翻譯科技 - 6 Minute English：英語精讀講義

Six Minute English from the BBC.

BBC 六分鐘英語。

Hello, this is Six Minute English from BBC Learning English.

大家好，這裡是 BBC 英語教學的六分鐘英語。

I'm Rob.

我是 Rob。

And I'm Sam.

我是 Sam。

Rob, I'm writing a letter to a friend in Spain

Rob，我正在給一位在西班牙的朋友寫信，

and I need some help.

我需要一點幫助。

Do you know the Spanish for it's raining? 片語搭配

你知道「下雨了」用西班牙語怎麼說嗎？

Don't worry, I have this new app.

別擔心，我有一個新應用程式。

I just hold up my phone, scan the word I want translated, 片語動詞

我只需舉起手機，掃描我想翻譯的單字，

"Está lloviendo" is the Spanish for it's raining.

「Está lloviendo」就是西班牙語的「下雨了」。

Amazing.

太棒了。

In this program, we're discussing language technologies, 表達脈絡

在本期節目中，我們將討論語言科技，

computers that can translate between languages. 片語搭配

也就是能夠在不同語言間進行翻譯的電腦。

Modern software like Google Translate has transformed how we learn foreign languages, 文法

像 Google 翻譯這樣的現代軟體已經改變了我們學習外語的方式，

bringing us closer to a world where language is no longer a barrier to communication. 片語搭配

讓我們離一個語言不再是溝通障礙的世界更近了。

But how well do these computers know what we really mean to say? 片語搭配

但是這些電腦到底有多了解我們真正想表達的意思呢？

Well, later we'll find out exactly what machines can and can't translate. 片語動詞

好了，稍後我們將確切地了解機器能翻譯和不能翻譯什麼。

And as usual, we'll be learning some new vocabulary as well.

和往常一樣，我們還會學習一些新詞彙。

But first, I have a question for you, Sam.

但首先，我有一個問題要問你，Sam。

The translation app I used just now is very recent,

我剛才用的翻譯應用程式是最近才有的，

but there's a long history of computer mistranslations, 片語搭配

但電腦錯誤翻譯的歷史卻很悠久，

times when computers got it badly wrong. 片語搭配

也就是電腦弄得大錯特錯的時候。

In 1987, the American Airline Braniff ran television adverts 用詞

1987年，美國布蘭尼夫航空公司播放了電視廣告，

promoting the all-leather seats installed on their flights to Mexico.

宣傳他們飛往墨西哥的航班上安裝的全真皮座椅。

But how was its "Fly in Leather" advertising slogan mistranslated into Spanish? 片語搭配

但是它的廣告語「Fly in Leather」是如何被錯誤地翻譯成西班牙語的呢？

Did the ad say

廣告裡說的是

A, fly in lava,

A，在岩漿中飛行，

B, fly on a cow,

B，在牛背上飛行，

or C, fly naked?

還是 C，裸體飛行？

Hmm.

嗯。

I have a feeling it might be C, fly naked. 語氣意圖

我有種感覺可能是 C，裸體飛行。

Okay, Sam, I'll reveal the correct answer later in the program.

好的，Sam，我會在節目後半段揭曉正確答案。

Computer software used to rely on rules-based translation, 講解

電腦軟體過去依賴基於規則的翻譯，

applying the grammar rules of one language to another. 片語搭配

將一種語言的文法規則應用到另一種語言上。

That worked fine for simple words and phrases,

這對簡單的單字和短語很有效，

but what happens when a translator comes across more complex language? 片語動詞

但是當翻譯器遇到更複雜的語言時會發生什麼呢？

For example, metaphors,

例如，隱喻，

expressions used to describe one thing by comparing it to another. 文法

也就是透過將一件事物比作另一件事物來描述它的表達方式。

Lane Greene is a language journalist

Lane Greene 是一名語言記者，

and the author of the book Talk on the Wild Side.

也是《Talk on the Wild Side》一書的作者。

Here, he explains to BBC Radio 4 program Word of Mouth

在這裡，他向 BBC 廣播4台的節目《Word of Mouth》解釋了

how apps like Google Translate allow users to manually translate metaphors. 文法

像 Google 翻譯這樣的應用程式如何讓使用者手動翻譯隱喻。

If I say it's raining cats and dogs, 慣用語

如果我說「it's raining cats and dogs」（傾盆大雨），

um and it literally translates "Está lloviendo perros y gatos" 用詞

呃，如果它字面上被翻譯成「Está lloviendo perros y gatos」

those in Spanish, that won't make any sense. 片語搭配

那些西班牙語，那將完全說不通。

But I think somebody at Google will have inputted the phrase 文法

但我猜 Google 裡肯定有人輸入了短語

"llueve a cántaros",

「llueve a cántaros」，

which is the phrase "It's raining pitchers" or "It's raining jugs of water".

這個短語的意思是「下著水壺那麼大的雨」或「下著水罐那麼大的雨」。

So that uh the whole chunk, "raining cats and dogs", 用詞

這樣，呃，整個語塊，「raining cats and dogs」，

is translated into the equivalent metaphor in Spanish. 用詞

就被翻譯成了西班牙語中對等的隱喻。

Lane wants to translate the phrase "It's raining cats and dogs",

Lane 想翻譯短語「It's raining cats and dogs」，

something that people sometimes say when it's raining heavily.

這是人們有時在雨下得很大時會說的話。

It wouldn't make sense to translate this phrase into another language literally, 片語搭配

把這個短語照字面翻譯成另一種語言是說不通的，

word by word.

逐字逐句地。

One solution is to translate the whole idiom as a chunk 用詞

一個解決辦法是把整個習語作為一個語塊來翻譯，

or a large piece of text or language.

