computer science

ULTRA (machine translation system)

ULTRA (machine translation system) is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand ULTRA (machine translation system) rather than just read about it. In short: ULTRA is a machine translation system created for five languages (Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, English, and German) in the Computing Research Laboratory in 1991. ULTRA (Universal Language Translator), is a machine translation system developed at the Computing Research Laboratory, which can translate between five languages (Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, English and German).

Key takeaways

ULTRA (machine translation system) belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect ULTRA (machine translation system) to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of ULTRA (machine translation system) from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

ULTRA is a machine translation system created for five languages (Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, English, and German) in the Computing Research Laboratory in 1991. ULTRA (Universal Language Translator), is a machine translation system developed at the Computing Research Laboratory, which can translate between five languages (Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, English and German). It uses Artificial intelligence as well as linguistic and logic programming methods. The main goal of the system is to be robust, to cover general language and to be simple to use. It uses bidirectional parsers/generators. The system has a language-independent system of intermediate representation, which means that it takes into account needs for expression (expression is one of the main elements of language) and it uses relaxation techniques to provide the best translation. It used an X Window user interface.

ULTRA's databases ULTRA has vocabularies based on about 10,000 word senses in each of its five languages. It represents expressions. It has an access to many dictionary databases.

Operation Users paste a sentence into the "source" window. They chose a target language and press Translate. The tool translates the source text, taking into consideration what is said, how it is said and why it is said. Lexical entries in the system have two parts:

Specific language entry corresponding to the graphic form, which is representing some kind of information/sense and Intermediate representation giving proper forms that represent the sense of the expression. ULTRA works with Intermediate representation of the language between the systems, so no transfer takes place. Each language has its own systems, which are independent. Having the independent systems gives an extra benefit. Adding another language does not disrupt existing language translations.

Intermediate representation Developers David Farwell and Yorick Wilks created IR (interlingual representation). It was a base for analyzing and generating expressions. They analyzed many different types of communications (business letters, documents, emails) to compare the communication style. ULTRA looks for the best words for some kinds of information and good forms and equivalents for some expression in target language.

References

External Austermuhl Frank, ″Electronic tools for translations″, Manchester 2001 Wilks Yorick, ″Machine Translation. Its Scope and Limits.″, Springer Science+Business Media LLC 2009 Farwell David, Wilks Yorick, "ULTRA: A multilingual machine translator", Washington 1991

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with ULTRA (machine translation system)

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what ULTRA (machine translation system) claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to ULTRA (machine translation system) before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about ULTRA (machine translation system) ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of ULTRA (machine translation system)

In research: ULTRA (machine translation system) appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses ULTRA (machine translation system) in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: ULTRA (machine translation system) is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Computational linguistics, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for ULTRA (machine translation system) outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study ULTRA (machine translation system) in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what ULTRA (machine translation system) means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain ULTRA (machine translation system) out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is ULTRA (machine translation system) in simple terms?

Why does ULTRA (machine translation system) matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study ULTRA (machine translation system)?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on ULTRA (machine translation system).