Why is it important that a translation service is located in Monterey Bay? Well, some of the finest language institutes are located in Monterey. The Monterey Institute of International Studies (MIIS) and the Defense Language Institute (DLI) are specialized institutions. The DLI also does research in the Language field and provides linguistic and cultural instruction for the Department of Defense. MIIS provides 15 different fields of study within the umbrella of Language studies. Some of these include Social Change, Terrorism Studies, Environment, Business Studies, and Translation.

Along with these schools, California State University at Monterey Bay (CSUMB) has many students graduating with a degree in Japanese or Spanish. CSUMB also provides classes in American Sign Language (ASL) and introduces students to the deaf culture. Many of the students who graduate with these majors have also studied abroad and have been immersed in the culture with which they study. The same kind of culture can be found at MIIS and the DLI.

Monterey Peninsula College (MPC) also provides language classes that include ASL, Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish. This concentration of high quality language instruction in the area calls for the inclusion of a high quality translation service.  ~ By Sam Pereira

Monterey Language Services is happy to call this place “home”.

American Sign Language has its own set of cultural norms and its own community. The people that bridge the gap between the deaf community and hearing people are ASL interpreters. These people are highly skilled and trained specifically for this purpose.

One of the most beautiful, smooth, and expressionistic languages in the world completely disregards sounds coming out of your mouth; rather, it features the use of your hands, eyes, mouth shapes, and facial expressions.

What language is this? Sign Language of course! Or more specifically, American Sign Language, commonly referred to as ASL. To give you a little background on ASL, here are some stats:

Here in the United States there are approximately 600,000 deaf individuals, not counting people that classify themselves as hard of hearing. Of the 600,000, many of these people would identify themselves as part of the deaf community which has its own set of cultural norms and practices. Unfortunately, this whole culture and language is ill-known to most hearing people unless they have deaf relatives, friends, or have taken ASL classes during their schooling. This often leads to misunderstandings, false assumptions, and information being lost in translation.

As with all languages, interpretation is necessary when it comes to bridging the gap between hearing people and deaf people. However, being an ASL interpreter takes a lot more than just being bilingual. This means that just because someone can speak English and also fluently sign does not mean they are fit to be an interpreter, in fact, they have a long way to go.

So what’s it take to be an interpreter for ASL? Well, in the near future you will have to at least have a bachelor’s degree. This is because you need a wide variety of vocabulary and general knowledge in order to mix and match the sometimes rough translations from word to sign. After you have prepared yourself with education and experience, you can then take the NIC, or National Interpreter Certification. The NIC has three levels: the normal certification, the advanced certification, and the master certification.

Learning ASL in itself is a commendable and rewarding experience, but taking the extra step to becoming a certified interpreter literally pays off. These jobs range from part time to full time and offer a substantial amount of cash!

Picture taken from: http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/services/a-s-l-interpreting-services-for-campus-events/

Stats: http://research.gallaudet.edu/Demographics/deaf-US.php

A study done at two pediatric ERs, reported by the Chicago Tribune, found that when families have no access to a professional interpreter, 20 to 22% of translation errors made could have led to potential health risks to the child.

Studies have found that patients like having a translator available, and that it may improve their care and ultimately cut costs — by avoiding unnecessary tests, for example.

There is an estimated 25 million Americans with what is called “limited English proficiency.” Also considering the fact that almost everyone gets sick or ends up in the hospital at least once in their life, this study could help prevent translation slips that would affect nearly 3.5 to 6.5 million Americans.

However, there aren’t always interpreters assigned to medical cases. It is estimated that it would cost the U.S. $268 million per year to offer interpreter services to most medical institutions around the nation.

Also, there was the least amount of errors reported from interpreters that had a minimum 100 hours of medical interpretation training.  Monterey Language Services provides certified, qualified, and professionally trained medical interpreters for LEP patients in the hospital on a daily basis.

Source of information:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/sns-rt-us-medical-erbre83g15s-20120417,0,1800424.story

Transcription is being able to take your audio, video, images, interactive content, flash, animation, and more; and type it out word for word in a format of your choosing.

