Interpretation Final Exam

Please watch the following three videos from Audrey Ronquilo's very useful self-defense series for women who know nothing about martial arts:

How to Use "NO" for Women's Self Defense

How to Do the Horse Stance for Women's Self Defense

How to do Palm Heel Strikes in Women's Self Defense

For your final examination, you will be asked to interpret these English videos into Chinese. You will be graded for

1) fluency (lack of hesitation),

2) accuracy (correct translation of all topic-related terms), and

3) completeness (nothing was skipped: all significant content has been rendered)

 Audrey Ronquillo is a gorgeous

Résumé image from www.becomeahost.com

"Canadian born, second generation Filipino/Chinese-American. (Google's web cache is much faster than becomeahost)." You can watch her complete video series on YouTube, but watching it on eHow is better because they provide a transcript (with minor errors):

http://www.ehow.com/videos-on_326_self-defense-tips-techniques-women.html

Self Defense Notes

Useful self defense vocabulary:

If you carry a small can of pepper spray, you can blind an attacker by spraying it into his eyes. This will give you time to run away.

Your palm can be an effective weapon

A man who attacks a woman might get a knee in the groin

Some notes on today's videos:

video 1: 

your elbows back
wider than
attack ~ assault
"assault and battery"
rotate
ribs
groin
with our fists pulled back

you can be in somewhat of a stance
you just need to aim
down, directly and hard
with focus and direction
you don't want to miss
the belly button
the thigh
put some shoulder into it

















Notes for video 2 appear below:

Chinese Restaurant Syndrome (中國餐館症候群)

Some westerners worry about Chinese restaurant syndrome ( known in Chinese as 中國餐館症候群) which is supposedly caused by MSG in their food. If you go to a restaurant with Americans or other westerners, remember that some people are allergic to certain foods. If they tell you about an allergy, this can be very serious. Pay attention! MSG probably doesn't make people sick, but be sure to ask your guests if MSG bothers them. If so, tell the staff to not use any.

Personally, I don't like to eat food with MSG. I feel that only lazy cooks use this to make bad food taste better. Smart cooks know how to make food taste good without adding MSG. What do you think? Does MSG bother you? Do you put MSG in your food?

Octopus, squid, and cuttlefish: What's the difference?

What is the difference between octopus, squid, and cuttlefish?


Chinese Wikipedia and Simple English Wikipedia give us useful information:

Cuttlefish 烏賊，本名烏賊為俗寫，又稱花枝、墨鬥魚或墨魚，是軟體動物門頭足綱烏賊目的動物。 與魷魚不同的是，烏賊有一船形石灰質的硬鞘。 烏賊的最大特色是它遇到強敵時會以「噴墨」作為逃生的方法，伺機離開，因而有「烏賊」、「墨魚」等名稱。皮膚中有色素小囊，會隨「情緒」的變化而改變顏色和大小。
Simple English Wikipedia: Cuttlefish are marine (海洋) Cephalopod (cephalo = head, pod =
foot ∴ 頭足綱) molluscs (軟體動物). They belong to the same class as squid, octopuses and the nautilus. Cuttlefish have an internal shell (called a cuttlebone), large eyes, and eight arms and two tentacles furnished with finely toothed suckers, with which they grab their prey. Cuttlefish eat small molluscs, crabs, shrimp, fish and other cuttlefish. Various sharks and fish prey on them. They live about 1 to 2 years.

Squid 魷魚，又稱句公、柔魚或槍烏賊，是軟體動物門頭足綱管魷目開眼亞目的動物。
Simple English Wikipedia: Squid, like cuttlefish, have eight arms arranged in pairs, and two longer tentacles with suckers.

Octopus 章魚，又稱八爪魚
Simple English Wikipedia: Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms equipped with suckers. An octopus has a hard beak, and its mouth is at the center point of the arms.

Look at the pictures and take notes. 

You will be tested on the different names (English and Chinese).

