This is your brain on simultaneous interpreting.

An excellent article on simultaneous interpreting and the neuroscientists who are studying our brains.

Conference Interpreters and Court Interpreters, wherever you are, stand up and take a bow. According to this article by Geoff Watts, “The world’s most powerful computers can’t perform accurate real-time interpreting of one language to another. Yet human interpreters do it with ease.”

Click here to read the full article on BBC Future.

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Thank you to InterpreterEd.com for originally sharing this article.

 

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Bone spurs

Bony projections that develop along bone edges. They tend to form in the joints but can also be found on the bones of the spine and neck.

Often caused by osteoarthritis. 

Also called osteophytes.

Just when you think you don’t need to know medical terms in court, they put a neurosurgeon on the stand! This came up in a civil trial regarding damages related to a car accident.

More information from the Mayo Clinic here.

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Translations

Spanish – un espolón

Spanish interpreters, please feel free to submit ideas and alternative translations for the terms listed above.  Leave a comment below, or send me an email here.

Don’t see your language? We need your help! Please submit possible translations in your language here. (Be sure to include the term in English as well.)

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Terminology: Reverse-transfer hearing

In Colorado, a hearing held in district court to determine whether a minor being charged as an adult should have their case transferred to juvenile court.

For more information, click here.

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Translations

Spanish – audiencia para la revocación de cargos impuestos como mayor de edad

Note: The reverse-transfer hearing is unique in the Colorado legal system, so there may not be an equivalent in other legal systems/languages.

Spanish interpreters, please feel free to submit ideas and alternative translations for the terms listed above.  Leave a comment below, or send me an email here.

Don’t see your language? We need your help! Please submit possible translations in your language here. (Be sure to include the term in English as well.)

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In the News: Emojis Present New Challenges in Court Proceedings

Emojis are increasingly coming up in court cases. Judges are struggling with how to interpret them.

💸😵🔪

Read the story by Samantha Murphy Kelly (CNN) here.

How does this this newly evolving aspect of language affect us as interpreters in the courtroom?

Please feel free to share your thoughts/experiences in the comments section.

Terminology: Disabled Peddler’s License

According to the City & County of Denver Department of Excise and Licenses, Disabled Peddlers may petition for “an exemption from the prohibition against the use of carts, dollies, wagons, or any other wheeled device.” This license places certain conditions on the quantity of goods that may be carried on the Disabled Peddler’s wheeled device.

Read the City & County of Denver Peddler Guidelines here: Peddler Guidelines.

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Translations

Spanish – Licencia para vendedor ambulante discapacitado

Spanish interpreters, please feel free to submit ideas and alternative translations for the terms listed above.  Leave a comment, by clicking on the text bubble icon below this post.

Don’t see your language? We need your help! Please submit possible translations in your language here. (Be sure to include the term in English as well.)

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Terminology: Which mace are they talking about?

This came up in a Protection Order hearing, and there was some initial confusion as to which type of weapon was being discussed. Mace or a mace?

Mace is a brand name of pepper spray or tear gas, a product commonly sold for self-defense.

For more information, visit the Mace brand website here.

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Translations

Spanish – Since Mace is a brand name, it can be left as is. Alternatively, gas lacrimógeno or gas pimienta can be used.

***

A mace is a a weapon with a heavy head and spikes, which can be used to bludgeon a person.

Translations

Spanish – maza

Spanish interpreters, please feel free to submit ideas and alternative translations for the terms listed above.  Leave a comment, by clicking on the text bubble icon below this post.

Don’t see your language? We need your help! Please submit possible translations in your language here. (Be sure to include the term in English as well.)

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Terminology: Taser

Taser is a brand name of an electroshock weapon. It fires two small dart-like electrodes,  delivering an electric current to cause the recipient neuromuscular incapacitation.

A person hit by a Taser may experience pain, over-stimulation of sensory and motor nerves and intense, involuntary muscle contractions.

For more information, visit the Axon website (the company that sells Tasers) here.

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Translations

Spanish – Since Taser is a brand name, it can be left as is. Alternatively, arma de electrochoque or pistola paralizante can be used.

Spanish interpreters, please feel free to submit ideas and alternative translations for the terms listed above.  Leave a comment, by clicking on the text bubble icon below this post.

Don’t see your language? We need your help! Please submit possible translations in your language here. (Be sure to include the term in English as well.)

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Terminology: Tcheck/EFS check

A type of check issued to truck drivers to be used for fuel and supplies while on the road. These checks look similar to personal checks, but are tied to the trucking company’s account, as they are intended to cover business expenses incurred on the job.

Tcheck (or TCH check) is an older term, when the company in charge of the checks was the Transportation Clearinghouse. The term EFS check refers to the current company called Electronic Funds Source, LLC.

You never know what will come up during testimony, and the more you understand the topic, the better prepared you are to interpret accurately and completely!

For more information about Tchecks and EFS checks, click here.

Red truck moving on a highway

Translations

Spanish – Tcheck/ cheque EFS

Spanish interpreters, please feel free to submit ideas and alternative translations for the terms listed above.  Leave a comment below, or send me an email here.

Don’t see your language? We need your help! Please submit possible translations in your language here. (Be sure to include the term in English as well.)

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Terminology: Noose

A loop at the end of a rope, featuring a knot that tightens when weight is added. Can be used to commit suicide by hanging.

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Translation

Spanish – nudo corredizo

Many thanks to our colleague, Santiago Paez for sharing!

Spanish interpreters, please feel free to submit ideas and alternative translations for the terms listed above.  Leave a comment below, or send me an email here.

Don’t see your language? We need your help! Please submit possible translations in your language here. (Be sure to include the term in English as well.)

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Marshmallows as Mitigation

I was interpreting for a Mexican defendant who was pleading guilty to disobeying a fire ban up in the mountains. When the judge asked if there was anything he’d like to say about what happened, he responded in Spanish that his children had wanted to make “bombones.”

In my experience, bombones usually refer to chocolates, or can be a slang term for women. Neither of those seemed to make sense in this context, so I asked for clarification. I wondered if he meant s’mores, since those contain chocolate. I quickly discovered that for him, bombones were marshmallows!

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So now, the big question:

How do you say marshmallow in the language your interpret? 

So far, I have heard the following:

Uruguay – malvavisco

Mexico – bombón

Colombia – masmelo

Please post a comment or send me an email if you have another term for marshmallow. LOTS interpreters included!

 

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