Locking up in English – a jail house rock of words

 

[prison block*]

One outstanding aspect of English is the incredible number of words for almost any concept. It is a bit of a mixed blessing as, on the one hand, it allows for great precision both in terms of meaning and register but, on the other hand,  can create a major challenge for non-natives as they find the distinctions between the words difficult if not impossible to ascertain and remember. In previous posts, I have discussed synonyms for walking and eating. In this post, I will review a more punishing matters, specifically jail. The plethora of words differ in terms of origin, use and register and don’t necessary imply identical institutions.

[Western jail]

For a short stay, prisoners are sent to a jail or a gaol as it used to spelled in the UK. Appropriately, the word derives from a Latin word for cage, which the Normans brought to England. A more modern of version of this short-stay lodging is a detention center, which I suppose sounds more politically correct although the British used the term to describe the camps where they placed Jews that tried and failed to reach Palestine before the establishment of the state of Israel. The location of a stay of a few hours, as in dealing with drunks, is a lock-up cell. A 20^th century American slang term is the can, as in “if you don’t stop doing that, you will be thrown in the can. “ Another slang term is the clink, referencing the sound of the jail doors closing.

[Alcatraz prison]

For lengthier stays, prison is the place criminals call home. Once again, old French, in this case prisoun, meaning captivity, is the source.  Based on a peculiar if not evil principle, the Americans began building penitentiaries in the 1830’s, which involved placing prisoners in solitary confinement and having them ponder their sins without distraction so that they can make penitence. Alas, the far more common result was insanity but it took a while before the powers-that-be understood that. Criminals shortened the name to pen as in being “sent to the pen”. Similarly misguided, the justice system sent criminal juveniles to reformatories, supposedly to educate them and turn them into model citizens. The idea is promising but even now there are a few issues with the application. In terms of slang, countless words exist but an older term up the river refers to Sing Sing, a rather harsh prison in New York, while 'the rock" was Alcatraz. As compared to jails, potential and actual residents sometimes refer to prison as the slammer probably to do the oud noise created by its heavy doors closing.

[Hobart prison, Tazmania]

One European method of dealing with crime, small and great alike, was to send them away to penal colonies far away. France’s Guyana and England’s Australia and New Zealand are two infamous examples of sweeping the problem across the sea. The Russians have so much land that they can send their prisoners, criminal and political, to Siberia, in modern terms to the Gulag, “to count trees” as the Russian expression goes. As Hannah Arendt might say, the Europeans did not intend to kill their prisoners but were not overly concerned about their health. For that matter, the Chinese have further developed the Nazi labor camps, locally known as reeducation camps, adding political and religious pressure to the experience. What you don’t see does not bother you?

[Brig]

As a last note, the military has its own special inns. Dating from a time when forts were built out of wood, a stockade is the place of resident of disobedient soldiers with another option being the brig, which derives from the French word brigadin, a small fighting ship used by pirates and raiders. In any case, the rooms tend to be a bit small. Countries intern prisoners from other countries in prisoner-of-war (POW) camps while residents that are suspicious because of their country of origin are placed in internment camps as the Americans did to Japanese-Americans during World War II. As they say in Hebrew, better that you don’t know (about it) or maybe not.

I hope that your understanding of these terms remains in theory only and that the only use of them is for understanding text, notwithstanding the song by Elvis Presley Still, on a linguistic level, the sheer variety and specificity of English words regarding being locked up says somethings about the linguistic history of English and social history of English-speaking countries.

* Use picture captions as they help the blind fully access the Internet.

Pictures via Pixabay

CATting edge technology – a PDF document set case study

 

[Me and my real life cat tool*]

As a professional legal translator, I often am called upon to translate PDF versions of official documents and utility notices as well as bank statements. As these documents significantly vary in terms of formatting complexity and font clarity, I have to choose the most efficient way of approaching the translation, i.e., by hand, using a CAT tool or some combination of the two. I present a recent project that included some ten such documents that had to be translated from Hebrew to English, explain my approach and state my personal conclusions.

