梅子耍廢專區

在低頻噪音般地焦躁干擾下，我還是禁不住誘惑跟ChatGPT玩了起來

Can you do translation?

我問道──形式上禮貌性地詢問，即使老早就知道這傢伙的翻譯能力遠在我之上。

Yes, I can do translations between various languages. Please let me know which language pair you need assistance with, and I will do my best to help you.

一如既往的漂亮回答；就好像一個盡責的秘書。

掃視一圈凌亂的桌面，我從層層堆疊的紙張中抽出昨天上課教授分發的講義──一篇日文的新聞剪報。刊登在日經上面的文章，應該不失為一個優秀的翻譯素材。

Translate the following Japanese into English:

我敲著鍵盤，一字一句慢慢地把新聞的第一小段打進輸入欄裡──同時埋怨為何教授不分發電子檔好讓我可以直接複製貼上，而不是在這裡用自己孱弱的打字速度跟輸入法糾纏。

法務省は2023年度から人工知能による法令の自動英訳を始める。ビジネス関連の法律や政省令を中心に従来の4倍となる年間320本の翻訳をめざす。海外企業が日本で投資や事業をしやすい環境を整える。

按下Enter鍵，不出幾秒ChatGPT就翻好了整個段落。

"The Ministry of Justice will begin automatic translation of laws into English using artificial intelligence from the fiscal year 2023. The goal is to translate 320 laws per year, which is four times the current amount, focusing on business-related laws and ministerial ordinances. This is aimed at creating an environment where foreign companies can easily invest and conduct business in Japan."

果然翻得很優秀──我不禁讚嘆。

雖然這麼說，但我也沒辦法評論譯文的好壞就是了；一來是英日都不是我的母語，二來是我就是個只懂點翻譯皮毛的門外漢──一個仗著自己在日本留學就有點囂張廢物大學生罷了。

反正我是看不出有什麼不自然的地方。

「既然是AI，單純翻譯也太小看它了。」我想著「必須增加點難度。」

Could you translate the paragraph into a English newspaper style?

按下送出鍵才發現，我犯了個無聊的基礎文法錯誤──但應該無傷大雅，不影響句意。

Sure, here's a possible newspaper-style translation of the paragraph:

果然，ChatGPT無視我的文法錯誤，依舊迅速回答道：

The Japanese Ministry of Justice has announced plans to use artificial intelligence (AI) to automatically translate laws into English, starting from the 2023 fiscal year. The initiative aims to translate 320 laws per year, a four-fold increase from current levels, with a focus on business-related laws and ministerial ordinances. By facilitating easier communication for foreign investors and companies, the Ministry hopes to create a more business-friendly environment in Japan.

嗯，看起來很厲害。

但我也給不出更深入的解析了──就是一段與前者相比稍加複雜的英文段落，且多了許多我不熟悉的字詞。雖然多少有點添加額外資訊的嫌疑（原文中最後一句字面上並沒有hope的意思，但也還不到誤導讀者的程度──畢竟說白了法務省就是「希望」做這件事），但整體來說還是非常還原的優秀譯文。

出於好奇，我問它這兩種翻譯有什麼差別；它簡略解釋了一篇新聞該有什麼樣的語調和形式，後者著重於提供資訊且簡潔有力云云……我是看得似懂非懂，也不知道它的「新聞式譯文」究竟有沒有達到那些標準。

不過至少這麼看來，它對於「好的翻譯」是什麼有一定的認識；同時也有能力以此產出符合自己描述的「好翻譯」。

「既然它知道且能夠產出優秀的翻譯，」我突發奇想「那如果叫它做一個『爛翻譯』呢？」

Could you provide two more versions of translations, one of which is "the best" translation you can think of, and the other is "the worst" translation

該死，這次是忘記打問號。

Sure, I can provide two additional translations for you, one that is the best translation I can think of, and another that is the worst. Please note that the worst translation is not intended to be accurate, and is purely for illustrative purposes.

