Computing
Data Representation
Compilers and interpreters
United Nations analogy
Activity:
Discuss very briefly the image and the workings of the UN assembly.
Cut out and distribute the 12 roles in the UN assembly from page 3.
Students then arrange themselves into groups of three; country A, country B, country C and general.
Students then read out their roles to the class in order 1-12.
Discuss the following points:
1. Which politician (A, B or C) will have the best understanding during the speech and why?
2. What benefits and problems would the politician have from listening to the speech at the
time?
3. Which translation will be of the better quality: the immediate translation through the
headphones or the written translated transcript completed after the speech?
4. What benefits and problems would the politician have from reading the translated script
after the speech?
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Computing
Data Representation
Link to computing:
Compliers
In a compiler the code for the whole program is converted only once, which can be a slow
process, but once it is compiled the executable file is then stored on the hard disk. You will
have seen these on your computer as files ending in .exe, such as WinWord.exe for
Microsoft Word and Excel.exe for Microsoft Excel. It is much faster to run a compiled
program as it is in the language the computer understands. The code of executable file
cannot be altered once it has been created.
Interpreters
When an interpreter runs, it reads each line of code in the program and converts it line by
line. This happens every time the program is run. Consequently it is very slow as it is
converting the program code while the program is running. It can be as much as 5-10 times
slower than running the executable file; because every line of code has to be re-read, then
re-processed each time the program is run.
Thinking:
Relate the above two forms of translation in the UN analogy to compilers and interpreters. (a) the
immediate translation through the headphones and (b) the written translated transcript completed
after the speech.
1. Which represents the compiler and why?
2. Which represents the interpreter and why?
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Computing
Data Representation
1 Scientist giving the speech
I am a scientist, a leader in my field. I am giving a
speech today to the United Nations Assembly.
My native tongue is English. I am giving the
speech in English and it will be quite technical.
2 Stenographer recording the speech
I am a stenographer. My job is to record the
speech as it is given. My native tongue is English.
Nowadays we type rather than write speeches as
they occur. I trained for this job for years.
3 Politician from European Country A
I’m a representative from European Country A.
My English is reasonable although I may have
problems with some of the science. I have a
scientist with me to explain.
4 Scientist from European Country A
I’m a representative from European Country A. I
am a scientist in this field too. My English is fair
although I may have problems with a few words
in the speech.
5 Translator from European Country A
I’m a translator. I will translate the speech into
the native language of the representative from
European Country A. They can easily put on the
headphones provided and ask me to clarify any
points they struggle with.
6 Politician from Asian Country B
I’m a representative from Asian Country B. My
English is poor and I will need to listen to the
translator in my headphones throughout the
speech. I also have a scientist with me to explain
the more technical aspects.
7 Scientist from Asian Country B
I’m a scientist from Asian Country B. I can just
about greet someone in English and usually have
a translator with me at all social events. I cannot
read English at all. I will be attending this session
but will use the headphones the whole time.
8 Translator from Asian Country B
I’m a translator. I will translate the speech into
the native language of the representative from
Asian Country B. I will translate as the speech
occurs.
9 Politician from Asian Country C
I’m a politician from Asian Country C. I can just
about greet someone in English and usually have
a translator with me at all social events. I cannot
read English at all. I was planning on attending
this speech but I will be on a telephone
conference at the time and will miss it. I will
have to get a copy of the speech later.
11 Translator from Asian Country C
I’m a translator. I can translate English to the
language of the Asian country C. I will get the
typed speech from the stenographer and then
translate it to my native language. The written
translation will be available in about an hour
after the speech finishes.
10 Scientist from Asian Country C
I am a scientist from Asian Country C. My English
is about as good as the politician’s. I too am
needed on the telephone conference and will
miss the speech. I will have to read the transcript
afterwards.
12 General translator/stenographers
We are also translators and stenographers, will
ensure the speech is translated into a written
format for all the languages of all member states
and sent to the correct place so they can be
accessed.
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Computing
Data Representation
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