The Physics of
Processing Time
• The Science and the Art
Introductions
 We
will be discussing a model
 All models depend on other applicable
base knowledge
 We will touch on other base skills in order
to make sure we are all on the same page
First, what is processing time
 The
time your brain must devote to the
“process of interpretation”
 Processing Time…NOT Lag Time
 I am VERY picky about this point!
 YES… I know Dennis Cokely says “Lag
Time.”
 Why?
Lag, as a Verb
 Fail
to maintain a desired pace or to keep up; fall or stay
behind: After five minutes of hard running, some of
them began to lag.
 Move or develop slowly, as toward a goal or objective,
or in relation to an associated factor (often fol. by
behind): to lag behind in production.
 Delay or fail in reaching full development: The factory
lags regularly in making its quota.
 Hang back; linger; delay: The old friends lagged
because they wanted to talk some more.
 Decrease, wane, or flag gradually, as in intensity:
Interest lagged as the meeting went on.
Lag as a Noun
 Lagging
or falling behind; retardation.
 A person who lags behind, is the last to
arrive, etc.
 An interval or lapse of time: There was a
developmental lag in the diffusion of ideas.
Processing as a Verb
 To
put through the steps of a prescribed
procedure: processing newly arrived
immigrants; process an order.
 To prepare, treat, or convert by subjecting
to a special process: process ore to obtain
minerals.
Process as a Noun
 A series
of actions, changes, or functions bringing
about a result: the process of digestion; the
process of obtaining a driver's license.
 A series of operations performed in the making or
treatment of a product: a manufacturing process;
leather dyed during the tanning process.
 Progress; passage: the process of time; events
now in process.
Which term more
accurately describes
the target action?
• I don’t care if you don’t
agree! It’s my presentation!
Models
 What
is a Model of Interpreting?
 Why is it important to study them?
 Looking
 What
into the “Black Box”
do they tell us?
 Gish
 Cokely
 Colonomos
Cokely
Colonamos
What a model can and cannot
do.
 Learning
a new model will not instantly
impact your skills
 Learning a new model will impact you
training.
 Models give a visual representation of an
abstract concept
No Model for Processing time
 At
least not that I know of…
 Have you ever seen one?
 What can a Processing Time Model
show us?
Physics
 We
must pause and take a deep breath
 I am not a physicist
 I don’t even play one on t.v.
 All of the physics in this presentation is
more “physish” than “physics”
 It is here to make a point.
The Point
We perceive time as an “enemy”
We feel it crushing us
We feel it controlling us
We don’t know how to exert our will
over time
• We don’t know what to do with the
time we have.
•
•
•
•
Processing Time Vs. Actual
Time
 In
order to understand the model I propose
for Processing Time, we must first look at
how physicist describe actual time.
 SCIENCE
 Have you ever looked back in time?
 Have you ever looked in a mirror?
 Have you ever looked at the stars?
Space is Relative to the
Observer
 Space
 The
tennis ball
 The tennis ball on the train
Time is Relative to
the Observer
• Einstein’s Theory of
Relativity
Future Light Cone
Present
Past Light Cone
Based on a model
from the book “A
Brief History of Time:
Big Bang to Black
Holes”
Future Light Cone
Event enters the future Light
Cone… The Sun Goes Out!
Present
Past Light Cone
• The question now is…
HOW DO WE ENVISION THE
TIME BETWEEN THE EVENTS?
Light Waves
“Time” can be thought of
as the interval from crest to
crest
Time and Speed are
not the same thing
A Change in Frequency Does Not
Change the Speed… Only the Look!
An observer from another position would see it as a unified event
happening in a set order … a shifting “present”
Future Light Cone
Present
Event enters the future Light
Cone… The Sun Goes Out!
The observer on earth
sees the event as the
present only when the
light arrives .
Past Light Cone
Time is Relative
 To
the position of the observer
 To the distance from the target event
 If you could travel away from the event at
the speed of light you could, in theory stop
time because the light would never reach
you.
 In theory you can control “time” by
understanding the relative relationships
So What!
• What does any of this have
to do with interpreting?
See Time Differently
• See time as a part of the process
• Not a detriment to the process
• See time
The Change Over Time Formula
 C/T=Pt
 Change
over time=processing time units
 Accept the position of the interpreter as the
“Present”
 The Contextual Stream looks into the future,
the contextual possibilities become broader
the further you look into the future
Future context stream
Interpreter
Past text/context stream
A Word on the Concept of
Contextual Cone
 This
includes all observable information
and background knowledge.
 It is the interpreters“known universe”
 Anything that happens outside the known
universe should not impact the
interpretation.
 But, it does…
Textual Event
 Anything
happening outside the contextual
cone cannot directly impact the
interpretation
 (Your shopping, laundry, schoolwork,
etc…)
 When a Textual Event enters the
contextual cone the interpreter must
prepare to deal with it in “the present”
Future context
stream
Textual event enters the
future context stream
Interpreter
Past text/context stream
The Change Over Time Formula
 The
textual event enters the context cone at a point
in the future relative to the position of the interpreter.
 The Interpreter must deal with such “future events”
 As the event nears the “present” the contextual
possibilities narrow.
 For the observer the “present” occurs when the
information is relayed by the interpreter
 When the interpreter actually relays the
information…the information entered the cone in the
past.
Text Flow
Discourse, Transition
or Prosity Marker
Change/Time
Events
Crest to Crest
 Carol
Patrie’s books give a good theoretical
basis for understanding the some of the
“Changes”
 Temporal Relationships
 Spatial Relationships
 Logical Relationships
 These are just three examples of many…
A Change in Frequency Does Not
Change the Speed… Only the Look!
Speed of Information versus
Speed of Signs
 Just
because someone moves their hands
fast
 Just because someone strings words
together fast does not mean the
communication is fast
 Understanding the context is the first step.
 Understanding the relationships is the
second
In other words…
 People
talk how they talk
 Speaking fast does not mean that the
“speed” of the information is necessarily
also fast.
 Signing fast refers to the motion of the
hands… but not the speed of the
information.
Lets see it in action!
• http://youtu.be/c_piKF7XH18
Lets see it in action!
• http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_b
arasch_a_park_underneath_th
e_hustle_and_bustle_of_new_
york_city
Lets see it in action!
• http://www.ted.com/talks/ma
c_barnett_why_a_good_boo
k_is_a_secret_door
For more discussion
• Dale H Boam Esq. CI, Utah Master
• dboam@comcast.net
• 801-815-2547 v/text