然後它還是無視了我的typo侃侃而談──即使後半句的聲明解釋看起來很像極力撇清責任的無辜員工：不，我不是故意要給出錯誤的答案，一切都是上司的指示！

Best translation:

The Ministry of Justice has announced its plans to leverage artificial intelligence technology to automatically translate legal texts into English from the fiscal year 2023. The initiative seeks to increase the annual translation output to 320 laws, four times the current level, with a primary focus on laws related to business and ministerial ordinances. The goal of this undertaking is to establish an attractive investment environment for foreign companies, streamlining business operations and enhancing communication.

首先產出的是優秀翻譯。

比起前面兩則又更顯專業高深，語句結構看起來也更複雜──雖然我講得好像頭頭是道，但我也只是覺得更難讀了而已；具體是用了什麼翻譯技巧我一竅不通。

接著，爛翻譯也出來了：

Worst translation:

Japan's Justice Department is getting ready to use robot brains to speak English in the upcoming year 2023. By pushing four times as hard as they used to, the team hopes to be able to translate up to 320 laws per year, with a focus on business stuff and government rulebooks. Apparently, it's all about making things easier for foreign businesses in Japan.

──不得不說，真的是拍案叫絕地爛。

或多或少懂一點英文的，應該都不難看出這就是一段莫名其妙又詞不達意的文字組合。個人最中意的點當屬把AI翻成robot brain──徹底點到我笑穴。且考慮到原文的新聞制式口吻，這篇極度口語化的語調就諷刺得好笑，最後的it’s all about making things easier更是堪稱畫龍點睛之筆。

不過笑歸笑，還是得問問它的想法。

Why is the "best translation" the best, and why the "worst translation" the worst?

文法好像怪怪的，不過算了，它懂就好。

The "best translation" is the best because it accurately conveys the meaning and intent of the original Japanese text while using clear and concise language suitable for a news article. It provides a balanced summary of the key points in the paragraph, emphasizing the main objectives of the Ministry of Justice's initiative and its potential benefits for foreign businesses in Japan. The best translation also uses appropriate terminology and tone for the target audience, which is critical in ensuring that the message is delivered effectively.

In contrast, the "worst translation" is the worst because it contains numerous errors, omissions, and inaccuracies that significantly distort the original meaning. The translation is highly informal and unprofessional, which makes it unsuitable for a news article. Additionally, it includes numerous colloquialisms, slang terms, and awkward phrasing that would likely confuse the target audience and undermine the credibility of the content. The worst translation also fails to convey the main points of the paragraph clearly, and its overall tone is flippant and dismissive, which is inappropriate for the topic at hand.

有趣的是，我自始至終都沒有告訴它原文是新聞報導，只有在第二次翻譯時請它翻成新聞文章；而在這個好翻譯爛翻譯的解釋中可以看出，它把原文定調為「報紙文章」，從而把使用正式語句以及專有名詞的翻譯當成「最優秀的翻譯」，把口語化的翻譯當成爛翻譯。

雖然除了口語化之外，那個爛翻譯還有不少其他缺點；但還是能看出ChatGPT把行文「正式與否」當成翻譯好壞的一個基準。或許是因為它偵測到原文的新聞口吻吧！我也不清楚──不知道它的robot brain是怎麼運作的。

總而言之，ChatGPT對於「正式的文章」應該是有一定理解，且也有一定能力可以產出的吧！

最後，我叫它分析四種翻譯的差別，並整理成表格。

Sure, here's a summary of the differences between the four translations in a table format:

Note: This table is subjective and based on my own interpretation of the translations. Other people may have different opinions on the characteristics of each translation.

就先不論表格內容如何了──畢竟也不過是它自賣自誇──最後那兩行聲明，還挺耐人尋味的。

雖然能簡單當作是誤用人類的免責聲明，但也不禁讓人懷疑，這傢伙是不是真的有那麼一絲靈性了……