Natural Language Description of Emotion

Science.gov (United States)

Kazemzadeh, Abe

2013-01-01

This dissertation studies how people describe emotions with language and how computers can simulate this descriptive behavior. Although many non-human animals can express their current emotions as social signals, only humans can communicate about emotions symbolically. This symbolic communication of emotion allows us to talk about emotions that we…

3rd grade English language learners making sense of sound

Science.gov (United States)

Suarez, Enrique; Otero, Valerie

2013-01-01

Despite the extensive body of research that supports scientific inquiry and argumentation as cornerstones of physics learning, these strategies continue to be virtually absent in most classrooms, especially those that involve students who are learning English as a second language. This study presents results from an investigation of 3rd grade students' discourse about how length and tension affect the sound produced by a string. These students came from a variety of language backgrounds, and all were learning English as a second language. Our results demonstrate varying levels, and uses, of experiential, imaginative, and mechanistic reasoning strategies. Using specific examples from students' discourse, we will demonstrate some of the productive aspects of working within multiple language frameworks for making sense of physics. Conjectures will be made about how to utilize physics as a context for English Language Learners to further conceptual understanding, while developing their competence in the English language.

Phonemic versus allophonic status modulates early brain responses to language sounds: an MEG/ERF study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Andreas Højlund; Gebauer, Line; Mcgregor, William

allophonic sound contrasts. So far this has only been attested between languages. In the present study we wished to investigate this effect within the same language: Does the same sound contrast that is phonemic in one environment, but allophonic in another, elicit different MMNm responses in native...... ‘that’). This allowed us to manipulate the phonemic/allophonic status of exactly the same sound contrast (/t/-/d/) by presenting it in different immediate phonetic contexts (preceding a vowel (CV) versus following a vowel (VC)), in order to investigate the auditory event-related fields of native Danish...... listeners to a sound contrast that is both phonemic and allophonic within Danish. Methods: Relevant syllables were recorded by a male native Danish speaker. The stimuli were then created by cross-splicing the sounds so that the same vowel [æ] was used for all syllables, and the same [t] and [d] were used...

The Athena Data Dictionary and Description Language

CERN Document Server

Bazan, A; Ghez, P; Marino, M; Tull, C

2003-01-01

Athena is the ATLAS off-line software framework, based upon the GAUDI architecture from LHCb. As part of ATLAS' continuing efforts to enhance and customise the architecture to meet our needs, we have developed a data object description tool suite and service for Athena. The aim is to provide a set of tools to describe, manage, integrate and use the Event Data Model at a design level according to the concepts of the Athena framework (use of patterns, relationships, ...). Moreover, to ensure stability and reusability this must be fully independent from the implementation details. After an extensive investigation into the many options, we have developed a language grammar based upon a description language (IDL, ODL) to provide support for object integration in Athena. We have then developed a compiler front end based upon this language grammar, JavaCC, and a Java Reflection API-like interface. We have then used these tools to develop several compiler back ends which meet specific needs in ATLAS such as automatic...

The Athena data dictionary and description language

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bazan, Alain; Bouedo, Thierry; Ghez, Philippe; Marino, Massimo; Tull, Craig

2003-01-01

Athena is the ATLAS off-line software framework, based upon the GAUDI architecture from LHCb. As part of ATLAS' continuing efforts to enhance and customize the architecture to meet our needs, we have developed a data object description tool suite and service for Athena. The aim is to provide a set of tools to describe, manage, integrate and use the Event Data Model at a design level according to the concepts of the Athena framework (use of patterns, relationships,...). Moreover, to ensure stability and reusability this must be fully independent from the implementation details. After an extensive investigation into the many options, we have developed a language grammar based upon a description language (IDL, ODL) to provide support for object integration in Athena. We have then developed a compiler front end based upon this language grammar, JavaCC, and a Java Reflection API-like interface. We have then used these tools to develop several compiler back ends which meet specific needs in ATLAS such as automatic generation of object converters, and data object scripting interfaces. We present here details of our work and experience to date on the Athena Definition Language and Athena Data Dictionary. (authors)

