Here are a few general tips regarding translation in general and biotech in particular from experience in the field:

1) First Step Determines Final Quality

It is common practice in Japan for a Japanese translator to translate something into English, then depend on a "native checker" to fix the English. However, there are very few Japanese translators in Japan with the English writing skills to justify this approach. They do exist, but they are exceedingly rare. Much more often, the native English "checker" will be presented with a completely hopeless jumble of English, and is faced with the choice of either re-translating it from the beginning himself or fix only the most glaring grammatical errors while leaving the bulk of unnatural usage in the final document. This process almost invariably results in substandard English.

This reminds me of the time I spent interpreting in a Toyota factory. One of the mottos used there was "quality is built in, not added later" in reference to defects occurring on the production line. You could attempt to fix a car that came out of the assembly line broken, but you could attain far higher quality by insuring the defect was never introduced in the first place. Translation is the same way: If you want a truly excellent translation, don't start out with something broken and then fix it. Build in quality from the very first step.

2) Specialized Fields Require Specialized Knowledge

Biotech is a booming but still relatively new field. This means that it is changing and growing constantly, with announcements of breakthroughs and new techniques coming out constantly. Since the technology is constantly changing, the terminology is also in flux. For example, the term structural genomics is a familiar one to those in the field. However, its meaning has changed greatly in the past couple years. Originally, it referred to creating genome maps and investigating genomic sequences; now however, it is used to refer to the very different activity of using high-throughput methods to determine protein structure. Even a biotech terminology book published in Japan by a reputable biotech publisher contained many mistakes in English usage. Given this newness of the field, relying on a “general” translator or one not versed in biotech specifically can result in poor translation.

3) Don’t Believe Katakana Some of the worst English translations are produced by "re-translating" katakana words back into English. These are words which originally came from foreign languages, usually English, but take root in Japanese usage. However, the meaning and usage often changes, sometimes drastically, far away from the country of origin. For example, it is not uncommon to see references to "system up" referring to computer system improvements. This is fine in Japanese, and some translators may try to work it as is into their English translations, but it will turn off any knowledgeable native English speaker. Speaking of “system”, it is not uncommon to see the term “system biology” in translations from Japanese to English, but those who follow the field know that the correct term is “systems biology” instead. 4) Don’t Use Original Japanese Sentence Length In Japanese one often finds sentences that are entire paragraphs in length. While it is my personal opinion that this is poor style in Japanese, it's a fact that it is accepted. However, in English proper style dictates that sentences be kept to reasonable, non-Dickensonian lengths. It is possible to render these paragraph-long sentences as-is in English, but far preferable to cut them up into clear, concise, easily understood English. 5) Avoid Cartoons at All Costs! This may sound obvious to non-Japanese readers, but it is not a good idea to use "image characters" in selling biotech products or services. In Japan, cute cartoon characters are used to sell virtually everything from children’s toys to high-tech biotech products and services. Outside of Japan, however, cartoon or "image characters" are relegated solely to the children‘s market. So, unless a Japanese biotech company is interested in selling to children overseas, they should leave the cartoon characters out of the picture or risk not being taken seriously.

 

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