Soviet futurology & a universal language (1973)

Scientists of the future will have no language difficulties. Helped by the computer, they will be able to communicate in many languages. According to some forecasts, by 1980 the computer will be able to translate from one language into another.

These days many scientists are talking about the importance of developing a common language for mankind. The Soviet scholar E. Svadost writes: “. . . a universal language as the second language for all peoples of the world has become a vital requirement in our day and age. A universal language can arise, not as a result of the development of existing languages, but only alongside them, stemming from the collective, mass endeavour in creating a new language, coupled with an appropriate theory and organised on a world-wide scale. . . . A universal language will first come into being as an auxiliary language but will gradually become basic for the whole of mankind during a long period of history. It can ultimately develop into a single, unified language for all people." [l] The blend of science and art will be yet another characteristic of the future society. The combination of rational and artistic methods of research, of mastering reality, has always brought good results and helped make major discoveries.

   1 E. Svadost, How Does a Universal Language Arise?, Moscow, 1968, p. 3 (in Russian).

SOURCE: Kosolapov, V. Mankind and the Year 2000, translated by Y. Sviridov (Moscow: Progress Publishers, 1976), pp. 193-194. (Russian: 1973)