Soon smartphones capable of simultaneous translation at Google?

Students and former students in foreign languages know: one of the most demanding disciplines still simultaneous translation, which requires good knowledge of the language of origin, speed of decision-making and ability to split the understanding of a foreign language and the oral transcription in his mother tongue, two operations to be performed simultaneously.

Not simple, to the point that it is often question, in the corridors of universities, the supposedly innate character of such a capability, or even a 'donation' or facilities granted to a few lucky. Scientist so, and yet nothing less than collapsible science to an equation or algorithms.

Babel Fish

Or even. Because if the rumored to be true - it would confirm in any case a real project which has a few years to counter - Google is about to achieve an old fantasy: the instant and universal translator. A "Babel Fish mobile, in reference to the fish yellow and absurd to H2G2: the Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.

Google isn't the first to work on the thorny issue. NTT DoCoMo, one of the main Japanese operators, has developed a Pocket translator, in form of application for smartphone, capable of understanding a priori quite a sentence in English and transcribe in Japanese, and vice versa. It was a big hit in Japan, especially since the widespread use of 4G (improvement of latency).

See this video of Android Central:

Obviously, the application of NTT DoCoMo is only a "first step" towards the universal translator. Allowing Google to assert its advance on the Japanese. Thus, Hugo Barra, vice-president of Android, estimated in an interview with the Times that what the giant, it is a PSMA translation: not more than a few seconds to have an oral translation of a sentence.

The goal is clear, and totally sticks to the fantasy: you speak in French, your caller hears and responds in Kyrgyz, you hear your turn in French. Useful for travel - a little spice less however, but each will do as he wishes.

The first prototypes are being developed. Obviously, it is still far a priori of telephone conversations completely translated in this way, even if it is something that Google has provide. Farewell then translation problems... And translators?