A、Future scientists. B、Conference participants. C、Conference interpreters. D、Would-be interpreters. D

Welcome to my lecture on Interpreting. Interpreting is a relatively new area of research. It is all too often subsumed under the heading of translation. For example, many Translators’ Associations include Interpreters. Many books on translation include a section on Interpreting. Many translators do some interpreting work and vice versa. Of course, there is an overlap between the two areas that are so alike and yet so different. All of this means that interpreting is still in the process of establishing itself as a discipline in its own right.
    My aim in this lecture is to provide an overview of interpreting to anyone interested in interpreting in general or indeed in becoming an interpreter. For years, I have been collecting information about international and regional organizations in this field. I was quite surprised by some of the results of the questionnaire. Firstly, with the exceptions of the European Union and the United Nations, the actual number of interpreters employed by many organizations is quite small. Secondly, I have not found any support for the common notion that interpreters do not have a lifelong career, that they work solidly for five years or so, earning quite a lot of money, and then disappear into the sunset. On the contrary, they continue to work as interpreters until retirement age and in some cases beyond it. Thirdly, English is the international language of business and is used in boardrooms and at business meetings throughout the world. English is also the international language of science. In the 1960s and 1970s of the last century when foreign languages were not widely taught, many international conferences needed interpreters. Nowadays most educated people learn foreign languages and as a result the need for interpreters at this type of meeting has diminished.
Question No. 23 Who are most likely to be interested in the lecture?
Question No. 24 Which of the following is NOT true about interpreting?
Question No. 25 What is the common notion about interpreters?
Question No. 26 What accounts for the smaller number of conference interpreters today?