durch den Hersteller bereitgestellt werden, um Unfälle zu verhindern, die verursacht werden können, indem man auf solche Sachen wie schwarze Eis- oder Ölstreuungen rutscht.

Q 8.
Study one of the pairs of texts below (i.e. either the French text and its translation into English or the German text and its translation into English). Identify and describe three different types of translation error that have occurred. Suggest how these errors might have been prevented in a better MT system.

French text (http://www.berlitz.com/french/berlitz_publishing/travel.html):

Les hommes d'affaires et tous ceux qui voyagent pour le plaisir connaissent sans doute la plupart de nos guides de voyage : les fameux guides ``pocket'' Berlitz, les guides de conversation et les dictionnaires bilingues, qui ont été d'une aide précieuse à des millions de voyageurs. Avec 5 millions d'exemplaires, nos guides "pocket" en couleurs et de conception entièrement nouvelle, couvrent maintenant plus de 100 destinations en 13 langues.

English translation of French text (done using Alta Vista's web translation service)

The businessmen and all those which travel for the pleasure undoubtedly know the majority of our guides of voyage: famous guides ``pocket'' Berlitz, guides of conversation and the dictionaries bilingual, which were of an invaluable help to million travellers. With 5 million specimens, our guides ``pocket'' colors and entirely new design, cover now more than 100 destinations in 13 languages.

German text (http://www.berlitz.com/german/berlitz_publishing/travel.html):

Wenn Sie öfter privat oder geschäftlich verreisen, dann kennen Sie unsere Palette nützlicher Produkte für unterwegs sicher bereits: Taschenreiseführer, Sprachführer und zweisprachige Reisewörterbücher. Für Millionen sind sie bereits unersetzlicher Reisebegleiter. Die Neuauflage der 4-farbigen, komplett überarbeiteten Berlitz Reiseführer umfaßt mehr als 100 Ziele in 13 Sprachen.

English translation of German text (done using Alta Vista's web translation service):

If you travel more frequently privately or in business, then you surely already know our pallet of useful products for on the way: Bag travel guide, language leader and bilingual travel dictionaries. For millions they are already irreplaceable travel companion. completely Berlitz travel guides revised the new edition of the 4-farbigen cover more than 100 targets in 13 languages.


Andy Way, 30th March 2001.