Concept of APDL, the atomic process description language

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sasaki, Akira

2004-01-01

The concept of APDL, the Atomic Process Description Language, which provides simple and complete description of atomic model is presented. The syntax to describe electron orbital and configuration is defined for the use in the atomic structure, kinetics and spectral synthesis simulation codes. (author)

The athena data dictionary and description language

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bazan, A.; Ghez, P.; Le Flour, T.; Lieunard, S.; Tull, C.

2001-01-01

The authors have developed a data object description tool suite and service for Athena consisting of: a language grammar based upon an extended proper subset of IDL 2.0, a compiler front end based upon this language grammar, JavaCC, and a Java Reflection API-like interface, and several compiler back ends which meet specific needs in ATLAS such as automatic generation of object converters, and data object scripting interfaces. The authors present here details of the work and experience to date on the Athena Definition Language and Athena Data Dictionary

Descriptive markup languages and the development of digital humanities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Boris Bosančić

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The paper discusses the role of descriptive markup languages in the development of digital humanities, a new research discipline that is part of social sciences and humanities, which focuses on the use of computers in research. A chronological review of the development of digital humanities, and then descriptive markup languages is exposed, through several developmental stages. It is shown that the development of digital humanities since the mid-1980s and the appearance of SGML, markup language that was the foundation of TEI, a key standard for the encoding and exchange of humanities texts in the digital environment, is inseparable from the development of markup languages. Special attention is dedicated to the presentation of the Text Encoding Initiative – TEI development, a key organization that developed the titled standard, both from organizational and markup perspectives. By this time, TEI standard is published in five versions, and during 2000s SGML is replaced by XML markup language. Key words: markup languages, digital humanities, text encoding, TEI, SGML, XML

Description and Flight Performance Results of the WASP Sounding Rocket

Science.gov (United States)

De Pauw, J. F.; Steffens, L. E.; Yuska, J. A.

1968-01-01

A general description of the design and construction of the WASP sounding rocket and of the performance of its first flight are presented. The purpose of the flight test was to place the 862-pound (391-kg) spacecraft above 250 000 feet (76.25 km) on free-fall trajectory for at least 6 minutes in order to study the effect of "weightlessness" on a slosh dynamics experiment. The WASP sounding rocket fulfilled its intended mission requirements. The sounding rocket approximately followed a nominal trajectory. The payload was in free fall above 250 000 feet (76.25 km) for 6.5 minutes and reached an apogee altitude of 134 nautical miles (248 km). Flight data including velocity, altitude, acceleration, roll rate, and angle of attack are discussed and compared to nominal performance calculations. The effect of residual burning of the second stage motor is analyzed. The flight vibration environment is presented and analyzed, including root mean square (RMS) and power spectral density analysis.

Extension of specification language for soundness and completeness of service workflow

Science.gov (United States)

Viriyasitavat, Wattana; Xu, Li Da; Bi, Zhuming; Sapsomboon, Assadaporn

2018-05-01

A Service Workflow is an aggregation of distributed services to fulfill specific functionalities. With ever increasing available services, the methodologies for the selections of the services against the given requirements become main research subjects in multiple disciplines. A few of researchers have contributed to the formal specification languages and the methods for model checking; however, existing methods have the difficulties to tackle with the complexity of workflow compositions. In this paper, we propose to formalize the specification language to reduce the complexity of the workflow composition. To this end, we extend a specification language with the consideration of formal logic, so that some effective theorems can be derived for the verification of syntax, semantics, and inference rules in the workflow composition. The logic-based approach automates compliance checking effectively. The Service Workflow Specification (SWSpec) has been extended and formulated, and the soundness, completeness, and consistency of SWSpec applications have been verified; note that a logic-based SWSpec is mandatory for the development of model checking. The application of the proposed SWSpec has been demonstrated by the examples with the addressed soundness, completeness, and consistency.