Before going into detail, non-translators may need a short explanation of the methods. Hand translation involves building a text, line by line, adjusting font size and column widths to create a document that is visually identical to the original. Even with practice, this method can be quite time-consuming unless one has a template already (which I did not have in this case, unfortunately). The more efficient way is to use an OCR application, ABBYY FineReader on my computer, to convert the PDF into a Word text. The application creates a Word document after first asking for confirmation of any letter that it seems uncertain. Such “verifications” can range from a few to a page to a quarter of it in worse cases. The factors influencing the convertibility include the complexity of the formatting, type of font and quality of the PDF. Translators then take the resulting Word document and, import it to a Computer Assisted Translation (CAT) tool, MemoQ here, which creates sentence-level segments, which are then translated one by one, with numbers and repetitions automatically entered. Upon export, translators receive the same document in the target language but formatting and font often must be tweaked to produce a final document. This method is significantly faster in many cases and much more accurate if numbers are involved.

The project in question involved 10 pages ranging from a text with a simple format and clear font, a simple letter, to complex formatting and poor PDF quality, a government notice and a utility bill as well as texts that contained significant percentages of numbers combined with the short but complex formatting on top (bank statements). I priced the document in terms of time as if I would do all the documents by hand with my “profit” being how efficient I can be.

In practice, I immediately removed three documents from the OCR application as their formatting and font would not convert well, specifically the utility bill and two government notices. While processing the documents in the OCR, I then removed two more documents as “verifying” the text and then redoing the formatting would have been more time-consuming than simply translating it manually. Two of the remaining documents came out almost perfect but the bank statements were problematical as the OCR did not produce a document properly reflecting the complex formatting on the upper part and its varying size fonts. However, I chose to complete the scanning process and label the bank account inputs as a table as it would ensure that there were no errors in numbers and reduce my QA time in terms of eliminating the need to double check the numbers.

Ultimately, I translated five documents by hand, essentially the government notices and utility bills, which are quite complex in terms of formatting. Two of the documents, the simple letter and a simple notice, required almost no additional work after export from the CAT tool. On the other hand, I took a hybrid approach to the bank statements, hand creating the short upper part with all the account details but pasting the chart from the CAT tool import to ensure that the numbers were correct, with a few minor tweaks.

In terms of time, the CAT tool did improve my efficiency to a certain degree but not as much as theoretically possible due to the quality of the PDF image and the type of font in this set of documents. In the future, I will immediately remove those segments that are currently beyond the capacity of the OPR to properly recognize in terms of text and format in order to avoid wasting time on “verifying” text that I will not use. On a positive note, I discovered that the combination of manual translation and CAT usage on a single document can be an effective method. Live and learn.

* Use picture captions to allow the blind to fully access the Internet.

Writing posts - why and how

The why and how of writing content posts - Stephen Rikfkind - ITA (Israel Translators Association) Conference -2022

We are not in Kansas anymore – Why Israel is different and worth visiting

 

[Footprints in the beach*]

Each country has its unique footprint, its identifying features. While residents may have ceased to notice or may have never paid attention to them, tourists immediately observe these striking aspects of daily life and appreciate them to various degrees. These differences can be audio, visual or just an undefined feel. Whether different is better or worse is a matter of taste but, in the case of Israel at least, it makes a trip to the country an unforgettable experience.

[People talking]

Israel is a loud country. I suppose the whole Mediterranean world speaks loud but Israelis are known (or infamous) for talking loud and with great energy. From the time travelers get on plane to fly to Israel to the eventual return to their homeland, about the only quiet place is the hotel room. The vocal excitement can express joy, anger or absolutely nothing but it does create a feeling of life, albeit occasionally a bit too much. Happily, within a short time, normal volume is reset to local conditions.

[symphony music sheets]

Of course, the voices may sound like a cacophony for some people but for those that enjoy foreign languages, it is a symphony. In the street or a restaurant, residents, not only visitors, may be gabbing away in Hebrew, Arabic, English, Russian, Moroccan, Romanian, French, Yiddish and Spanish, to name a few. True, they are generally complaining about personal or public matters, but they are doing it in Tower of Babel fashion. One of my first memories in Israel was the joy of listening to the almost joyful multilingual complaints about the line in the post office. Alas, that pleasure has been usurped by the use of an online application to schedule an appointment. Still, for those that enjoy the orchestra of sounds that languages create, Israel is a Shangri-La.

