Stylistically Colored Lexical Units.

We can distinguish regular (usual) and irregular (occasional) stylistically colored lexical units. Irregular lexical units are authors' lexical and stylistic coinage, e.g., authors' metaphors and stylistically colored lexical units which occur with low frequency in scientific and technical literature {cognizant, extol, preclude, herald, etc.).

An obvious example of usage of such specific lexical units in scientific and technical literature is the word Cinderella. The main literal sense of the word - «3oлушкa» (the character of fairy tale) - is not realized in scientific and technical literature. Figurative meanings are used in such texts. One of the meanings is registered in Webster's dictionary: one suddenly lifted often fortuitously from obscurity and neglect to honor and significance. We can notice that the only example that illustrates this word in Webster's dictionary was taken from scientific and technical literature: Uranium is a Cinderella among the world's metals. But a defining dictionary can't provide the whole range of contextual word usage and all actual meanings of words. The metaphor is very difficult to be translated because of its low frequency in scientific and technical literature. There are no synonyms in defining dictionaries that help to discover the meaning of the given word exactly and completely. In the following example, the figurative meaning of the metaphor Cinderella is actualized and the translation of the context into Russian is given. This metaphor is substituted for stylistically neutral units, i.e. the words in direct meanings that are typical in Russian technical literature:

Bipolar LSI, the higher-performing sister technology to MOS, may soon lose its status of stepchild in many semiconductor laboratories. And although there are other new promising bipolar approaches, such as integrated injection logic, the real Cinderella may he emitter-follower logic (EFL.) - a pre-TLL configuration that dates back to the early days of integrated circuits.

He ucключено, чmo многue.лa6opamopuu, занятые coзданием полупроводниковых ИС, уже в ближайшее время откажутся от своего пренебрежительного отношения к новой, более совершенной разновидности МДП-приборов – биполярным БИСам. Хотя существуют другие направления новых разработок биполярных БИС, например, логические БИС с интегральной инжекцией, наиболее перспективными могут оказаться логические ИС с эмиттерными повторителями, появившиеся раньше, чем ТТЛ ИС, на заре развития интегральной электроники

In the following examples the figurative meanings of the metaphor “ gremlin ” are used in scientific and technical literature but absent in dictionaries:

1) “It” is the soft error effect in memories caused by alpha particle radiation. Bad enough that the problem was uncovered in dynamic random-access memories and charge-coupled devices; new evidence shows that those gremlins can also attack static memories.

Сама же эта проблема связана со случайными сбоями в полупроводниковых ЗУ под действием альфа-излучения. Сначала эти сбои были обнаружены в динамических ЗУПВ и ПЗС ЗУ, что само по себе было плохо, однако сейчас оказывается, что альфа-частицы могут вызывать сбои и в статических ЗУ.

2) Location timing anomalies, glitches, and other similar gremlins on control lines is a measurement that belongs exclusively to logic timing analyzers.

Обнаружение отклонений временных параметров, выявление ложных сигналов и других аналогичных ошибок, связанных с работой линии управления, - это область измерений, которая относится исключительно к компетенции анализаторов логических временных диаграмм.

In the following example the figurative usage of the noun “ bear ” causes large difficulties when interpreting into Russian:

The fact is that right now microcomputer programming is a bear.

Никто не станет отрицать, что в настоящее время программирование микрокомпьютеров – весьма сложная задача.

When translating the word “ bear ” one has to resort to considerable lexical transformations. As a result of these transformations figurativeness is lost.

Optical and processing, spatial filtering, optical pattern recognition, optical analog computing, or whatever other phrase you would like to pick has for many years been the bridesmaid but never the bride.

Метод оптической обработки данных, пространственной фильтрации, оптического распознавания образов, оптического аналогового вычисления или как бы иначе его ни называть многие годы играл второстепенную роль.

In the English sentence there is the author’s extended metaphor that makes the whole phrase figurative. In Russian translation stylistically neutral lexical units are used. As a result of lexical and stylistic transformations the image was substituted for the set expression «играл второстепенную роль». It only renders the contents, but stylistically, it is not equal. The word “ bridesmaid ” and “ bride ” are used not in their direct meanings («подружка невесты», «невеста»), but figuratively. Such a transformation is possible only in this context. Stylistically colored words with similar characteristics are easier to translate due to their higher frequency.

e.g. bottleneck, bugaboo, burgeoning, lookalike, mystifying, nice(ly), workhorse, etc.

Further reading and exercises:

1.Арнольд И.В. Стилистика современного английского языка.

2. Борисова Л.И. Перевод неологизмов с английского языка на русский в научно-технических текстах.

3.Translate into Russian:

a) Accompanying the Fortran test is a flow-chart, a specifications list, and sample input / output.

b) CT revolution is closely related to advances in the semiconductor industry.

c) As the delay time is advanced, the display lights show successive data values.

d) Other major sources of errors are attributable to high noise-level, nonlinearities, variations in frequency tracking, drifts.

e) The bugaboo in building a sophisticated yet economical color graphic terminal has been the lack of a sufficiency powerful graphics display controller.

f) Lured by the burgeoning market, semiconductor houses are getting into microprocessors fast.

g) The system was implemented in just one week, though months are usually required for such chores.

h) Plans by Toshiba Corp. dramatize what FMS can mean to the electronic industries.

i) Magnetic bubbles – an emerging storage technique – also offer data storage by remnant magnetization.

j) An extension of the above theorem is given as the next theorem.

k) The fading obviously reduces the signal-to noise enhancement of a nonrecursive filter.

l) It gives an alternative insight into the design techniques for the digital filter.

m) If significant undercapacity is installed, the reliability of service is jeopardized.

n) But with PCII times could get a lot tougher for the vendors of lookalikes.

o) However, total macrocell speed is a more meaningful parameter.

p) Indeed there may not be a mathematically nice interpretation.

q) Optionally, video interfaces may be required between broadcast video equipment such as TV cameras, video recorders, etc.

r) It is recognized that the aforementioned assumption will in general underpredict the B component and overpredict the others.

s) Each voter must be tested routinely.

t) The concept of sharing scarce recourses is to be found in many fields.

u) The material in the remaining sections is somewhat speculative.

v) This tradeoff between linearity and efficiency is a limitation.

w) In most cases, resulting system will be similar to those now configured around minis, at least those in turnkey situations.

x) The system, though large and expensive, was workable and showed great promise of efficiency and economy.

y) By installing a remote software serial link, software can be updated over telephone lines.

z) Gardiner’s method slightly underpredicts the peak surface pressure.

Translation Studies

English Û Russian

Study Aid for graduates and post-graduates

Смирнова Татьяна Витальевна

Методическое пособие

Печатается в авторской редакции

Лицензия ИД №05285 от 4.07.2001 г.

Подписано в печать 2.02.04. Формат издания 60х84 1/16

Печать плоская. Усл.печ.л. 5,35. Уч.-изд.л. 5,77

Тираж 50 экз. Заказ 852.

Ивановский государственный энергетический университет

Отпечатано в ОМТ МИБИФ

153003 Иваново, ул. Рабфаковская,34

Дата добавления: 2015-07-10