16 May
2011
16 May
'11
1:33 p.m.
I've often wondered about Google Language Tools and the methods used
to render meaningful translations.
Recently, I took the Lithuanian national anthem and cranked it into
Google Language and received a word-for-word match with a "poetic
translation found on the web. Unfortunately, there was very little
literal correspondence with the actual words.
On another forum, I spouted Horace's "brevis esse laboro, obscurus
fio" and someone reported that they'd fed it into Google Language
Tools Latin translator and received "To be brief, dance with ugly
women". I know that Google Latin is in the alpha stage, but it
brought not a chuckle, but a belly laugh.
Google's Latin tool:
http://translate.google.com/?sl=la&tl=en#la|en|
--Chuck