Language Interpretation and Communication: a NATO Symposium, was a
multi-disciplinary meeting held from September 26 to October 1st 1977 at
the Giorgio Cini Foundation on the Isle of San Giorgio Maggiore in
Venice. The Symposium explored both applied and theoretical aspects of
conference interpre- tation and of sign language interpretation. The
Symposium was sponsored by the Scientific Affairs Division of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organisation, and we would like to express our thanks to
Dr. B. A. Bayrakter of the Scientific Affairs Division and to the
Members of the NATO Special Programme Panel on Human Factors for their
support. We would also like to thank Dr. F. Benvenutti and his
colleagues at the University of Venice for their generous provision of
facilities and hospitality for the opening session of the Symposium. Our
thanks are also due to Dr. Ernesto Talentino and his colleagues at the
Giorgio Cini Foundation who provided such excellent conference
facilities and thus helped ensure the success of the meeting. Finally,
we would like to express our appreciation and thanks to Becky Graham and
Carol Blair for their invaluable contributions to the organization of
the Symposium, to Ida Stevenson who prepared these proceedings for
publication, and to Donald I. MacLeod who assisted with the final
preparation of the manuscript.