[Fingers on a map]

Fortunately for tourists and many locals, the vast majority of Israelis not only speak English but do it well. As compared to the linguistic desert of Spain, France and Italy, Israelis study English and truly enjoy speaking it. Even taxi drivers and waitresses can converse effectively if not quite grammatically in English. I suppose it may be because Israelis understand that Hebrew is not a very useful international language outside  of New York, Los Angeles and parts of Turkey and Thailand. By the way, Icelanders also speak rather good English, probably for the same reason. This means that tourists can travel anywhere in Israel comfortably without stress, aside from the insanity of the drivers of course, with full comprehension and receive meaningful answers from most bystanders and service people. They will also encourage you to try your Arabic or Hebrew. Israel is an easy place to travel in terms of language.

[Security person]

For those more visually acute, one of the most striking elements is the ever-present security. Israel is not China, which has security people with various colored uniforms everywhere but their primary purpose is watch its own citizens. Israeli security is against terrorism and is expressed by the mandatory presence at the entrance of every public building of a security guard, who does not seem to be paying much attention as he checks bags. Appearances can be deceiving as most of these guards have served in the army and actually know what to do in an emergency. As unfortunately shit does happen occasionally in Israel, it is reassuring but initially a bit shocking to see that an armed guard is never far away.

[Man with Uzi]

On the subject of arms, my late father, who served in World War II, was shocked by the number of guns he saw. To clarify, a careful observer on a routine walk through any Israel city will notice quite a number of M-16s, Uzis and pistol discretely or not so discretely being carried, especially on Sundays and Fridays, when soldiers travel. There is no need to worry – this is not Texas. The security check for receiving a gun is rather rigorous and requires training how to use them. In fact, there are have almost no mass shootings of the non-terrorist variety. After a while, residents stop noticing them.

[Children on trampoline]

Israel is a small, family-oriented country. That means someone is always keeping their eyes on unescorted children. It is interesting to watch what happens when a children wander away from the parents: countless pairs of eyes watch and consider if and when to intervene to prevent any harm. For that matter, Israelis are very caring for any stranger that needs help in the streets, such as falling down or fainting. Hopefully, tourists won’t experience this positive side of Israelis but crises bring out their best side.

[Guest relation sign]

Israeli hotels have some unique features due to their clientele. A significant segment of their customers is religiously observant to one degree or another. This means that all large hotels have a synagogue to allow its religious guests easy access to prayers. I have never a seen a hotel in the Europe or the United States with a chapel but I may be wrong. Furthermore, no hotel will serve pork as it is proscribed by Judaism and Islam. Finally, due to Shabbat observance, the room service on Saturday is limited to food that can be prepared before Friday night. That means no expresso in some hotels on Saturday. Many hotels do not want alienate their observant guests.

[Challah]

On the subject of Saturday, the Sabbath shapes Israel, albeit not always as the religious would like. First, most stores close on Friday around 14:00 as the Sabbath begins on Friday nights, which can as early as around 16:00 in January. The traffic thus starts to thin out as Shabbat appears. I would say business slows down but nothing is simple in the Holy Land. In practice, shabbat means different things to different people. For the observant, it means no electrical devices, prayer, rest and eating (a bit too much of the latter in my experience). For others, it is time to get into the car and enjoy the weekend with the family, which can make Saturday far from a day of rest. For some businesses, such as restaurants, tourist-related services and shops in outside malls, the Sabbath is a goldmine of opportunity. Regardless of the manner of celebrating it, Saturday does not feel like a normal week day. I strongly suggest taking a walk and trying to sense shabbat in all its glories.

[Plethora of fruits]

To be fair, as a multiethnic society, it is also possible and advisable to visit Muslim, Christian, Druze communities as well as kibbutzim and moshav (communal settlements) with unique life styles, including vegetarian and TM. Israel is a mosaic of communities. In this sense, the sheer variety of Israels defines Israel.