Of course, it’s not easy to make your fingers talk as fast as your mouth. For most people the development of this skill comes from years and years of practice and also typing classes; as well as strong fingers and the ability to multitask.

To put this into perspective, let’s look at some numbers:

The average typing speed of adults in the United States is anywhere from 40-50 wpm, or words per minute, and the average professional typist usually types about 50-80 wpm. Now, 80 words per minute is a respectable accomplishment for the average Joe, but that’s nothing compared to people in dispatch positions and time-sensitive typing jobs who usually type at a minimum of 95 wpm. Even more impressive are advanced typists (including transcriptionists) who strive to have AT LEAST a wpm count of 120.

If 120 wpm wasn’t enough to blow your mind, this surely will. According to The Guinness Book of World Records the fastest English language typist in the world was Barbara Blackburn who maintained 150 wpm for 50 minutes, and has been clocked at a whopping peak speed of 212 wpm.

Think you’ve got what it takes to be the next Barbara Blackburn? Or maybe a transcriptionist? Put your skills to the test! And remember, the more words, the harder it is:

http://www.rapidtyping.com/online-typing-test.html

Monterey Language Services provides transcription services for audio and video files in all languages.

A frequently asked question in the translation and interpretation field: What would you have to do to become an interpreter?  What it takes? Here is a sample path in becoming an interpreter:

1. Tap into any bilingual background you may have. Most interpreters come from families where more than one language is spoken.

2. Perform well in high school, especially in English composition, foreign languages, and computers skills. Keep the option of being an exchange student open.

3. Go to college and obtain a bachelor’s degree. Majoring in a foreign language isn’t entirely necessary, but at least having a strong study in interpretation with one focused language is strongly recommended.

4. There are two basic forms of interpretation: consecutive and simultaneous. Besides these, conference interpreters could train in technical or scientific fields. These classes are offered at many colleges and universities.  Monterey Institute of International Studies is among the most famous in the United States, where the majority of us at Monterey Language Services are from.

5. Think about getting a master’s degree if considering a specialized interpretation field.

6. Think about getting certified. Many places such as the American Translator’s Association, the National Board of Certifications for Medical Interpreters, State courts and Federal courts have many legal interpretation certification programs in many languages.

7. Get a translation job for a company or business as your launch pad to a career.

8. Always network with other interpreters and employers.

Submit your translation & Interpretation resume to http://www.montereylanguages.com/send-a-resume.html

Information from the following sites fell into this post.
http://www.ehow.com/how_2057742_become-interpreter.html http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Media-and-Communication/Interpreters-and-translators.htm#tab-4

Siri, Apple’s new iPhone 4S app, is still struggling with picking up dialects and its ability to recognize language, so this application is long in the works. 

New technologies come up almost every day with ways to make life easier and more efficient, but may not cover the entire subject. For example, in the case of the new translation services the iPhone application Siri is looking to provide, they only offer services in six languages and dialects, American English, British English, Australian English, French, German and Japanese.

Here’s how the new translation technology is set to work, from the technology blog pcworld.com:

“The voice commands are recorded by the iPhone and then shipped to the cloud for interpretation. For example, when in Paris, a user’s iPhone could offer a translation to: “Quelle est la date d’aujourd’hui” and in response the user could reply in English, with the other person’s Siri translating the answer into their own language. The iPhone could use the GPS location to speed up translation by defaulting to the most likely language.”

Monterey Language Services can provide a more diversified translation experience with the highest quality. Monterey Language Services has access to over 10,000 translators and interpreters, offering translation and interpretation services for 175 languages and dialects to clients around the world. This broad range is sure to meet the needs of any who use the service. 

The fight with new technologies is usually about quality or quantity, but Monterey Language Services has them beat in both.

All the colleagues working at Monterey Language Services are linguistically gifted with world travel experience. Our intern Matthew Stone went to Germany and finished his high school degree and is now a business major at CSUMB. He was interned in Austria and volunteered to help build amphitheaters in Mexico. He has unique experiences in a dozen different countries.

