What soldiers say they really could use are small, hands-free devices that translate speech in both directions, as people talk to them.

NPR: Tech Solutions to Iraqi-U.S. Language Barrier

Google Translate is a free Google service that translates between scores of languages almost as quickly as Google returns search results.

FORBES: Magazine Article

Google Translate has been free for Android and iPhone since February 2011.

BBC: Google��s lesser-known travel apps

"Mail Honyaku Concier" (honyaku means "translation" in Nihongo, while that last word is a play on "concierge") is a free app that lets users translate text into different languages.

ENGADGET: NTT DoCoMo launches free Concier mail translation app for Android devices

There is no reason why defending the right of money changers to operate free from onerous regulations should translate into letting the counterfeiters run amok and the temple priests loot the public treasury.

FORBES: We Can't Save Capitalism Unless We Denounce Its False Prophets

The database Transparency Labs, meanwhile, is launching a free web-based service that promises to translate every contract issued by America's largest corporations and financial institutions into readable, ninth-grade-level text.

WSJ: How Companies Stack the Deck Against You With Fine Print

One idea, being championed by Fendrick, is to make drugs free in cases where the benefits are so huge that they translate into money in the bank.

FORBES: Magazine Article

Udacity, a pioneer of free online education discussed in recent Crotty posts, yesterday announced a partnership with translation platform Amara to translate and subtitle more than 5, 000 of its course videos, according to an Amara press release.

FORBES: Udacity, Amara Partner To Provide Free College Courses In Almost Any Language