Skip to content
By using Twitter’s services you agree to our Cookies Use. We and our partners operate globally and use cookies, including for analytics, personalisation, and ads.
  • Home Home Home, current page.
  • About

Saved searches

  • Remove
  • In this conversation
    Verified accountProtected Tweets @
Suggested users
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Language: English
    • Bahasa Indonesia
    • Bahasa Melayu
    • Català
    • Čeština
    • Dansk
    • Deutsch
    • English UK
    • Español
    • Filipino
    • Français
    • Hrvatski
    • Italiano
    • Magyar
    • Nederlands
    • Norsk
    • Polski
    • Português
    • Română
    • Slovenčina
    • Suomi
    • Svenska
    • Tiếng Việt
    • Türkçe
    • Ελληνικά
    • Български език
    • Русский
    • Српски
    • Українська мова
    • עִבְרִית
    • العربية
    • فارسی
    • मराठी
    • हिन्दी
    • বাংলা
    • ગુજરાતી
    • தமிழ்
    • ಕನ್ನಡ
    • ภาษาไทย
    • 한국어
    • 日本語
    • 简体中文
    • 繁體中文
  • Have an account? Log in
    Have an account?
    · Forgot password?

    New to Twitter?
    Sign up
sapinker's profile
Steven Pinker
Steven Pinker
Steven Pinker
Verified account
@sapinker

Tweets

Steven PinkerVerified account

@sapinker

Cognitive scientist at Harvard.

Boston, MA
pinker.wjh.harvard.edu
Joined January 2010

Tweets

  • © 2018 Twitter
  • About
  • Help Center
  • Terms
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies
  • Ads info
Dismiss
Previous
Next

Go to a person's profile

Saved searches

  • Remove
  • In this conversation
    Verified accountProtected Tweets @
Suggested users
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @

Promote this Tweet

Block

  • Tweet with a location

    You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more

    Your lists

    Create a new list


    Under 100 characters, optional

    Privacy

    Copy link to Tweet

    Embed this Tweet

    Embed this Video

    Add this Tweet to your website by copying the code below. Learn more

    Add this video to your website by copying the code below. Learn more

    Hmm, there was a problem reaching the server.

    By embedding Twitter content in your website or app, you are agreeing to the Twitter Developer Agreement and Developer Policy.

    Preview

    Why you're seeing this ad

    Log in to Twitter

    · Forgot password?
    Don't have an account? Sign up »

    Sign up for Twitter

    Not on Twitter? Sign up, tune into the things you care about, and get updates as they happen.

    Sign up
    Have an account? Log in »

    Two-way (sending and receiving) short codes:

    Country Code For customers of
    United States 40404 (any)
    Canada 21212 (any)
    United Kingdom 86444 Vodafone, Orange, 3, O2
    Brazil 40404 Nextel, TIM
    Haiti 40404 Digicel, Voila
    Ireland 51210 Vodafone, O2
    India 53000 Bharti Airtel, Videocon, Reliance
    Indonesia 89887 AXIS, 3, Telkomsel, Indosat, XL Axiata
    Italy 4880804 Wind
    3424486444 Vodafone
    » See SMS short codes for other countries

    Confirmation

     

    Welcome home!

    This timeline is where you’ll spend most of your time, getting instant updates about what matters to you.

    Tweets not working for you?

    Hover over the profile pic and click the Following button to unfollow any account.

    Say a lot with a little

    When you see a Tweet you love, tap the heart — it lets the person who wrote it know you shared the love.

    Spread the word

    The fastest way to share someone else’s Tweet with your followers is with a Retweet. Tap the icon to send it instantly.

    Join the conversation

    Add your thoughts about any Tweet with a Reply. Find a topic you’re passionate about, and jump right in.

    Learn the latest

    Get instant insight into what people are talking about now.

    Get more of what you love

    Follow more accounts to get instant updates about topics you care about.

    Find what's happening

    See the latest conversations about any topic instantly.

    Never miss a Moment

    Catch up instantly on the best stories happening as they unfold.

