科技英语的翻译.pptVIP

Translation of Scientific Texts General remarks Science and technology play a crucial role in human progress. Scientific translation becomes a prerequisite in the introduction and application of science and technology. In pure science, 70% of the research indexed in the Science Abstract (1970) is in English and 30% is in Russian and other languages. This statistical fact clearly stresses the paramount importance of scientific translation from English into Chinese, especially in the background of China’s currently undergoing a large scale modernization process. If, however, the translation of scientific texts from one language to another participating in modern cultural development is not too difficult, it is not surprising that the converse is true — that translating scientific material from a modern Indo-European language into a language largely outside the reach of Western science is extremely difficult. This is one of the really pressing problems confronting linguistics in Asia today. (Nida. 1964: 233) Linguistic Features of Scientific Texts Science is supposed to be characterized by precision and the absence of ambiguity, and the language of science is assumed to be correspondingly precise and unambiguous — in short, literal. Thus, to be a scientific translator, one should have (1) a broad knowledge of the subject-matter of the text to be translated and (2) a well-developed imagination that enables him or her to visualize the equipment or process being described. 1. Terminology in EST In EST, the subject matter takes priority over the style of the linguistic medium and aims at expressing facts, experiments, hypothesis, etc. Hence all that is required is verbal accuracy and lucidity of expression. Scientific words or terminology differ from ordinary and literary words because they do not accumulate emotional associations and implications. Needless to say, this is applicable to the translator’s language as well. Terminology in EST derives from four main sources: