Quantum paradox: Why I hate automatic translations, but I love them at the same time

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Avatar for Loucy
Written by
2 years ago

I have always enjoyed learning languages. I speak Spanish, Basque (Euskera), a little of Italian and a little of Portuguese also. In English, I can read and listen to it very well (Cambridge endorses it) but I am not good at speaking or writing it (Cambridge also says so). How is that possible?

Source: My last Cambrige test results

Throughout my life, I have read and listened to a lot of English technical manuals, games, scientific papers, books… that have helped me to have an almost perfect understanding of any kind of text. Listening to series and movies in original soundtrack or attending international congresses has allowed me to learn to listen to it.

However, I've never had the opportunity to communicate for a long time in English. That is why my mind, my neural link, does not work in that language. I am able to understand it quite well, but when it comes to expressing myself, my brain works in other languages and tries to do a "simultaneous translation on the fly”. It often fails miserably.

Why am I not able to write at the same level as I read? —I ask myself. And it's because of that “mental wiring”. So when I want to write in English, my insecurity makes me resort to automatic translators. But sometimes, it's even more frustrating.

Although translators have come a long way, they still can't do a good job. They can't translate local expressions or sayings. And they often confuse sentences, subjects and predicates. But at the same time, I find them tremendously useful to learn to express myself better and to recognize my mistakes.

How is that possible? Let me tell you how I do it. Imagine this text that I am going to use as an example and as an experiment. I have written in Spanish and translated it with a translator. As I said, I don't express myself very well in English, but I do read it quite fluently. So I read the translated text as if it had been written by someone else. The things that I don't understand well, probably have been wrongly translated. So I change them for sentences I understand.

Source: Screen capture of www.deepl.com. Description: This is just the first step.

Then I run a spelling and grammar checker (there is very good software for this). And I have my text in English, which I am able to understand and without grammatical errors.

Source: Screen capture of www.spellboy.com. Description: This is the second step.

But that's not all: what happens if I put that text in English and translate it back into Spanish? I think this is the most interesting step, and I find it very usefull for learning.

Source: Screen capture of www.deepl.com. Description: This is the second step.

Well, once again, there are absurd sentences that make no sense. This means that I have used some local or exclusive Spanish expression that, when translated into English, loses its meaning. And when returned to Spanish, it has become nonsense.

So I write it down in a notebook (to study it and to learn how can it be said en English) and change it back to a similar expression.

The result is an imperfect text (I'm sure this text contains many errors) and without language flourishes. Let's say it is a much plainer and simpler text than the original. But, despite this, it turns out to be quite understandable.

By the way, I've learned new ways of expressing myself and I detect mistakes I make when writing. So I hate and love automatic translators.

They allow me to learn to write in English using simple expressions, although they make it impossible for me to translate more complicated literary figures (for example, I can't translate the fantasy novel I'm writing here at read.cash because it loses all its literary beauty).

So I hope this text can be well understood (please, Don't spit on my face if I have made some mistakes XD). I just try to make it better and better. Moreover, any comment is welcome.

But, on the other hand, I think that Spanish is one of the most spoken languages in the world and that there are many people learning it. Then, If that is your case, let me invite you to our 'En Español' community.

I promise you that we are kind to those who are learning and that we will try to help you to understand and to express yourself in Spanish. A kind of “language tandem” that ends in a win-win situation.

With or without automatic translators.

Lead image source: Own creation inspired by the double slit quantum experiment

This article has been possible thanks to my sponsors. Take a look to their posts. They are really great!

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Avatar for Loucy
Written by
2 years ago

Comments

We always share our comments and opinions in Spanish, but you posted this in English, so we go. Loucy, I´ve had been speaking English for around 6 years, and one of the most important things to start speaking it a little bit fluent is practicing, yep it´s obvious but it is the best way, the interaction is so important, I know people who get a higher level of grammar than me, but when they have to talk, they cannot! It´s a matter of practice and, see the language as a way to learn the culture of the countries where this is spoken, this way you can learn idioms and expressions that make you speak more naturally.

$ 0.05
2 years ago

Indeed, I would like to move to England and to have an English speaking environment. As you say, It´s the better way to practice and to learn. Finally you´re right. A language is not just a instrument to communicate with other people, It is also a way for naming and understanding the life and the world, an expression of a complete cosmovison / culture.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

Iba a comentar uno de mis chistes malos, pero mejor me lo guardo. Me pasa un poco igual, leo y entiendo muy bien el inglés, sin embargo a la hora de escribir, solo me da para textos cortos o frases. Intentando un poco llegar a más personas, he probado los traductores y los correctores gramaticales, me han servido un poco para mejorar, obviamente me falta mucho, pero como tu misma lo dices, errando con ellos se puede aprender y mejorar. Hola y chauuu Lou

$ 0.05
2 years ago

Cuestión de práctica, supongo. Pero acuso tremendamente la falta de tiempo. Lo que me gustaría es mudarme a London por un tiempo. Así aprendes por narices XD. Pero claro, luego está la vida que te lo impide con sus quehaceres... Saludos y adioses.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

Hola buenas noches, si que es todo un procedimiento tedioso el estar traduciendo. Ya publiqué un artículo en Inglés e hice algo parecido con las comparaciones que haces.

