Translation Class SoSe 2016

Track of work


Week 1

1. Translation "U-Bahn Zürich" paragraph 4, 130 words, 20 min

On 28 March 1949, a private "Committee for Underground Constructions in Zurich", presided by construction engineer Adolf Weber, submitted an application for a constructing and operating concession to the Swiss Confederal Post and Railway Department. The plan was to build an undergound network which covers 158 stations and has a length of 107 km - including lines from Zurich to Küsnacht, Witikon, Dübendorf, Kloten, Weinignen, Dietikon, Sellenbüren, Adliswil and Thalwil. After revision, the overall length was reduced to 90km. The required capital investment of approximately tow billion Swiss francs was supposed to be supplied on a private basis, partly with interest guarantee of the public domain. With respect to the horrendous costs, an acceptance of the application by the Federal Assembly evolved to be hopeless. Thus, the proposal was withdrawn.

2. Links and References, 30 min

3. Problems, 10 min

- trying to unwarap German syntax and get it into idomatic English

- find appropriate translations for technical term, I often don`t even know what they really mean in German

- getting the hang of including links and references


Week 2

1. Translation "U-Bahn Zürich" paragraph 7, 226 words, 40 min

The publication of the certificates provoced an intense debatet on transport political issues. While the further development of the street network was deeply controversial, the public transport system generated long lasting discussions. The city council preferred the moderate project of Leibbrand/Kremer. The municipal council, on the contrary, preferred the wide-ranging project of Pirath/Feuchtinger.[15] In 1956, professor Walther Lambert was consulted as an additional expert for network design and operational management. In March 1957, a technical commitee was instituted as well. Finally, city council and municipal council agreed on developping an underground project of their own. This task was handed over to a working group which was led by city councilor Walter Thomann and the director Werner Latscha of the VBZ. In addition to Kurt Leibbrand, the working group also incluled representatives of several underground construction and engineer companies.[16] In January 1961, the city council presented a project which covered a tunnel section with a total length of 12.3 km. The costs (excluding land aquisition) were estimated to the tune of 329 million Swiss francs. The same year in December, the city council added an instruction: The underground network should now have a length of 21.15 km, relating to costs of 544 million Swiss francs. In comparison to the original project, sections to Oerlikon and Schwamendingen were added. Furthermore, smaller modifications in the city centre were made.[17]

2. Links and References, 15 min

3. Problems, 10 min

- trying to unwarap German syntax and get it into idiomatic English

- find appropriate translations for technical term

- "Tiefbau- und Ingenieurunternehmen", no coumpound in English

- "Verkehrsverbund Zürich" if I translate that, the link doesn`t exist anymore. How do I manage that?


Week 3

1. Proofread homework pair 4 and 7 from U-Bahn Zürich

2. How to get pictures linked into the article

3. Translation of pair 9 from U-Bahn Zürich, 129 words, 20min

All of the represented parties in the city parliament supported the project. Still, it clearly failed in an urban referendum with 58'393 to 34'307 votes on 1 April 1962 (63.0% No). Responsible for the rejection was an ‘unholy alliance’ of two groups with completely different motivations. A non-partisan committee had fundamentally spoken against lowering the trams and criticized the indignation of the traffic planners to restrict the motorized individual traffic. A second group, which especially promoted the needs of the drivers, demanded abolition of the trams and requested the construction of an adequate underground. In 1959/60, 15 high-capacity tram wagons of the Type Be 4/4, also known as ‘carps’ and designed for a possible use in tunnel sections with high platforms, were delivered to the VBZ. As a consequence to the rejection of the underground, no further series of this type of railcars were ordered.

4. Translation of pair 12, paragraph 1 and 2 from U-Bahn Zürich, 462 words, 100min

Description of line 1

Line 1 was to have a length of 27.521 km – including the driveway to the depot in Opfikon (located roughly in the area of today’s Glattpark-Areals). 12.7 km were to be aboveground and 14.8km underground. 6.0 km of the tunnel sections were to be constructed by conventional drill and blast methods, the remaining parts by open construction. 30 stations with a length of 138m each were planned. The highly frequented section in the centre was planned to receive an incoming train every 3 minutes (later every 2 minutes). Technically possible were 70 seconds in accordance with the design. First, a section between Sihlporte and the airport was to be built within seven to eight years. The section Sihlporte-Dietikon as well as the branch line to Kloten and Schwamendingen were to be ready for operation after ten years.

North of the final destination, airport Zurich was to be located. Under the hills Butzenbüel and Holberg, the sections were to be leading to the overground station Werft where a short branch line from the train station Kloten was to be discharged into. Subsequently, the underground was to proceed from Opfikon to roughly the stop of Eisfeld street, parallel to the existing SBB-line. There, the northern gateway of the tunnel section was to be located. Following the route from Ohm street and Schaffhauser street, the changing stop Hirschwiesen was to be reached (in the area of the tram stop Milchbuck). Here, 30 metre under the earth’s surface, two station pipes connected by cross-ribs were to be built, the western one for trains on the home line and the eastern one for trains from and to Schwamendingen. The branch line of Schwamendingen was to proceed partly under the tunnel of Schöneich of the planned motorway approach road A1L and was to end temporarily at Hirschenplatz. From Hirschwiesen, the line would have reached the central station by the means of a broadly shaped S-curve, while the tunnels of Milchbuck, Letten and the Limmat were to be crossed under.