Completely reproducible description of digital sound data with cellular automata

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wada, Masato; Kuroiwa, Jousuke; Nara, Shigetoshi

2002-01-01

A novel method of compressive and completely reproducible description of digital sound data by means of rule dynamics of CA (cellular automata) is proposed. The digital data of spoken words and music recorded with the standard format of a compact disk are reproduced completely by this method with use of only two rules in a one-dimensional CA without loss of information

Computer hardware description languages - A tutorial

Science.gov (United States)

Shiva, S. G.

1979-01-01

The paper introduces hardware description languages (HDL) as useful tools for hardware design and documentation. The capabilities and limitations of HDLs are discussed along with the guidelines needed in selecting an appropriate HDL. The directions for future work are provided and attention is given to the implementation of HDLs in microcomputers.

SELECTION OF ONTOLOGY FOR WEB SERVICE DESCRIPTION LANGUAGE TO ONTOLOGY WEB LANGUAGE CONVERSION

OpenAIRE

J. Mannar Mannan; M. Sundarambal; S. Raghul

2014-01-01

Semantic web is to extend the current human readable web to encoding some of the semantic of resources in a machine processing form. As a Semantic web component, Semantic Web Services (SWS) uses a mark-up that makes the data into detailed and sophisticated machine readable way. One such language is Ontology Web Language (OWL). Existing conventional web service annotation can be changed to semantic web service by mapping Web Service Description Language (WSDL) with the semantic annotation of O...

A Petri Net Definition of a System Description Language

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt; Kyng, Morten; Madsen, Ole Lehrmann

1979-01-01

This paper introduces a language for the description of systems with concurrency, and presents a formal definition of its semantics. The language is based on Delta and the semantic model is an extension of Petri nets with a data part and with expressions attached to transitions and to places....

Effects of Sound, Vocabulary, and Grammar Learning Aptitude on Adult Second Language Speech Attainment in Foreign Language Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Saito, Kazuya

2017-01-01

This study examines the relationship between different types of language learning aptitude (measured via the LLAMA test) and adult second language (L2) learners' attainment in speech production in English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) classrooms. Picture descriptions elicited from 50 Japanese EFL learners from varied proficiency levels were analyzed…

The Sound of Voice: Voice-Based Categorization of Speakers' Sexual Orientation within and across Languages.

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Simone Sulpizio

Full Text Available Empirical research had initially shown that English listeners are able to identify the speakers' sexual orientation based on voice cues alone. However, the accuracy of this voice-based categorization, as well as its generalizability to other languages (language-dependency and to non-native speakers (language-specificity, has been questioned recently. Consequently, we address these open issues in 5 experiments: First, we tested whether Italian and German listeners are able to correctly identify sexual orientation of same-language male speakers. Then, participants of both nationalities listened to voice samples and rated the sexual orientation of both Italian and German male speakers. We found that listeners were unable to identify the speakers' sexual orientation correctly. However, speakers were consistently categorized as either heterosexual or gay on the basis of how they sounded. Moreover, a similar pattern of results emerged when listeners judged the sexual orientation of speakers of their own and of the foreign language. Overall, this research suggests that voice-based categorization of sexual orientation reflects the listeners' expectations of how gay voices sound rather than being an accurate detector of the speakers' actual sexual identity. Results are discussed with regard to accuracy, acoustic features of voices, language dependency and language specificity.

Sound Symbolism in Basic Vocabulary

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Søren Wichmann

2010-04-01

Full Text Available The relationship between meanings of words and their sound shapes is to a large extent arbitrary, but it is well known that languages exhibit sound symbolism effects violating arbitrariness. Evidence for sound symbolism is typically anecdotal, however. Here we present a systematic approach. Using a selection of basic vocabulary in nearly one half of the world’s languages we find commonalities among sound shapes for words referring to same concepts. These are interpreted as due to sound symbolism. Studying the effects of sound symbolism cross-linguistically is of key importance for the understanding of language evolution.