Cuttlefish: 烏賊 Notice the fat body and shorter "arms" (tentacles): Cuttlefish, wwarby, CC BY, www.flickr.com--26782864 -AT- N00-4695864776

Octopus: 章魚 They only have eight "arms" (tentacles): Octopus fanned-out, caviness CC BY-NC-ND, www.flickr.com-15767043 -AT- N00/3242315

Squid: 魷魚 Notice how they have eight arms and two longer tentacles (like cuttlefish), but a longer body. Two Humboldt Squid, kqedquest, CC BY-NC, www.flickr.com-48372717 -AT- N00-2364117497

Only cuttlefish have a cuttlebone: ('Cuttlefish shell with drill hole') Paul J. Morris, CC BY-SA, www.flickr.com-32161280 -AT- N06-3052287581

Common Taiwanese Dishes

Here are reference translations and notes for some common Taiwanese dishes. Please leave any notes and comments in the notes.

I especially appreciate #15 (大腸包小腸 Two-in-One Sausage Wrap) for its clever English translation, which is similar in approach to the Chinese name.

---------------

#01 甜不辣, Tempura made by frying fresh fish and flour

#02 小籠包 Steamed Pork Dumplings Xiaolong Bao

#03 切仔麵 Soup Noodles

#04 羊肉爐 Mutton Hotpot

#05. 肉圓 Taiwanese Meatballs A sticky jelly-like dough filled with pork, bamboo shoots, shiitake mushrooms, and served with a savory sweet sauce.

#06 薑母鴨 Ginger Duck Soup With Chinese Herbs Put lots of old ginger into the rice wine hot pot.(no water) Then put the healthy Muscovy Duck 紅面番鴨 which is raised in the countryside. Cook it for about one hour. This kind of soup builds up your strength and strengthens your immune system very well. It's also a traditional Chinese dish for women who have just given birth

#07 珍珠奶茶 Pearl Milk Tea It is made from a mixture of black tea, milk, and sago pearls. The combination of fragrant tea and chewy sago has made this beverage popular not only in Taiwan but in other countries as well.

#08 臭豆腐 Smelly Bean Curd Deep fry the smelly bean curd, then stuff in some mashed garlic, chopped scallion. Finally, add some chili sauce and soy bean sauce. Don't forget the pickled cabbage.

#09 牛肉麵 Beef Noodles Red cooked beef (cooked in soy sauce) several kinds of traditional Chinese herbs are added to create a delicious flavor

#10 八寶冰 Eight Treasure Shaved Ice The ingredients usually include some of the following: taro, adzuki beans, mung beans, yams, sweetened peanuts, almond (custard) pudding, and grass jelly

#11 鹹酥雞 Salty Deep-Fried Pepper chicken A little bit salty, a little bit spicy, with juicy fried chicken. The best way to enjoy this dish is with beer.

#12 鱔魚麵 Eel noodles

#13 Braised (pot roast) Pork and Rice in Soy Sauce. Sometimes it is made with mushroom sauce and other ingredients.

#14 仙草芋圓, Grass Jelly and Ground Taro Balls Scientific name: Mesona chinensis

#15 大腸包小腸 Two-in-One Sausage Wrap Taiwanese 'pork sausage (placed) inside a (larger) sticky 'rice sausage (which has been slit down the middle)

#16 魷魚羹 Squid Thick Soup I know this dish very well because my parents have been selling squid soup for about 25 years

#17 木瓜牛奶 Papaya Milk Shake Cut up some papaya, add milk and sugar to taste, and some water or ice cubes. Blend everything until it is smooth. Don't wait too long too long to drink it. Otherwise, the drink will clot and turn bitter.

#18 鼎邊銼 Potside Scraping Soup Soup made with thick rice noodles scraped off the sides of the pot (Ding Bian Cuo)

#19 四神湯 Four Herb Soup

#20 筒仔米糕 Savory Rice Pudding In a Tube

#21 當歸麵線 Dang Gui Thin Noodles (vermicelli) Scientific name: Angelica sinensis

#22 棺材板 Coffin Bread (a Tainan delicacy) A sandwich made from a thick slice of bread with a hollow center filled with a mixture of chicken meat and liver, shrimp, carrots, potatoes, and milk covered with another piece of bread

#23 潤餅 Mixed Vegetable Roll (Taiwanese Burrito) Semi-crispy super-thin flour crepes filled with a variety of fillings, such as powdered sugar, peanut powder, boiled cabbage, bean sprouts, sliced fried eggs, barbecued pork, pork and even seafood. Taiwanese crepes are the made from the same dough as spring rolls (春捲) in Taiwan

#24 蚵仔煎 Taiwanese Oyster Omelet Made of Taiwanese oysters, vegetables, eggs and potato starch. Mix the potato starch with water, then add some oil in a pan and fry the liquid. Add some oysters, vegetables and eggs on the side. Add some sauce. Sea-fresh oysters are the most important ingredient in this popular snack. The oysters are coated in potato starch and tapioca. Eggs and leafy vegetables (香菜 cilantro) are added to the mixture, which is fried over a high flame. A sweet and sour sauce further adds to the delicious taste.