The final destination of the underground was to be located at the station Dietikon. At the central station, the underground stop was to be underneath the southern adjoining station square. At a later time, a second tunnel sections was to be created for line 3. After surpassing Sihl and the (till today not realised) motorway approach road to the A3, Stauffacher was to be reached where a changing point to line 2 was planned. Near the junction with the left bank Zurichseebahn, the overground Station Kalkbreite was to be located. Following the Badener street, the line was to be beneath the ground again, with an exception to the station Letzigraben. The parts between Albisriederplatz and Letzigraben was to obtain additional turn out tracks for turning trains. At the western margin of Altstetten a viaduct was to cross the line Zurich-Zug, the marshalling yard Müllingen and the line Zurich-Bern/Basel. With streaks the underground was to be led north of the line. A short tunnel near the post street in Dietikon would have led the line to the south side of the railway. At a bridge construction the underground would finally have reached the station Dietikon. The final destination was to be located along the reception building, lying on the first floor. Assigned but not planned concretely was a possible extension from Deitikon to Spreitenbach in the canton Aargau.


Week 4

1. Proofread pair 9 and 12

2. Copying links and references

3. Translation Nockherberg, 485 words, 130 minutes

Nockherberg

The Nockherberg is a small plateau at the side of the hang of the eastern Isar high banks in Munic, district Au. In the Paulaner brewery, which is located there, the annual Salvator-Ausschank auf dem Nockherberg takes place at the Nockherberg. It´s a traditional strong beer festival. The term Nockherberg is often used synonymously for this festival or its opening, the strong beer tasting (also: strong beer tapping).

Origin of Name and Location

The name of the Nockherberg and of two of the streets there can be traced back to the banking family Nockher. The family had been setteled in Munic since the 18. century and owned a summer house, the so called ‘Nockherschlösschen’, at the eastern Isar high since 1789. It was located at today’s street ‘Am Nockherberg’. [1] The Nockherberg is situated in the Hochau in the district Au-Haidhausen. From the Nockherberg (approx 535 m above sea level) at the eastern Isar high, the terrain descends towards north-western direction to the Isar for over 20 metres. Below the hill, the street ‘Am Neudeck’ with the former correctional facility of Neudeck is located. Northward the ‘Mariahilfplatz’ is located and south-westwards the old Paulaner breweries. From Neudeck, the mountain road ‘Am Nockherberg’, which was formerly called ‘Ohlmüllerstraße’, sneaks up the mountainside and merges into Sankt-Bonifatius-Straße at the top. The north-eastern part of the Nockherberg is built up by the new brewery sites between ‘Regerstraße’ in the east and ‘Hochstraße’ in the west – with rail connection to the east station. The ‘Hochstraße’ forks off the ‘Nockerbergstraße’ near the top end and is again connected with it through the small ‘Zacherlweg’. Crossing the street ‘Am Nockherberg’ from the new brewery area, you reach the urban ‘Kronepark’ which occupies the south-western part of the hill. It was built in 1958 on a land of the former circus director Carl Krone and his widow Ida Krone who died in 1957. [2] Westwards below the park with a playground proceeds the ‘Nockherstraße’, formerly ‘Bei den Jägerhäusln’, [3] to which several steep tracks lead down. Here, the research centre ‘German Youth Institute’ settled. The south-western end of the ‘Nockerstraße’ is formed by the ‘Kolumbusplatz’.

Stong beer festival

The strong beer festival annually takes place during lent in the Paulaner-Festsaal at ‘Hochstraße’ 77. It starts off around Josefstag (19 March) and lasts for 17 days, called strong beer time or fifth season in Munic. The festival is traditionally related to the ‘Heilig-Vater-Fest’ on 2 April in commemorazion of Franz von Paola, founder of the Paulaner Order. With its ale-benches, mood music and the huge rush of visitors, the ‘Salvator-Ausschank’ in its form of today resembles to some extent the beer tents at Muni Beer Festival. At the Nockherberg, beer is not poured into glass jugs as usual but into Keferloher beer mugs out of crock. On the one hand beer is cooled longer and on the other it unburdens ‘restrained’ pouring.[4]

4. Starting to prepare presentaion


Week 5

1. Creating an English page for Nockherberg

2. Inserting all the references and pictures

3. Translating following paragraph incl references and pictures, 213 words, 80 min


Week 6


1. Translate another paragraph of the Nockherberg

2. Starting to proofread Lilia's parts

3. Translating following paragraph incl references and pictures, 242 words, 90 min


Week 7


1. Insert categories, literature and weblinks to the English page

2. Proofread Lilia's parts

3. Translating following paragraph incl references and pictures, 313 words, 95 min


Week 8


1. Proofread Lilia's parts

2. Discuss outline presentation for next week

3. Creating an English page for 'Monika Gruber' and starting to translate incl references and pictures, 70 min


Week 9 - no class


1. Pursuing English page for 'Monika Gruber' and continue translating incl references and pictures, 75 min


Week 10


1. Presentation with Lilia

2. Correct presentation slides and put upcoming questions during the presentation onto my talk page for the wikipedia community to probably find an answer

3. Pursuing English page for 'Monika Gruber' and continue translating incl references and pictures, 60 min


Week 11


1. Presentations

2. Pursuing English page for 'Monika Gruber' and continue translating incl references and pictures, 60 min


Week 12


Going through all the translations and correct them with the knowledge I gained troughout the course and presentations (check correctness of links, references, grammar...)