About MIT2

Mason Integrated Technologies (MIT2) was formed in 1996 to research the potential
for commercial development and marketing of computer-related tools and techniques developed in 1991 by Marilyn Mason. These technologies allowed one to scan texts print-published in minority languages as well as automatically convert texts written in older or non-standardized orthographies to conform to more recent orthographies. Such tools could enable publishers, writers, educators, governmental and non-governmental agencies to quickly and efficiently standardize their printed materials. Such processes are urgently needed by many nations and language groups in order for them to enter into the Electronic Age and take advantage of the full economic and communications potential of the Internet.

Once the orthographic and lexical normalization of these languages could be achieved at the practical level, the door would then be opened to the development of other software tools, such as more robust spell checkers, translation software, speech-to-text and text-
to-speech software, etc.

MIT2 was committed to such a goal and identified and recruited teams of specialists --
not only linguists and practitioners of specific languages, but also computational linguists and specialists in the fields of language technologies, authoring technologies, translation technologies, optical character recognition technologies, speech technologies for minority languages, etc. -- who were willing to work in the name of MIT2, once adequate start-up funds were received to hire them and fund their MIT2 research and development activities.

Sufficient start-up funds never materialized and the time has come to face the fact that they never will -- not to the extent necessary to hire staff, mount an aggressive R&D program, and bring commercialized products to market.

The time has come to "close up shop" in the name of MIT2 and move on.

Over the past eight plus years, as Founder, President & Chief Operating Officer of MIT2, many doors were opened to Marilyn Mason to advocate on behalf of the technological support of Creole languages at the highest levels of governmental and non-governmental agencies, industry, language technology conferences and academia. Creole advocacy, team building, and networking are the lasting legacies of MIT2.

Building upon this past experience, Marilyn is forming a Consultancy Network called The Creole Clearinghouse (TCC) to, in collaboration with Creole specialists with whom she
has established a basis of mutual trust, make use of the tools she created before the birth of MIT2 to improve the consistency and excellence of materials translated and produced in Creole languages.

In other words, the commercial and corporate context of MIT2 is dying but the dream lives on. In much scaled-down form and within a non-corporate context.

The Mason Family, the lawyer they have hired, and the Officers and Shareholders of MIT2 will, during 2005, properly and legally dissolve the MIT2 corporation.

MIT2 is grateful to all those who volunteered their services, all those who invested in the corporation, and all those who showed interest in what we were trying to do.

For the sake of Creole languages, let's keep on dreaming and let's keep on striving! 

Marilyn Mason
The Creole Clearinghouse
P.O. Box 181015
Boston, Massachusetts 02118 U.S.A.

Tel: (+1) 617-247-8885
E-mail: MariLinc@aol.com

Koutwazi / Courtesy of The Creole Clearinghouse