Al traducirlo al Inglés y luego volverlo a traducir al español varias palabras y oraciones cambiaron.

Pero como no se ni leer ni escribir en Inglés no supe como cambiar lo que lo cuadraba.

Pero en líneas generales se entendía.

Quise utilizar el traductor que utilizaste pero era de pago y todavía no generó para costearlo.

Espero que me valla mejor, para utilizar herramientas que nos permita pulir más las publicaciones, ya que no tengo dotes de escritora como usted que lo hace muy bien. Hago lo que puedo y quiero hacerlo cada día mejor.

Ojalá la comunidad en español se expandiera cada día más.

$ 0.05
2 years ago

Deepl no es de pago. En su modalidad gratuita es bastante potente. Pruébalo, me gusta mucho más que el traductor de Google. Y sí, si entre todos y todas ponemos de nuestra parte, expandiremos nuestro idioma en la plataforma, ya lo verás.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

Intente usarlo hasta me registre pero no vi por ninguna parte en donde iba a copiar para traducir. Solo me salían las opciones de pago y también salía la parte en donde decía gratis. Pero no logré utilizarlo. Es igual al de granmarly tampoco lo supe utilizar.

Ojalá si creciera el de español. Por que uno puede ser más subjetiva y utilizar el vocabulario que uno usa normalmente.

Si voy a escribir para luego traducir, se tiene como que ser más serio en el uso de las palabras y oraciones.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

Something that helps a lot if you want the translator to give you readable text, is to write with simple sentences. Spanish is a beautiful language but when we write in it we use many resources that aren't used in English. So the simpler and more direct we write, the better the translator's result. On the other hand, there is the vocabulary, many times the translators give results with words that are not commonly used in English, and that denotes we have used a translator. But we can improve on that by reading. One of the "problems", I encounter we have in Read is that most of us who write here aren't native English speakers, so we all have our own mistakes and misuses of language when writing, and somehow we transmit them to each other.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

Absolutely. You´re right. My way of writing in Spanish is somewhat elaborate. This poses several problems when translating my texts into English. As you say, the simpler senteces the better translation. Or more accurate, at least. There is another issue with non native English speakers. I have learned the British way, and here, most of users write in U.S way. Similar, but not the same. It's interesting to check the differences.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

Yeah , it's true

$ 0.00
2 years ago

I write in Spanish (my native language). I translate everything in the Google Translator. Initially, I review I complete everything translated. Next, I use the Grammarly plugin in Firefox. This one checks all the grammar mistakes for me. Obviously, I read better than what I write in English. But since I was little I have been very good at English, and it is not self-sufficiency. I no longer write in Spanish and I decided to do it in English, because the community is much broader. So I wanted to try my luck there, and you can rate for yourself. Greetings and many successes friend! PS: English doesn't have to be completely perfect, just try your best.

$ 0.05
2 years ago

Of course! I always do my best, but I also want to improve.

What a pity for us you have decided to write only in English. You are a very good writer and content creator. So, please, don't forget our little community. Perhaps you could write someting in Spanish from time to time.

I will take a look that Grammarly plugin for firefox XD Thank you for the comment and for your support, friend.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

No todo en la vida es el dinero, pero la realidad es que si vamos a escribir y a crear contenido que sea correspondido no está del todo mal. No reniego mis raíces, solo trato de mejorar. La realidad es que la comunidad en Inglés es mucho mayor y evidentemente se ven más los resultados. Tienes artículos aquí que todos sabemos el trabajo que se pasa para escribirlos y son muy buenos, pero debido a la falta de publicidad que tienen, no alcanzan el nivel que deberían tener. Si estuvieran en Inglés sería otra la historia. Evidentemente analice todo esto y eventualmente me decidí por completo a dedicarme de a fondo a hacerlo todo en esas comunidades. El resultado lo puedes ver en mi perfil. Gracias al apoyo de todos ellos y algunos de ustedes que igual me siguen allí, he podido llegar a ese nivel. Nada se logra solo en esta vida. Un abrazo, y espero que entiendas todo lo que te planteo. Pd: Gracias por el elogio, sin embargo yo creo que tu lo haces mucho mejor. Espero verte por Just Write, la comunidad que cree hace apenas 1 mes y ya tiene más de 200 seguidores. Interactua con los demas allí, no te arrepientas.

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2 years ago

Yo misma se algo de ingles risas casi nada todo lo tradusco en google. Esta es mi suerte. Pues nada loucy mi vida todo no puede ser perfecto. Saludos y un abrazo. Gracias por tu patrocinio.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

Me gusta mucho más deepl que google. Creo que es más preciso. Por si lo quieres probar. Gracias a ti por leerme y por tus artículos.

$ 0.00
2 years ago

Si es el que uso actualmente Ya que publico acá en la comunidad de filipinos que es mas amplia que la comunidad español. Y creeme es tedioso es estar traduciendo pero bueno que le vamos hacer. Todo por una buena interacción. Linda noche

$ 0.00
2 years ago