The author argues that translation, whether literary or technical, is a creative art, not a mechanical process, and machines have failed to give useful translations of serious texts for this reason. The conventional distinctions between `literary' and `technical' translation are misleading and perhaps false. Literal or word-for-word translations are not translations at all and their use should be discouraged. Translation requires a full command of both languages and some understanding of the subject. Quality is difficult for a layman to judge, but idiomatic English (or whatever the target language is) is one good sign, and there are others.

An idealistic biologist applies for a small grant for her research project and in the process learns about some of the social and economic conflicts between “basic” research, “applied” research, and. technology. A university dean, an industrial executive, and a young, radical social scientist take three different views of the proposed project in a dramatic confrontation intended to serve as the basis for an open panel discussion of the social implications of science and technology. The paper is written in the form of a play, which can be presented in about 30 minutes.

In scientific and technical communication, intelligibility is primarily a cultural problem, to which carefully formulated generalizations, rather than streams of data, are the only solution. Preoccupation with simplicity, or clarity, or `correctness' is a poor substitute for a careful consideration of what the reader can and cannot be expected to understand. The writer who will overcome his prejudices against generalization in order to convey the concepts which his reader does not share with him should be able to communicate more effectively at three levels: (1) to his fellow specialists, (2) to specialists in other fields, and (3) to concerned laymen.

Interprofessional communication depends largely on the specialist's ability to assess and make allowance for the cross-cultural distance between himself and his audience. This distance is composed mainly of differences in basic preoccupations, assumptions, purposes, methods, and terminologies. The most effective bridges consist of generalizations to which a minimum number of qualifications are applied, and in which jargon and clutter are near zero. The general equation of the first degree for the effectiveness of communication when the message is technical is as follows: