What does a decade as a hospital interpreter in Georgia and New York have to do with sending microphones to speakers in Lima? More than you'd think.In this episode, Alain and Brian sit down with Laura Holcomb — interpreter, trainer, and founder of String and Can — whose winding path through healthcare interpreting, a Glendon master's degree completed from a coffee farm in rural Brazil, and the chaos of early remote platforms eventually made her one of the most practically-minded voices on remote interpreting tech working today.They cover a lot of ground: why good sound is a non-negotiable professional standard and not a nice-to-have, the case for sending microphones to your speakers before an event (and who pays for them), the open-back headphone debate, the chain of custody problem in hybrid and institutional settings, acoustic shock and what interpreters can actually do about it, and whether video back channels are an asset or a distraction in the remote booth.Laura also shares an honest reflection on what it's like to enter the conference interpreting field as a trainer before having a solid interpreting runway of your own — and why, looking back, that shaped her career in ways she didn't expect.Topics covered:Healthcare vs. conference interpreting: two worlds that rarely meetBreaking into a market as an outsider (and why Brazil was harder than expected)Building a small, quality-focused remote interpreting businessMicrophone logistics: why Laura sends them, how she prices for it, and what she asks about portsOpen-back vs. on-ear headphones for long interpreting daysEthernet, second screens, printers: the remote interpreter's minimum viable setupAcoustic shock: peaks, prolonged exposure, and the limits of decibel limitersVideo back channels: useful booth simulation or cognitive overload?When to fire a client over sound conditionsGuest: Laura Holcomb — interpreter, trainer, and founder of String and CanFound in Interpretation is a bilingual podcast about conference interpretation, hosted by Alain R. Breton and Brian Bickford.Like, share, and subscribe to help us keep finding great guests.