[Map with Jersualem as center]

Regarding religion, there is no denying that there is a spiritual aspect to Israel beyond all the noise and color. For Jews, it is the source for many religious people but even the most non-religious notice that  somehow being Jewish takes no effort in Israel. Christians revel in following the footsteps of Jesus and generally do not complain if the “mighty Jordan river” resembles a large stream. Muslims view Jerusalem as one of their centers of faith. The Baha’i have several major and impressive sites here. A person in search of spiritual inspiration will probably find it in Israel.

I have not have heard of anybody that has ever visited Israel and found it routine and boring. Tourists may like or dislike the country but it makes an impression. Its sounds, sights and feel are so different from the vast majority of other countries. Dorothy would know that she had arrived in a different place, no less striking than Oz. Visiting Israel is a special experience.

* Picture captions allow the blind to fully access the Internet.

All pictures through Pixabay.

Inflation, low wages and labor shortage – an unstable triangle

 

[Penrose triangle*]

My recent visit to Los Angeles reinforced my impression that much of the economy is a strange and temporary constellation: high inflation, low wages and a surplus of open positions. While there are reasons for each of the elements, it is clear that sometime and somehow the situation will change as these elements are in almost in opposition to each other in terms of market theory. Furthermore, there are actions that the average citizen can take to lead to a positive change.

For the most part, each of the elements – high prices, low wages and unwillingness to work has its own independent causes. The current inflation has arisen from the massive public spending of the Covid years, supply chain problems and significant rise in prices in oil and wheat, two essential basic products in the modern economy. Those same Covid years have made employers very hesitant to offer high wages as business fortunes have experienced greats ebbs and flows over the last three years, significantly reducing confidence in the future. The people that traditionally take on low-pay service jobs have learned to get by at home, either by taking government aid, receiving parental help and/or making money as independents. Given the basic cost of living, taking on a minimum-wage job is actually losing money as it is impossible to make it to the end of the month, even with minimal expenses, in many places. Thus, there is no motivation to take on a regular job and go down in standard of living. Thus, the Covid crisis has created an antagonistic set of circumstances in terms of the labor market.

For the most part, these circumstances are temporary. The Ukrainian war will end, re-establishing stability in the grain and oil markets. Furthermore, given current public debt levels, public spending, including social payments, has to decrease. In addition, businesses cannot function indefinitely with an insufficient number of employees. The need to retain and hire personnel will lead to an increase in wages at some time. As government aid decreases and personal frustration increases, unemployed people will, somewhat grudgingly, the wages offered on the hope of gaining wages or finding better jobs in the future. Economic equilibrium will be established at a certain point.

Of course, the nature of that economic equilibrium is in question. Depending on the scenario, the world economy could enter an inflationary cycle, a recession or depression with or without inflationary, a growth cycle or stagnant period. Clearly, the ideal would be a better version of the pre-corona market but that is far from certain.

The person on the street, to be gender-neutral, has only a small impact on this process. Nevertheless, some actions are possible. Supporting business that provide good service gives them an advantage over their minimalistic competitors and encourages companies to hire. Supporting unions in any way helps protect individual workers from mistreatment, financial and other, and helps guarantee a liveable wage. Encouraging family members to go to work and being willing to support them financially during this difficult time benefits them in the long term. Buying local, when relevant, strengthens local businesses and encourages them to hire additional employees. All these practical steps are beneficial for all parties until this storm of circumstances passes by.

The recent stock market fluctuations, mainly negative, indicate a lack of certainty about the economic future. Indeed, the current trends are disturbing. In Hebrew, there is an expressions that there is nothing as permanent as the tempory. However, it seems quite possible that their root causes may disappear relatively quickly to everybody’s benefit. 

* Picture captions allow the blind to fully access the Internet.

Picture credit: Image by <a href="https://pixabay.com/users/ptra-359668/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=1932539">ptra</a> from <a href="https://pixabay.com/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=1932539">Pixabay</a>