Tower of Babel

Via Warren Bell: Lost in Translation:

What happens when an English phrase is translated (by computer) back and forth between 5 different languages? The authors of the Systran translation software probably never intended this application of their program. As of September 2003, translation software is almost good enough to turn grammatically correct, slang-free text from one language into grammatically incorrect, barely readable approximations in another. But the software is not equipped for 10 consecutive translations of the same piece of text. The resulting half-English, half-foreign, and totally non sequitur response bears almost no resemblance to the original. Remember the old game of "Telephone"? Something is lost, and sometimes something is gained.

Original English Text:
A great many people think they are thinking when they are actually rearranging their prejudices.

Translated to French:
Un grand beaucoup de gens pense qu'elles pensent quand elles réarrangent réellement leurs préjudices.

Translated back to English:
Large much of people thinks that they think when they rearrange really their damages.

Translated to German:
Groß viel von den Leuten denkt, daß sie denken, wann sie wirklich ihre Beschädigungen umordnen.

Translated back to English:
Largely much of the people thinks that they think, when they really rearrange their damages.

Translated to Italian:
In gran parte gran parte della gente pensa che pensino, quando realmente riorganizzano i loro danni.

Translated back to English:
In great part great part of people thinks that they think, when they really reorganize their damages.

Translated to Portuguese:
Na parte grande a parte grande dos povos pensa de que pensam, quando reorganize realmente seus danos.

Translated back to English:
About the great part the great part of the peoples thinks of that they think, when reorganizes really its damages.

Translated to Spanish:
De la mayor parte la mayor parte de la gente piensa en ésa que ella piensa, cuando reorganiza realmente sus daños.

Translated back to English:
Of most most of people it thinks about which she thinks, when she reorganizes really its damages.