Here is (almost) the same text in prettier graphic form (click on each image to see it full-sized):

Translation of Chinese Culinary Terms (Part Two: Solutions)

Translating Chinese menus seems very easy: just look up each word in a dictionary and copy what you see. Even easier is to copy other people's menus, but these two methods can cause serious problems. My ideas are just suggestions: maybe they can help some of you avoid mistakes. What do you think? 拋磚引玉！

Translation of Chinese Culinary Terms (Part One: Problems)

Here is a slightly revised version of today's PowerPoint presentation. Comments are welcome. Please note that I could not locate a Creative Commons photo of Cordyceps Sinensis, so I used a photo of a related fungus which also attacks caterpillars.

Taiwanese Menu Game

To get ready for our game, please look up the following items commonly eaten in Taiwan:

八寶冰, 大腸包小腸, 小籠包, 切仔麵, 木瓜牛奶, 牛肉麵, 仙草芋圓, 四神湯, 羊肉爐, 肉圓, 珍珠奶茶, 臭豆腐, 甜不辣, 蚵仔煎, 棺材板, 筒仔米糕, 當歸麵線, 鼎邊銼, 滷肉飯, 潤餅, 魷魚羹, 薑母鴨, 鹹酥雞, 鱔魚麵

Please think carefully and choose the best translation for each item. Remember that good translations should be:

A) CLEAR: a foreigner should be able to look at/hear the name and guess what it is. Transliteration/romanization should be avoided. If possible, try to modify an existing word with a similar meaning, such as: "Chinese ravioli" (因為ravioli 是家喻戶曉的義大利名菜，所以取不太邏輯的名稱「中國的義大利餃子」)

B) ATTRACTIVE (the words should sound good: alliteration, rhyme and rhythm): 狗不理包子 Tianjin Boss is Busy Buns)

C) CULTURALLY ACCEPTABLE to English-speaking foreigners: e.g. "fungus" ~ "mushroom," but "mushroom" is much more acceptable, so 木耳 should NOT be translated as "tree fungus" (聽起來很噁心！). 木耳＝"tree mushroom" (可能好吃，外國人可以接受)

Questions, Problems, Comments?
If you have questions or problems with any of your translations, please add talk about two dishes. Which dish are you commenting on? Please give the number and the name. If you have no problem at all, just write "x" in the box.

Descriptions
Some foreigners are VERY careful about what they eat (because of their religion or because they are allergic/squeamish). They will ask you EXACTLY what each dish contains.

Choose five of the above dishes, write the # and Chinese name, list the main ingredients and add a short comment (say anything you want). Please choose only ONE noodle dish.

Example:

"#17 木瓜牛奶: A papaya milk shake contains papaya, fresh milk, and sugar (some places add honey instead). Drink your papaya milk shake quickly. Otherwise, it will curdle and turn bitter."


Enter your translations here

Technical English

This week all of you watched refrigerator (upright cooler) maintenance videos. The biggest problem was not vocabulary. Many of you had problems because you haven't practiced enough listening to normal English rhythm and linking. Some people complained that there were too many technical words (專有名詞太多). Actually, each video only included a very small number of specialized words (two or three).

Understanding how to fly an airplane is much, much more difficult. This involves tons of technical vocabulary. In these two videos, Pranas Drulis, a young man from Lithuania, explains how to start an Airbus. Watch for fun:

1] Airbus A320 - From Cold and Dark to Ready for Taxiing 

If you read this article first, the video will be easier to understand: What do all the controls in an airplane cockpit do?

In the second video, Pranas is working with a friend, Povilas Maknavičius:

2] Boeing 737 -- From Cold and Dark to Ready for Taxiing

Remember: these two young men come from Lithuania, a small country in Eastern Europe. Only 3,000,000 people live here, only a little bigger than Taipei.

