Translation and languages
In short: SciNodes can translate a publication's title and abstract into English or into your explainer language. The original stays untouched and translations are marked "Machine translation". Term definitions and map explanations follow your Explainer language, and chat replies follow your Assistant language. Both offer 20 languages. The interface itself stays in English.
What can appear in another language
| What | Language comes from | Where to change it |
|---|---|---|
| A publication's title and abstract | The language buttons in its details | Per publication |
| Term definitions on maps | Explainer language, with an EN toggle | User Preferences → Explainer language |
| Map explainer walkthroughs | Explainer language | User Preferences → Explainer language |
| Research assistant replies | Assistant language, or a chat's own language | User Preferences → Assistant language, or the language button in a chat |
| Menus, buttons and messages | English only | — |
Your publications always stay in the language they were published in. Translations are shown alongside them; nothing in your library is changed.
Translate a publication
- In the Library, click a publication to open its details. A publication window on a map works too.
- Find the language buttons near the title:
- Original: the publication as published.
- English: shown when the publication isn't in English.
- Your explainer language: shown when it isn't English and differs from the publication's language.
- Click a language. "Translating…" shows while it works.
- The translated title and abstract appear with "Machine translation from language".
- Click Original to go back.
If the only option would be Original, for example an English publication with English as your explainer language, the buttons don't appear.
Translation is an AI feature and uses your weekly credits. A translation someone has already made is cached and free, and the cache is shared with everyone who can read the publication.
Read term definitions in your language
- On a keyword or term map, click a term to select it.
- Open Definition in the selection panel.
- A badge says whether the definition is "In this project" or "General".
- If your explainer language isn't English, switch between EN and your language with the toggle above the definition.
Set your explainer language
- Open the user menu and click User Preferences.
- Click Explainer language.
- Pick a language. In this list, English appears as "English Only".
"The language SciNodes explains itself in." It's saved to your account and follows you to every device.
Set the assistant's reply language
- Open User Preferences → Assistant language and pick a language. Every new chat starts in it.
- To use a different language in one chat, click the language button next to the chat's message box and pick one. Choose Use my preference to go back.
See Mentions and reply language.
The 20 languages
English, Spanish, Arabic, Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, Russian, Korean, French, Malay, Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Urdu, Tamil, Gujarati, Assamese, Malayalam, Sinhala and Konkani.
Pickers show each language in its own script, for example Español or தமிழ், with the English name underneath.
Troubleshooting
- "Could not translate this publication." Click Retry.
- "Weekly complex compute budget spent. Resumes day at 00:00 UTC." Your weekly credits are used up. Translations already made still show. See Credits and usage.
- No language buttons in the publication details. The publication is in English and your explainer language is English, so there's nothing to translate to. Set a different explainer language to translate into it.
- "That change could not be saved. Your previous language is still in effect." Your preference didn't save. Try again.
FAQ
Does translation change the publication in my library?
No. The original title and abstract stay as they are. The translation is shown only while you have that language selected.
Can I translate the full text or PDF?
No. Translation covers the title and abstract.
Can I use the SciNodes interface in my language?
No. The interface is English only. Explanations, definitions, translations and chat replies are available in 20 languages.
Why can my explainer and assistant languages differ?
They're separate settings, so you can, for example, read map explanations in English and chat in Spanish.