~Monterey Language Services, providing high quality translation and interpretation services in over 175 languages.

A Story by Matthew Stone

When you are a teenager, the world is a big place, especially when you go out to explore it.

I left home when I was 16, heading out to Germany, while knowing no German. Sometimes the hardest thing was simply staying awake, listening to words 24 hours a day when I had no idea. But I stayed because I wanted to be a professional soccer player.

I had spent so many years of my life trying to play in Europe and finally the opportunity had arrived. Nothing could tamper my motivation, not even the language barrier. The frozen fields and gummi platz (German playing surface) that engulfed me for countless hours only added to my passion with its new aura.

So writing to you years later as a college student, do I look back and say I did not achieve my dream? Or did my pursuit of one open up new doors? Because of my desire to play soccer, I now am fluent in German and have been awakened to the world. This has resulted in me traveling around the world as well as picking up an internship in Austria. It was not easy but you never find anything new if you trample the path that has already been worn.

Happy Valentine’s Day
From Monterey Language Services

Monterey Language Services is a translation and interpretation company headquartered in Monterey County, California.  What do we know about Monterey County?

Monterey County is probably best known as the setting of John Steinbeck’s novels, and for the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, at which Jimi Hendrix got famous. 

But the county has even more to offer.

Salinas is the county’s largest city.   The city’s nickname is the Salad Bowl of America, as over 80% of all lettuce grown in the United States is grown in the Salinas Valley.

Castroville calls itself the Artichoke Center of the World, and holds the Castroville Artichoke Festival every year (in fact, in 1948 its Artichoke Queen was none other than Marilyn Monroe!).

Carmel-by-the-Sea, most famous for swanky houses and rich natural scenery, is also home to an arts colony formed in the wake of the Great San Francisco Earthquake.  Its early members included Jack London.  One of the world’s most popular and handsome actors, Brad Pitt maintains a house here.

Gonzales, formerly a depot for freight trains, saw the establishment of California’s first condensary.  Incorporated as a city in 1974, it is now the Wine Capital of Monterey County.

Modern trends in Monterey County include a planned eco-village near Fort Ord, and a citywide plan to achieve zero waste.

Do you also know that Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito Counties produce 85% of the nation’s fresh vegetables, herbs and berries AND 15% of the world’s?

The name John Steinbeck is probably more associated with Monterey County than is any other name.  In light of Steinbeck’s unrivaled influence in Monterey County, several of us decided to check out the house in which he grew up in Salinas.  Here we were at 132 Central Avenue, Salinas. 

Visiting Steinbeck’s house was beyond edifying.  This Victorian-era abode gave a sense of what it was like to grow up in the early twentieth century, almost to the point of making a person feel as if he is a young John Steinbeck. 

We were not only visiting a historic landmark, but also having a literary experience by being in the house. A quote that we think really does a good job summing up Steinbeck is what he said while accepting the Nobel Prize for Literature: “Literature is as old as speech.  It grew out of human need for it and it has not changed except to become more needed.”  The first thought that came to mind was that if we were to replace “Literature” with “Translation” or “Interpretation”, the quote would sound great as well.

We started to debate who the greatest American author is who can be compared to Shakespeare, Molière and Cervantes.  We came to the conclusion that Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck are the ones who have come the closest.

Discussing literature while having lunch in John Steinbeck’s childhood home puts one in the right frame of mind to feel compelled to come back to the office and write a blog about this encounter with one of America’s greatest authors.

Not only was Steinbeck a great author, but he also represented the heart and soul of this region of California.  In his novels, Steinbeck looked at the ethnic makeup of Monterey County, at the lives of different groups of people, and at the significance of the agricultural industry in central California’s economy. 

His novel East of Eden is set in Salinas, while Cannery Row is set in Monterey.  These novels show Steinbeck’s relation to the environment in which he grew up, and even give a sense of the cities today. In looking at the best and worst of central California, John Steinbeck showed himself to be probably the best that the region has ever had to offer.  There will very likely never be another like him.