Japanese

J-1 (T, 1:45-3:15pm) - ALL LEVELS
Moments in the Life of a Japanese Interpreter
Hiroko Hara, freelance conference interpreter, Ballwin Missouri; and Izumi Suzuki, co-founder, Suzuki Myers & Associates, Ltd., ATA Board member, and assistant administrator, ATA Japanese Language Division, Novi, Michigan

There are many traps and pitfalls that the interpreter may fall into: missing headphones or equipment not working properly, a pen running out of ink, an English or Japanese speaker with a heavy accent, a conference or meeting running overtime, and so on. There are also rewarding moments for the interpreter: finding an equivalent proverb or saying, sharing a few hours with a great person, feeling that understanding is deepened among the parties involved thanks to the interpreting, etc. Two experienced interpreters will discuss such challenging and encouraging moments in their lives, allowing plenty of time for discussion.

J-2 (T, 3:30-5:00pm) - ALL LEVELS
Overview of the Translation Industry in Japan and Review of Translation Skills
Atsushi Tomii, founder, Techlingua, Inc., Tokyo, Japan

This presentation will cover several themes, including:1) the ambiguous Japanese phrase "____ site....suru," one of the most complicated practical Japanese>English and English>Japanese translation issues extracted from his lectures at Tomii Honyaku Juku in Tokyo; 2) an outline of the Japanese translation industry, including translation agencies, organizations, schools, accreditation tests, etc.; and 3) an introduction to dictionaries and translation-related handbooks the speaker has published, and how he prepared them. Questions from the audience are welcome.

J-3 (F, 10:15-11:45am) - ALL LEVELS
Information and Restructuring of Corporate Japanese Translation Activities
Tim Hallett, technical translator, Yaskawa Electric America, Inc., Waukegan, Illinois; and Emiko Kooi, technical translator, Yaskawa Electric America, Inc., Waukegan, Illinois

Many companies still operate in-house translation activities using mostly manual systems, leaving much to be desired in terms of speed, quality, efficiency, and reliability. Productivity and efficiency can be increased by adopting various automation technologies. However, this also entails a number of considerations based on the language, type of materials created, company size, complexity of IT systems, and the scale of global activity. The Japanese translation activities of Yaskawa Electric America, Inc. will be presented as an example of the difficulties encountered in converting from a manual to an automated system using machine translation, translation memory, and terminology management programs.

J-4 (F, 1:45-3:15pm) - ALL LEVELS
Japanese Patent Translation Workshop
Gerry Gooding, technical translator, Huntington Beach, California

In 1998, Japanese applicants filed 41,767 applications for utility patents in the U.S. With rare exceptions, these applications were originally filed in Japan (in Japanese), and had to be translated. That same year, 120,000 U.S. patent applications were filed by U.S. residents. Many of these applications also required Japanese patent references to be translated. Get the idea? There is a huge amount of Japanese>English patent translation work to be done! This workshop will start with a review of basic information (based on the ATA Japanese Patent Translation Handbook), followed by hands-on translation exercises.

J-5 (F, 3:30-5:00pm) - ALL LEVELS
Taming the Dragon: Handling Complex Sentences in Japanese Patents
Jon Johanning, administrator, ATA Japanese Language Division, Ardmore, Pennsylvania

Japanese patents are an abundant source of work for Japanese>English translators, but they present numerous practical problems. One of these which especially concerns freelancers, who, like Civil War surgeons, must work at top speed, is that these documents are replete with long, complex sentences. The presenter will discuss some particularly knotty examples from his recent work, describing methods he has evolved for dealing with them as efficiently as possible, and soliciting further ideas (hopefully even more efficient) from the audience.

J-6 (S, 8:30-10:00am) - ALL LEVELS
Techniques for Japanese-English Technical Translation
James L. Davis, associate professor and director, Technical Japanese Program, Department of Engineering Professional Development, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin

Technical translation is conducted most efficiently when the translator possesses both an understanding of the target language and knowledge of the technical specialty in question. The tendency toward vague expressions in Japanese and the need to present information precisely in English make technical translation from Japanese into English particularly challenging. The speaker will present a number of passages gleaned from Japanese technical literature and will discuss strategies and techniques for translation into English.

J-7 (S, 10:15-11:45am) - ALL LEVELS
Japanese Automotive Translation: A Land of Opportunity and Pot Holes

Chihae Arafune, translator, Japan-U.S. Communicator, Inc., West Lafayette, Indiana; Kaz Hayashi, translator, Advanced Manufacturing Engineering Group, Daimler Chrysler, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan; Susan Aitken Lapp, owner, Lingua Science Corporation, Ann Arbor, Michigan; and Shinichiro Takeshita, research engineer, Zexel USA, Farmington Hills, Michigan

The automotive industry is vast and diverse. Four panelists from various fields (a Japanese transplant, a representative from a Big 3 company, a component supplier, and a freelance translator) will discuss the following topics: 1) industry lingo and jargon frequently heard from assembly lines to conference rooms; 2) commonly used Japanese words in automotive and manufacturing companies where the English translations differ from context to context; 3) suggested reference books and classes for automotive translators and interpreters with non-technical backgrounds; and 4) the do's and don'ts for freelancers working with automotive agencies. Those serving in the automotive industry should not miss this session.

J-8 (S, 1:45-3:15pm) - ALL LEVELS
Japanese Software Localization Demonstration of Popular Tools
Yuko Kato, senior project manager, InterPro Translation Solutions, Inc., Chicago, Illinois; and Masako Takahashi, freelance technical translator,Woodstock, Illinois

A localization project manager of a large Chicago-based company and an experienced translator specializing in Japanese software localization will discuss localization projects from different perspectives. Kato will focus on each step of the project, including preparation for resource files, while Takahashi will share some practical translation skills with the audience. The highlight of this session will be a hands-on demonstration of popular translation tools such as Trados for Windows-based software localization and TTT for AS/400-based projects. Translators working in Japanese software localization will not want to miss this session.

J-9 (S, 3:30-5:00pm) - ALL LEVELS
Japanese Language Division Annual Meeting
Jon Johanning, administrator, ATA Japanese Language Division, Ardmore, Pennsylvania

For more information, contact ATA,
phone: (703) 683-6100; fax: (703) 683-6122;
or e-mail: conference@atanet.org.