Name: 聯合國如何實時翻譯所有內容 (How the UN Translates Everything in Real-Time)
Uploaded: 2024-07-11T12:21:01.000Z
Duration: 8 min 30 s

Last week, as one does, I was peeping some UN pics, and I noticed something—big, boxy, earpieces everywhere.

上週，我在偷看一些聯合國的照片時，注意到了一件事--到處都是又大又方的耳機。

Do these plug you into the Illuminati mainframe?

這些東西能把你接入光照派的主機嗎？

Is T-Swift farming streams in the Security Council?

T-Swift 是否在安全理事會中耕耘？

I put my outside correspondent Amy on the case, and turns out… no.

我讓我的外線記者艾米負責這個案子，結果......沒有。

Instead, these things are how diplomats get reliable, real-time translations for every sentence spoken on the UN floor.

相反，外交官們可以通過這些東西獲得聯合國會議上每一句話的可靠、實時翻譯。

But where do those translations come from?

Who's voice is in the earpiece, and how do they do it so fast?

聽筒裡是誰的聲音，他們是如何做到這麼快的？

The first thing you need to know is that the UN has six official languages—Arabic, British,

首先您需要知道的是，聯合國有六種官方語言--阿拉伯語、英語、法語、德語和西班牙語、

English, French, Mandarin Chinese, Russian, and Spanish.

英語、法語、中文國語、俄語和西班牙語。

That means, among other things, that if you're sitting at a meeting in the General Assembly, anything you read or hear will be available to you in all six.

這意味著，除其他事項外，如果你坐在大會的會議上，你所讀到或聽到的任何內容都將在六屆大會上向你提供。

It does not, however, mean that all the signs around you will be in Arabic—those are in

但是，這並不意味著您周圍的所有標識都將使用阿拉伯語--這些標識使用的是

English and French, the two working languages of the UN's executive branch, i.e. the ones the operation gets managed in.

英語和法語是聯合國行政部門的兩種工作語言，也就是管理行動所使用的語言。

But if you're actually doing peace talks rather than communicating what's on the second floor, all six are in play.

但是，如果你實際上是在和談，而不是在傳達二樓的內容，那麼這六點都是有作用的。

Every seat in the GA and Security Council, from the nosebleeds to the big ones, has an earpiece and some little buttons you hit until you hear your language of choice, or the ever-mysterious unknown, which I'm guessing is either Simlish, Toddler, or Marshmallow and Mouth.

大會和安全理事會的每個席位，從有鼻子的到大的，都有一個耳機和一些小按鈕，你可以按這些按鈕直到聽到你選擇的語言，或者是永遠神祕的未知語言，我猜要麼是 Simlish，要麼是 Toddler，要麼是 Marshmallow and Mouth。

The disembodied voice you'll hear isn't actually that far away—in fact, you can see them from where you're sitting.

你將聽到的非實體聲音其實並不遙遠--事實上，你坐在那裡就能看到他們。

The interpretation booths are right up here, each labeled with their language.

翻譯室就在這裡，每個翻譯室都標有各自的語言。

There are industry standards for just about everything inside—the lighting, the air circulation, the soundproofing, how comfortable the chairs are, but a copy of that standard costs 96 Swiss francs for some reason, so we're gonna live without the details.

室內的照明、空氣流通、隔音、椅子的舒適度等一切都有行業標準，但不知為什麼，一份標準的複印件要花費 96 瑞士法郎，所以我們就不細說了。

Each booth must always have at least two interpreters inside—which, by the way, is the word we should be using here—translators, in this context, handle written stuff, while interpreters do the blabbing.

每個展臺內都必須至少有兩名口譯員--順便說一下，我們在這裡應該用口譯員這個詞--在這裡，口譯員負責書面材料，而口譯員則負責口語表達。

Anyway, every interpreter in the UN is a native speaker of their booth's language, i.e.

不管怎麼說，聯合國的每一位口譯員都是以其工作語言為母語的，即

they interpret into the language they know best, since it takes more language mastery to communicate your thoughts than to understand someone else's.

他們會用自己最熟悉的語言進行解釋，因為與理解別人的想法相比，交流自己的想法需要更多的語言技巧。

Someone staffing the French booth, for example, either grew up speaking French, went to school in French, or both—if a diplomat's speaking Spanish, the French interpreter spits it out in French.

例如，在法語翻譯室工作的人，要麼是說法語長大的，要麼是用法語上學的，要麼兩者兼而有之--如果一位外交官說西班牙語，法語翻譯就會用法語翻譯出來。

If she's speaking French, the folks in the French booth go chill mode while the other five interpret.

如果她說的是法語，法語間的人就會進入放鬆模式，而其他五個人則負責翻譯。

The UN tends to staff the booths such that each one can cover at least three of the six official languages—so the Russian booth, for example, might contain two lifelong Russian speakers, both of whom can understand English, one of whom can understand French, and one of whom can understand Chinese.

是以，例如俄語展臺，可能會有兩個終身講俄語的人，他們都能聽懂英語，一個能聽懂法語，一個能聽懂中文。

But what happens if someone on the floor is speaking a language a booth doesn't have covered?

但是，如果現場有人說的是某個展臺沒有覆蓋的語言，該怎麼辦？

What if someone's talking in Arabic, and nobody in the Spanish booth understands it, and vice versa?

如果有人在說阿拉伯語，而西班牙語間裡沒人聽得懂，反之亦然，怎麼辦？

In this case, they employ what's called a relay system.

在這種情況下，他們採用了所謂的中繼系統。

Maybe there aren't any Arabic-Spanish interpreters, but there is a Spanish interpreter that knows

也許沒有阿拉伯語-西班牙語口譯員，但有一位西班牙語口譯員知道

So an Arabic interpreter would exit chill mode and interpret the speech from Arabic to English for the person in the Spanish booth, who would then interpret that from

是以，阿拉伯語口譯員會退出冷場模式，將阿拉伯語的語音翻譯成英語，提供給西班牙語口譯間的人員，後者再將英語翻譯成阿拉伯語。

English to Spanish, so when you'd turn your earpiece to Spanish, you'd hear an interpretation of an interpretation of a speech, all in near real-time.

是以，當你把聽筒轉到西班牙語時，就能聽到對演講的口譯，而且是近乎實時的口譯。

This happens pretty often—English-Spanish interpreters are a dime a dozen, but what about Russian-Spanish, Arabic-Spanish, Chinese-French?

這種情況經常發生--英語-西班牙語口譯員多如牛毛，但俄語-西班牙語、阿拉伯語-西班牙語、漢語-法語口譯員呢？

In fact, the UN needs a relay system so often when interpreting from Arabic and Chinese that all the interpreters who work in those two booths must be able to interpret both into their language, like normal, and out of it, for relay purposes.

事實上，聯合國在進行阿拉伯語和中文口譯時經常需要中繼系統，是以在這兩個口譯廂工作的所有口譯員必須能夠像正常口譯一樣，既能譯出自己的語言，也能譯出自己的語言，以便進行中繼。

This means there are often three people in those booths instead of two, and that they very rarely get to experience chill mode.

這意味著這些包廂裡往往有三個人而不是兩個人，而且他們很少能體驗到放鬆模式。

To avoid muddling things too much, the UN only allows one middleman language when they go into a relay system, so while you could hear words that went from Arabic to English to Spanish, they wouldn't give you a live interpretation that had gone from Arabic to

為了避免把事情搞得太複雜，聯合國在進入中繼系統時只允許使用一種中間語言，是以，雖然你可以聽到從阿拉伯語到英語再到西班牙語的話語，但他們不會給你提供從阿拉伯語到西班牙語的現場口譯。

English to Russian to Chinese, then back to Arabic for kicks, then to unknown, then to

從英語到俄語再到中文，然後再回到阿拉伯語，再到未知的語言，再到

But Sam, you've surely wondered by now, there are 49 countries that don't widely speak one of the six UN languages, according to the Wikipedia page I'm looking at.

但是，山姆，你現在肯定想知道，根據我查看的維基百科頁面，有 49 個國家不廣泛使用聯合國六種語言中的一種。

What if someone gives a speech in Japanese, Portuguese, Hindi?

如果有人用日語、葡萄牙語或印地語發表演講怎麼辦？

If you want to speak any language outside of the six, you have to provide an interpreter who can interpret live from your language into one of the six, then the UN staff will get it from there into the remaining five.

如果你想說六種語言之外的任何一種語言，你必須提供一名口譯員，他能將你的語言現場口譯成六種語言之一，然後聯合國工作人員再將你的語言翻譯成其餘五種語言。

As far as I can tell, the UN keeps about 120 interpreters in their full-time staff, and they're tough spots to get.

據我所知，聯合國大約有 120 名專職口譯員，而且很難找到。

The UN only offers exams for each language combination roughly every three years, and you need a lot of qualifications to even take one, and if you ace it, and nail all the following tests and interviews, you get a two-year appointment, after which they'll either promote you, or let you go.

聯合國大約每三年才會為每種語言組合舉行一次考試，你甚至需要具備很多資格才能參加考試，如果你通過了考試，並在接下來的所有考試和麵試中都取得了優異成績，你就會獲得為期兩年的任命，之後他們要麼會提升你，要麼會讓你走人。

You can also land amongst the freelancers—the people the UN calls upon when they don't have enough interpreters around to cover what they have going on.

您還可以加入自由職業者行列--當聯合國沒有足夠的口譯員來完成他們的工作時，他們就會求助於這些人。

Fun fact, freelance interpreters at the UN make a devilish $666 a day, which I know because I read the UN and the Interpreters Association 34-page Freelance Employment Agreement for fun, and I didn't even have to fork over 96 Swiss francs for the privilege.

有趣的是，聯合國的自由職業口譯員每天能掙 666 美元，我知道這一點是因為我讀了聯合國和口譯員協會 34 頁的《自由職業者就業協議》（Freelance Employment Agreement）。

From 1984 to 1985—the only year for which I could find the stat I wanted—the UN spent a total of $78 million US dollars on interpretation, equivalent to over $235 million today.

從 1984 年到 1985 年--這是我唯一能找到統計數字的一年--聯合國在口譯方面總共花費了 7 800 萬美元，相當於今天的 2.35 億美元。

But of course interpretation is expensive.

Being able to tune in live to what's being said in front of you in a completely different language than the one being spoken is basically magic.

能夠用一種完全不同的語言現場聆聽面前的人在說什麼，這基本上就是一種魔力。

Mind you, when some guys did it in the Bible, it counted as a miracle—they made it a holiday!

要知道，當一些人在《聖經》中做到這一點時，這也算得上是一個奇蹟--他們把它當成了一個節日！

Now interpreters do it every day, and where's their holiday?

現在，口譯員每天都在這樣做，他們的假期在哪裡？

Well, the first Wednesday in May, actually, but what are you doing to celebrate?

其實是五月的第一個星期三，但你要做什麼來慶祝呢？

Doing a live interpretation demands a combination of preparation, skill, and instinct.

現場演繹需要準備、技巧和直覺的結合。

To prep, interpreters get some advanced information about the meeting they're covering.

為了做好準備工作，口譯員要提前瞭解他們要報道的會議的相關資訊。

They'll know the subject matter and niche jargon they may come across, plus they get advanced copies of the documents attendees will have, and sometimes even a copy of the speeches people are planning to deliver.

他們知道可能會遇到的主題和專業術語，還能提前拿到與會者的文件副本，有時甚至還能拿到人們計劃發表的演講稿副本。

They're trained to understand every regional accent of the language they're interpreting from, and they know how to maintain the perfect delay between when the speaker is talking and when they start interpreting.

他們訓練有素，能夠聽懂口譯語言的各種地方口音，並知道如何在講話者說話和開始口譯之間保持完美的延遲。

They need to delay enough that they can understand people's full idea before they start repeating it, but if they delay too much, they might give themselves too much to recall from short-term memory while also trying to listen to what the speaker is still saying.

他們需要延遲足夠的時間，以便在開始複述之前能夠理解別人的完整想法，但如果延遲太多，他們可能會在努力傾聽說話者仍在說什麼的同時，讓自己從短期記憶中回憶起太多東西。

Interpreters have to match their speaker's tone and anticipate the end of their sentences to keep up pace.

口譯員必須配合講話者的語調，並預測其句子的結尾，以跟上節奏。

They can't ask speakers to slow down or repeat themselves—they just have to nail it and keep listening.

他們不能要求演講者放慢語速或重複自己的話--他們只需抓住重點，繼續聽下去。

Also, this is all happening at about 120 words per minute—as fast as an average Biden State of the Union.

此外，這一切以每分鐘大約 120 個字的速度發生--和拜登發表國情諮文的平均速度一樣快。

Neurologists are still trying to figure out exactly how they do it, but one study found that interpretation doesn't just use the parts of the brain that processes language or talks—it draws on capacity from other parts of the brain that handle movement and stuff just to coordinate all that listening, processing, interpreting, and speaking.

神經學家仍在試圖弄清他們究竟是如何做到這一點的，但一項研究發現，口譯並不僅僅使用大腦中處理語言或說話的部分，它還需要利用大腦中處理運動和其他事物的其他部分的能力，以協調所有的聽、處理、口譯和說話。

And if that sounds exhausting to you, it is!

如果你覺得這聽起來很累，那確實如此！

Staff interpreters only cover seven or eight meetings, each three hours long, per week.

工作人員口譯員每週只負責七八次會議，每次三小時。

And during those meetings, they'll swap out with another interpreter every 20-30 minutes, lest they tucker their brains out and threaten a country with juice and s'mores instead of nuclear wars.

在這些會議期間，他們每隔 20-30 分鐘就會與另一名口譯員交換一次，以免他們腦漿迸裂，用果汁和烤肉而不是核戰爭來威脅一個國家。

Because sure, little errors in the live interpretations get cleaned up before entering the record, but big errors just can't happen.

當然，現場演繹中的小錯誤會在錄製前得到糾正，但大錯誤是不可能發生的。

I mean, it's the UN—there's almost nowhere that knowing exactly what someone else said matters more.

我的意思是，這是聯合國，幾乎沒有什麼地方比確切知道別人說了什麼更重要。

So, here's to you, UN interpreters, up in your boxes, making diplomacy happen from the sidelines.

是以，聯合國口譯員們，為你們乾杯，你們在自己的箱子裡，從旁觀者的角度開展外交活動。

You deserve some nuclear war—no, uh, juice and s'mores—man, I'm not cut out for this job.

你應該來點核戰爭，不，是果汁和烤肉 我不適合這份工作

Look, I'm busy, you're busy, UN interpreters are busy, and when work and life and whatever else you do fills your entire schedule, it's easy to slip into some rough eating habits.

聽著，我很忙，你很忙，聯合國口譯員也很忙，當工作、生活和其他任何事情佔滿了你的整個日程表時，你很容易養成一些粗暴的飲食習慣。

Take out, nighttime PB&Js, take out PB&Js when things get… dark.

外賣、夜間 PB&Js 和外賣 PB&Js，當事情變得......黑暗時。

Factor is a meal delivery service that saves you from all of that.

Factor 是一種送餐服務，可以讓您免去這些麻煩。

They take all the time and stress out of eating well at home by sending you 4-8 pre-prepared, delicious meals that are ready to eat in just two minutes.

他們為您提供 4-8 份預先準備好的美味餐點，只需兩分鐘即可食用，為您省去了在家吃好的時間和壓力。

And if you've watched this channel for long, you know I'm a fan—I've been a loyal customer of both theirs and their parent company HelloFresh's for years.

如果你長期收看這個頻道，你就會知道我是它的粉絲--多年來，我一直是它們及其母公司 HelloFresh 的忠實用戶。

如果我有時間做飯，就吃 HelloFresh。

If I've barely got time to clean my fork, Factor.

如果我連叉子都來不及洗，那就叫 "因素 "吧。

And either way, I get an amazing meal that tastes better than Dino Nuggets and costs less than getting a chicken pad thai with curry puffs delivered… again.

無論哪種方式，我都能吃到比 Dino Nuggets 更好吃的美味大餐，而且價格還比外賣咖喱泡芙泰式雞肉更便宜......再來一次。

So if you want to skip the grocery store, and the stove, and the kitchen sink, why not give Factor a try?

是以，如果您想不去雜貨店、爐灶和廚房水槽，為什麼不試試 Factor 呢？

Head to Factor75.com or click the link below and use code HAI50 to get 50% off your first

前往 Factor75.com 或點擊下面的鏈接，使用代碼 HAI50，即可享受首次購買半價優惠。

 Factor box and 20% off your next month of orders.

因素盒和下個月訂單八折優惠。