Counting the syllables I get something like Turkish: 16 English: 26 Given the inherent loss in efficiency in trying to accurately translate very specific phra

Counting the syllables I get something like Turkish: 16 English: 26 Given the inherent loss in efficiency in trying to accurately translate very specific phrases out of context, that doesn't seem like such a big difference. (And I'm sure you could further condense the translation maybe like "Are you one of them we failed to get to take better care of themselves?" at 18.) I think the OP's assertion is generally assumed to hold for natural languages.