60% of people in Lithuania learn to speak Russian. English is probably these men's 2nd foreign language.

Don't be discouraged by easy refrigerator videos. If you practice, one day maybe you, too, can learn to do something difficult, such as flying an airplane (use your English)!

Problem: "The refrigerator videos are too difficult!"

Solution: The refrigerator videos not really that difficult. I understand that they are unfamiliar for most people in this class (They were for me, too!), but these videos do present several advantages:

1] They form part of a series, so everybody is listening to the same speaker speaking about the same basic topic. When I explain the homework on Sunday, nobody should feel lost because "That's somebody else's topic!"

2] The videos are very visual. When the speaker mentions a part or a procedure, he points to something and actually does the procedure himself. This helps you understand what he's saying.

3] Documents are available so that you can check for the spelling of unfamiliar technical terms. Actually, if you know the rules of English spelling, you probably don't even need to look. You can make an educated guess.

The biggest problem with these videos is probably not the fact that the topic is unfamiliar. The number of unfamiliar terms in each video is actually quite limited. The biggest problem is coping with English spoken at normal speed. That's what I plan to help you with.

Refrigerator Video Dictation

On Sunday or Monday (March 11~March 12) choose one of the eight videos.

Then, following the procedure I explained two weeks ago, write down the first ten sentences in your video. The introduction is almost the same for each video. Please do not write down the introduction (the first sentence):

0 = "Hi, and welcome back to True's owner maintenance video series."

Start from the next sentence:

1 = "In this segment, we're going to cover ..."

2 = ...

...

10 = ...


To look up technical terms for your video, use the two owner's manual PDF files
   1) Installation  Manual  For  T-Series Freezer/Refrigerator (Swing  And  Slide  Door)    and
   2) the spec sheet for the T-43 Solid Door Refrigerator

The original instructions for how to do a video dictation are here.

Please record your choices below the break (click "read More"):

Food Unit Homework: "The Tantalizing Tastes of Taiwan"

For homework, please read "The Tantalizing Tastes of Taiwan," an article published in Taiwan Panorama. You can read the article in English and Chinese.

As you read the article, take notes on the various dishes. Make a list, with one name on each line, like this:

佛跳牆,Buddha jumps over the wall
菜脯蛋,dried radish
白斬雞,white chopped chicken
滷肉飯,rice with braised pork

To save you time, use the Paste Board function of Note Tab Light, excellent Swiss software.



You can download the free version from Fookes Software in Switzerland.

By the way, please say thank you to the wonderful smart people who made this software. If you want to encourage them, you can pay a little money to get the Standard or Pro versions, which include a spelling checker and other useful functions. The light version is free: you don't have to pay anything for it.

Rules for Medical Interpreting

Although this video is aimed at providers (doctors, nurses etc.), it is also useful for beginning interpreters. The ten rules in this video are explained in a humorous way that is easy to remember. Please watch and take notes. There will be one or two quizzes based on these rules. Here's what you need to know:

What are the ten rules? Why are they important?

1. Seek out a professional interpreter
2. If this is your first time together, hold a brief meeting with the interpreter
3. Stand or sit so that the provider, patient and interpreter are sitting in a triangle
4. Don't only look at the interpreter
5. Read body language and look for signs of comprehension or confusion
6. Speak in a normal voice, not too fast, not too loud and not too long
7. Be sensitive to the patient's culture
8. Avoid jargon and technical terms
9. Don't ask or say anything you don't want the patient to hear
10. Allow enough time for the interpreted session

Suggested answers appear below, after the break. Click on "Read More" to see them.

How to Take Dictation from Video Files

Part of your training for being an interpreter involves taking dictation from video clips. If English is not your native language, you might need to slow down the audio and perhaps put it on an MP3 player for convenient listening. Two pieces of software will help you do this job:

1] Pazera Audio Extractor, excellent free software from Poland. Extracting audio from a video file is very easy:

The Pazera Free Audio Extractor interface is very simple and user-friendly. To extract audio tracks from video files, just drag & drop them into main window, select proper profile from list, and click the CONVERT button. If the audio quality is poor, increase audio bitrate.

2] Audacity, a powerful Open Source program which can do many useful things with audio files.


Here is a flowchart I have made which explains what you need to do: