Co-sponsored by the EASC:
Artificial intelligence has rapidly evolved in the language industry in recent years, with large language models and machine translation challenging many in the language industry to critically re-assess how these technologies are used in translation and interpreting (T&I). In some cases, these tools can be leveraged to support the provision of language services and language access, while in others, researchers and professionals have resisted this technological incursion given an increasing number of ethical and professional issues raised by their uncritical incorporation into T&I workflows. The impact of these tools is undoubtedly far-reaching, with many questions surrounding whether the benefits of these tools outweigh the drawbacks.
Join us as Professor Christopher D. Mellinger from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill gives a keynote address on machine translation. This talk outlines some challenges and opportunities with these tools while also querying the role that universities and educational institutions might play in the preparation of future T&I professionals to engage with and employ these emerging technologies. The talk poses questions on how these technologies can be used responsibly and interrogate what types of guardrails may be needed to ensure their appropriate and ethical use.
Program Agenda
5:00 PM: Meet & Greet
6:00 PM: Keynote
Virtual attendees should log-on at 6:00 PM.
About the Speaker
Christopher D. Mellinger is Associate Professor in the Department of Languages, Cultures and Translation at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Dr. Mellinger holds a Ph.D. in Translation Studies from Kent State University, as well as certificates in Spanish-English interpreting and Spanish Translation/Localization Management from Wake Forest University. He is the editor of The Routledge Handbook of Interpreting and Cognition, co-author of Quantitative Research Methods in Translation and Interpreting Studies and co-editor of Translating Texts: An Introductory Coursebook on Translation and Text Formation. He currently serves on the management committee of the international TREC research network and as the co-editor of the journal Translation and Interpreting Studies.
