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Review of S&TD sessions Sarah Koby, Greenleaf Translation This was my second year attending the ATA Annual Conference. My first was last year in Boston with the snowstorm. I loved every minute of ATA53! It’s so sunny in San Diego… though you know you’re from Northeast Ohio when it starts to get “toosunny” and you start hoping to see a cloud or two! Last year in Boston I attended as a student. This year I attended for the first time as a professional, having just started my business – Greenleaf Translation – in the spring. It was surprising to me …

San Diego conference session ST-5 “DNA Translation: It’s All in the Genes” by Leo van Zanten, is reviewed by Karen Tkaczyk I arrived at “DNA Translation: It’s All in the Genes” looking forward to learning. As a chemist with no formal biology training, and a translator who frequently works on biological subject matter in pharmaceutical texts, I always feel my work benefits from a better understanding of biology. Not all scientists can explain their fields clearly to those without the same background, but this was not the case here. Leo van Zanten, a Dutch translator with a background in plant …

Drugs of Abuse: A Pharmacological Perspective R. A. (Bob) Lyon, Section Head R&D Proctor and Gamble Reviewed by Brian Howells Outline of drug action in the central nervous system The talk began by outlining the functioning of the central nervous system, wherein the neuron bodies emit electrical signals along the dendrites to the terminal branches to release neurotransmitters into the synapse to communicate between nerve cells, etc., and the various levels at which drugs can affect this process: before the synapse (presynaptic) by affecting firing, synthesis storage and release of the neurotransmitters, or inhibiting their re-uptake so that their effect …

Review of Basic Concepts of Pharmacology in Drug Development – S&TD conference session 2012 by R. A. (Bob) Lyon, Section Head R&D Proctor and Gamble – reviewed by Brian Howells bhsci@uol.com.br The objective of the talk was to outline the process of drug development, the principles underlying this process and some of the associated terminology and techniques. Drugs are exogenous substances that bring about a change in biological function through a chemical interaction with the endogenous mechanisms within the body. The overall flow of drug development is as follows Identification of a target mechanism in the body which brings about a desired alteration in …

A Pink-Ribbon Perspective: The ATA Conference from the Viewpoint of a First-Time Attendee – by Amy Lesiewicz Last month I attended my first ATA Conference at the urgings of my mentor, a German to English translator named Amanda Ennis. She assured me that it would change my life, and she wasn’t wrong. I opted to come a day early and take advantage of two of the pre-conference seminars. My first stop after picking up my name badge with my pink “first-time attendee” ribbon and color-coded language dot was Corinne McKay’s seminar entitled Beyond the Basics of Freelancing. In just three hours, …

A review of Don Jacobson’s presentation at the ATA 53rd Annual Conference about Translating for the Design and Construction Professions in Israel, reviewed by Ami Argaman, a Hebrew-English translator. Ten minutes before this session began, I found Don Jacobson standing alone in the lecture room. By the time he started, two others had joined me, and later a third sneaked in. However, Don did not appear fazed by the poor turnout: he was there to share his experiences and knowledge, and so he did, regardless of the size of the audience. Jacobson, who was born, raised and educated in the United …

Many of us are gearing up for the ATA Annual Conference next week. San Diego here we come!  We will start by mingling during the Opening Reception and at the S&TD table Division Open house on Wednesday to reconnect with our friends and colleagues. Let’s see if can match the fun we had with the marble run last year. In spite of the hectic atmosphere, we should all manage to meet a few old friends and some new ones there and perhaps plan calmer meals and chats for later in the week! The Leadership Council hopes that you are pleased …

Science & Technology Click on the speaker name to view bio. ST-1 Translating for the Design and Construction Professions in Israel Don Jacobson (Thursday, 11:00am-12:00pm; All Levels; Presented in: English) Israel has recently undergone far-reaching changes in large-scale infrastructure and commercial construction projects. Foreign investment and professional partnering play a growing role in the Israeli economy, while Israeli developers and engineering firms increase their activities abroad. This activity has brought with it the need for high-quality technical translation in order to facilitate communication among partners, enable new players to enter the economy, and improve local technical capacity in fields previously …

S&TD has arranged a special event during the upcoming San Diego conference. Please join members of our group for superb Mexican-French cuisine and S&TD networking at the upscale Candelas Restaurant in the Gaslamp District.  If you would like to attend you need to reserve a spot and submit payment in advance, as described below.  WHEN Thursday, October 25 (7:30PM until 10:30PM) WHERE Candelas Gaslamp District Restaurant 416 3rd Avenue (within walking distance of the hotel) San Diego, CA 92101 619-702-4455 https://www.candelas-sd.com/candelas_main2.html   MENU Appetizer Choice of Caesar salad or Tortilla soup Entree Choice of: Breast of chicken with red mole …

By Abigail Dahlberg, German-English Environmental Translations As the world starts to run short on raw materials, industry and policy-makers are increasingly looking to waste to bridge the gap. This state of affairs has sparked somewhat of an identity crisis for the waste management industry, which is now struggling to define when a waste becomes a secondary raw material. This is also reflected into the terminology that is now in use: Fewer and fewer texts refer to “garbage” (US English) or “rubbish”. Instead, businesses prefer to put on a positive spin and refer to recycled raw materials or secondary raw materials. …