    Steven Pinker‏Verified account @sapinker Feb 12

    Douglas Hofstadter put Google Translate to the test and found that it's a long way from real understandinghttps://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2018/01/the-shallowness-of-google-translate/551570/?utm_source=twb …

    2:19 PM - 12 Feb 2018
    • 122 Retweets
    • 323 Likes
    • JavaScript PLOW Sushravya GM Gero Gia 美愛 🎃💀haunted chick💀🎃 Rajagøblockchain Tequehead Ankush Narula cryptkeither js
    26 replies 122 retweets 323 likes
      1. Michael Popp‏ @popp5201 Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker

        also not perfect, but way better than google translate https://www.deepl.com/translator 

        0 replies 1 retweet 1 like
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. Christina Behme‏ @ChristinaBehme4 Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker

        Perhaps Douglas Hofstadter can perform that test next on your president?

        0 replies 0 retweets 2 likes
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. Peter Nosko‏ @PNosko Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker

        Based on my experience with tweet translations, at least it puts @bing to shame.

        0 replies 0 retweets 2 likes
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. Forest Spirit‏ @EarthenBlueSky7 Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker

        Well, of course it is. Understanding requires a conscious mind.

        0 replies 0 retweets 2 likes
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. New conversation
      2. VOTE Nov 6th · Cody Reisdorf (Merkwürdigliebe)‏ @nescientswot Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker

        I haven't read Hofstadter's article, but I did come across a critique of it by the computer scientist Jeffrey Shallit. https://recursed.blogspot.com/2018/02/doug-hofstadter-flight-and-ai.html …

        1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
      3. Bashar Nuseibeh‏ @BNuseibeh Feb 12
        Replying to @nescientswot @sapinker

        Thx for pointer to Shallit’s critique, which as a fellow comp scientist I agree with. Going off on a tangent, I’d add that there is much we can learn from human understanding of NL; eg while text may be ambiguous, only some ambiguities are nocuous enough to cause misunderstanding

        1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
      4. Bashar Nuseibeh‏ @BNuseibeh Feb 12
        Replying to @BNuseibeh @nescientswot @sapinker

        My point is that even when some translations about which Hofstaeder writes are ambiguous, the majority of human readers may understand what has been generated. So pragmatically we need only worry about nocuous ambiguity (http://www.aclweb.org/anthology/C10-1137 …) @logicMachines @undercertainty

        0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
      5. End of conversation
      1. Andy "well regulated" Barnett‏ @hof1991 Feb 13
        Replying to @sapinker

        Failed at this menu, though it makes a good story. Gallo in Costa Rica means rooster and the dish is rice and red beans, hence the name. Did better on my friend's Android than my Apple, which was weird.pic.twitter.com/dONvZhiaZ2

        0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. Philip Thrift‏ @philipthrift Feb 13
        Replying to @sapinker

        Human translators have made some mistakes too.http://mentalfloss.com/article/48795/9-little-translation-mistakes-caused-big-problems …

        0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1.  🤔 Srinivas‏ @pallikonda_s Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker

        Trust #ML It gets better exponentially.

        0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. Phillip Pullin‏ @olinesrule Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker

        Natural language processing is still mired in the brute force approach that characterizes computational tasks. For language, that's not enough. Even with the superb categorization engine we have, people miss nuance, shades of meaning, etc. and we're educated natives speakers.

        0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. Faria Chowdhury‏ @fariac3001 Feb 28
        Replying to @sapinker @salonium

        I clicked Lookup on the word lacuna in "...and the output passages exhibited above clearly reveal its giant lacunas." and was amused when the machine translation offered the anatomical definition of the word. A 'gap' in understanding.pic.twitter.com/6HNVxNI962

        0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. Lakshman Sankar‏ @lakshmansankar Feb 15
        Replying to @sapinker

        Perhaps one day machines will learn ‘human-level’ cultural context, but we’re certainly still a long ways away...

        0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. Nicholas‏ @Llewro_ Feb 13
        Replying to @sapinker

        Very interesting essay. Google translate is a postmodernist!

        0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo
      1. New conversation
      2. Mem 'MisterMayhem' Orjaliza  📷 🎙️ 💻 🍽️‏ @memorjaliza Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker @james_strieb

        Is this serious? 😐

        1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
      3. JamesHole‏ @james_strieb Feb 13
        Replying to @memorjaliza @sapinker

        What do you mean?

        0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
      4. End of conversation
      1. Srinath Alamela‏ @salamela999 Feb 12
        Replying to @sapinker

        It is reassuring @sapinker

        0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
        Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. Undo
        Undo

    Loading seems to be taking a while.

    Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.

      Promoted Tweet

      false

      • © 2018 Twitter
      • About
      • Help Center
      • Terms
      • Privacy policy
      • Cookies
      • Ads info