GloBuddy2: A Dynamic Phrasebook for Tourists

Jose Espinosa, Alex Faaborg, Henry Lieberman

GloBuddy2: A Dynamic Phrasebook for Tourists
When traveling in foreign countries, people often rely on traditional phrase books for language translation. However, these phrase books only work in a limited number of common situations, and even common situations will often deviate from the predefined script the phrase book relies on. Translation software exists for Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) devices, but users must write out every phrase they wish to translate, slowing communication. We aim to solve both problems with a PDA application called GloBuddy 2. Using a vast knowledge base of commonsense facts and relationships, GloBuddy 2 is able to expand on the user’s translation request and provide words and phrases related to the user’s situation. The result is a dynamic phrase book that can adapt to the user’s particular situation due to its breadth of common sense knowledge about the world. GloBuddy 2 is considerably more effective than using a conventional phrase book across a wide variety of situations.

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