或者說是一大段文本或語言。

This works for phrases and idioms that people regularly use in the same way 片語搭配

這對於人們經常以相同方式使用的短語和習語很有效，

because they can be taught to a computer. 文法

因為它們可以被教給電腦。

But what happens when someone like a poet writes a completely new sentence

但是當像詩人這樣的人寫出一個全新的句子時會發生什麼呢，

which has never been written before? 文法

一個以前從未被寫過的句子？

Lane Greene thinks that even the smartest software couldn't deal with that, 片語動詞

Lane Greene 認為即使是最聰明的軟體也處理不了這個問題，

as he told Michael Rosen,

正如他告訴 Michael Rosen 的那樣，

poet and presenter of BBC Radio 4's Word of Mouth.

這位詩人也是 BBC 廣播4台《Word of Mouth》節目的主持人。

But if a poet writes a new one, 文法

但如果詩人寫了一句新的，

then the machine is not going to pick it up 片語動詞

那機器就無法識別它，

and it's going to have a struggle, isn't it? 語氣意圖

並且會感到很吃力，不是嗎？

Sorry, I'm I'm yeah, I'm sticking up for poetry here 片語動詞

抱歉，我，我，是的，我在這裡支持詩歌，

and trying to claim that it's untranslatable.

並試圖聲明它是不可翻譯的。

Can you hear what I'm doing? 語氣意圖

你能聽出我在做什麼嗎？

I I hear you and and and you know, in in our war against the machines, 慣用語

我，我聽到了，而且，而且，你知道的，在我們對抗機器的戰爭中，

our our advantage is novelty and creativity.

我們，我們的優勢是新穎性和創造力。

So you're right that machines will be great at anything that is rote, 講解

所以你說得對，機器在任何死記硬背的事情上都會很棒，

anything that's already been done a million times 慣用語

任何已經被做過一百萬次的事情

can be automated.

都可以被自動化。

So you and I with our with our prefrontal cortexes

所以你和我，帶著我們的，帶著我們的前額葉皮質，

can can try to come up with phrases that'll flummox the computer 講解

可以，可以試著想出一些能讓電腦發懵的短語，

and so keep our jobs.

從而保住我們的工作。

When we say machines learn a language, 表達脈絡

當我們說機器學習一種語言時，

we really mean they have been trained to identify patterns 文法

我們真正的意思是它們被訓練去識別模式，

in millions and millions of translations. 片語搭配

在成千上萬的翻譯中。

Computers can only learn by rote, by memory, 用詞

電腦只能透過死記硬背、透過記憶來學習，

in order to repeat information 文法

以便重複資訊，

rather than to properly understand it. 文法

而不是去真正理解它。

This kind of rote learning can be easily automated, 文法

這種死記硬背的學習很容易被自動化，

done by machines instead of humans.

由機器代替人類完成。

But it's completely different from human learning, 片語搭配

但這與人類的學習完全不同，

requiring creative thinking, 文法

人類學習需要創造性思維，

which would flummox or confuse even the most sophisticated machine.

這會讓即使是最先進的機器也感到發懵或困惑。

Bad news for translation software, 表達脈絡

這對翻譯軟體來說是個壞消息，

but good news for humans who use different languages in their jobs,

但對在工作中使用不同語言的人類來說是好消息，

like us.

比如我們。

Yes, if only Braniff Airlines had relied on human translators, 文法

是的，要是布蘭尼夫航空公司當初依賴了人類翻譯人員，

they might have avoided an embarrassing situation.

他們或許就能避免一場尷尬的局面。

Ah, in your question, you asked how Braniff's television advertisement

啊，在你的問題裡，你問布蘭尼夫的電視廣告

"Fly in Leather" was translated into Spanish.

「Fly in Leather」是如何被翻譯成西班牙語的。

I guessed it was mistranslated as "Fly naked".

我猜它被錯誤地翻譯成了「裸體飛行」。

Which was the correct answer.

這正是正確答案。

Hmm.

嗯。

Braniff translated its "Fly in Leather" slogan as "Fly in cuero", 文化背景

布蘭尼夫把它的「Fly in Leather」廣告語翻譯成了「Fly en cuero」，

which sounds like Spanish slang for "Fly naked". 用詞

這聽起來像是西班牙語俚語裡的「裸體飛行」。

Okay, let's recap the vocabulary from this program about language translations, 表達脈絡

好了，讓我們來回顧一下本期節目中關於語言翻譯的詞彙，

which are automated,

這些翻譯是自動化的，

done by machines instead of humans.

由機器代替人類完成。

Often found in poetry, a metaphor is a way of describing something 用詞

隱喻（metaphor）常見於詩歌中，是一種描述事物的方式，

by reference to something else. 片語搭配

透過參考另一件事物來描述。

When it's raining heavily,

當雨下得很大時，

you might use the idiom

你可能會用到習語

"It's raining cats and dogs".

「It's raining cats and dogs」。

A chunk is a large part of something.

語塊（chunk）指的是某物的一大部分。

Rote learning involves memorizing information which you repeat

死記硬背（Rote learning）涉及記憶你要重複的資訊，

but don't really understand.

但其實並不真正理解。

And finally, if someone is flummoxed,

最後，如果有人感到發懵（flummoxed），

they're so confused that they don't know what to do.

意思是他們非常困惑，不知所措。

Once again, our six minutes are up. 片語搭配

我們的六分鐘又一次到了。

Join us again soon for more trending topics and useful vocabulary 語氣意圖

請盡快再次加入我們，獲取更多熱門話題和實用詞彙，

here at Six Minute English.

就在六分鐘英語。

But goodbye for now.

不過現在要說再見了。

Bye.

再見。

Six Minute English from bbclearningenglish.com.

bbclearningenglish.com 的六分鐘英語。