Beijing Olympics to Overcome Language Barrier through High Tech

Home>>Sports

Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, March 28, 2002

Beijing Olympics to Overcome Language Barrier through High Tech

Language barrier, which usually presents a hard nut in the case, may no longer be a problem when the 2008 Olympic Games are staged in Beijing.

DISCUSSION

CHINESE

SEND TO FRIEND

Language barrier, which usually presents a hard nut in the case, may no longer be a problem when the 2008 Olympic Games are staged in Beijing.

While mobilizing an English-learning craze across the city, engineers in the Chinese capital are studying to help reduce the communication hindrance during the Games, when Olympians and tourists from the rest of the world flood the city.

"To hold the Olympic Games in China, there would have been a linguistic problem for communication," said Liu Hui, an engineer with the Beijing Municipal Science Committee, on Thursday.

But he revealed to Xinhua that in a bid to provide services free of language barriers, they are studying a portable gadget todo instantaneous interpretation.

"This is a small package of softwares. It can translate Chinese into tens of other languages," said Liu. "This is unprecedented for Olympic Games."

The portable device is just part of Beijing's efforts to make a"High-Tech Olympics".

"We will make the 2008 Games a showcase of the most advanced technologies," said Liu Qi, mayor of Beijing and president of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games.

Liu made the remarks at a press conference here on Thursday, tolaunch the Beijing Olympic Action Plan.

The overall plan, which serves as a guideline to the preparations for the 2008 Olympic Games, covers such fields as environmental protection, traffic, Olympic venues construction, telecommunication, culture, security and legal protection.

The plan attaches great importance to the concept of staging "High-Tech Olympics", predicting that efforts in the field of science and technology be stepped up to contribute to an expected Olympic success.

According to the plan, the "Olympic Program of Science (2008)",to be jointly implemented by eight Chinese ministries and the Beijing municipal government, has been put in place. It will ensure the latest development of the program to be applied first to the Beijing Games.

The plan states that advanced technologies will be put into operation at such fields as traffic control, clean energy, environmental protection, sports venues, telecommunications, security, sports science, doping control and the Games' ceremonies.

In terms of the telecommunications, Liu Hui was quite upbeat onthe prospect. "The infomation technologies is developing at a flying pace. It is never an exaggeration however you imagine the prospect of Beijing's achievements in information technology," he said.

Questions?Comments? Click here

Beijing to Spend 3.4 Billion US Dollars on Olympic Facilities

Beijing Olympics Seek Balance between New and Old

Beijing Works out Comprehensive Plan for 2008 Olympic Games

>> Full Coverage