The Royal Society of Chemistry is trialling machine translation for authors whose first language isn't English. The models are fine-tuned on chemistry-specific parallel text, and output goes through human editing rather than straight to the manuscript.
Benefits & outcomes
Cuts the time non-native English speakers spend writing and revising manuscripts.
Widens access to publication for authors held back by language rather than science.
Addresses a documented gap: authors with English as an additional language need 91% more time to read and 51% more time to write a paper.
Notes & quotes
“The use of English as the common language of science represents a major impediment to maximising the contribution of non-native English speakers.”
“Advances in AI/ML have advanced translation software, opening opportunities for us to explore how to bring equity to authors, globally.”
Demonstrated translations showed gains in technical accuracy and phrasing.
Publisher / company: Royal Society of Chemistry
Date of mention: 01/11/2023
Source: https://conferences.necsws.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Conf-2023-Anastasia-Toynbee.pdf