Speech Abilities in Preschool Children with Speech Sound Disorder with and without Co-Occurring Language Impairment

Science.gov (United States)

Macrae, Toby; Tyler, Ann A.

2014-01-01

Purpose: The authors compared preschool children with co-occurring speech sound disorder (SSD) and language impairment (LI) to children with SSD only in their numbers and types of speech sound errors. Method: In this post hoc quasi-experimental study, independent samples t tests were used to compare the groups in the standard score from different…

International aspirations for speech-language pathologists' practice with multilingual children with speech sound disorders: development of a position paper.

Science.gov (United States)

McLeod, Sharynne; Verdon, Sarah; Bowen, Caroline

2013-01-01

A major challenge for the speech-language pathology profession in many cultures is to address the mismatch between the "linguistic homogeneity of the speech-language pathology profession and the linguistic diversity of its clientele" (Caesar & Kohler, 2007, p. 198). This paper outlines the development of the Multilingual Children with Speech Sound Disorders: Position Paper created to guide speech-language pathologists' (SLPs') facilitation of multilingual children's speech. An international expert panel was assembled comprising 57 researchers (SLPs, linguists, phoneticians, and speech scientists) with knowledge about multilingual children's speech, or children with speech sound disorders. Combined, they had worked in 33 countries and used 26 languages in professional practice. Fourteen panel members met for a one-day workshop to identify key points for inclusion in the position paper. Subsequently, 42 additional panel members participated online to contribute to drafts of the position paper. A thematic analysis was undertaken of the major areas of discussion using two data sources: (a) face-to-face workshop transcript (133 pages) and (b) online discussion artifacts (104 pages). Finally, a moderator with international expertise in working with children with speech sound disorders facilitated the incorporation of the panel's recommendations. The following themes were identified: definitions, scope, framework, evidence, challenges, practices, and consideration of a multilingual audience. The resulting position paper contains guidelines for providing services to multilingual children with speech sound disorders (http://www.csu.edu.au/research/multilingual-speech/position-paper). The paper is structured using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health: Children and Youth Version (World Health Organization, 2007) and incorporates recommendations for (a) children and families, (b) SLPs' assessment and intervention, (c) SLPs' professional

HCIDL: Human-computer interface description language for multi-target, multimodal, plastic user interfaces

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Lamia Gaouar

2018-06-01

Full Text Available From the human-computer interface perspectives, the challenges to be faced are related to the consideration of new, multiple interactions, and the diversity of devices. The large panel of interactions (touching, shaking, voice dictation, positioning … and the diversification of interaction devices can be seen as a factor of flexibility albeit introducing incidental complexity. Our work is part of the field of user interface description languages. After an analysis of the scientific context of our work, this paper introduces HCIDL, a modelling language staged in a model-driven engineering approach. Among the properties related to human-computer interface, our proposition is intended for modelling multi-target, multimodal, plastic interaction interfaces using user interface description languages. By combining plasticity and multimodality, HCIDL improves usability of user interfaces through adaptive behaviour by providing end-users with an interaction-set adapted to input/output of terminals and, an optimum layout. Keywords: Model driven engineering, Human-computer interface, User interface description languages, Multimodal applications, Plastic user interfaces

Human and animal sounds influence recognition of body language.

Science.gov (United States)

Van den Stock, Jan; Grèzes, Julie; de Gelder, Beatrice

2008-11-25

In naturalistic settings emotional events have multiple correlates and are simultaneously perceived by several sensory systems. Recent studies have shown that recognition of facial expressions is biased towards the emotion expressed by a simultaneously presented emotional expression in the voice even if attention is directed to the face only. So far, no study examined whether this phenomenon also applies to whole body expressions, although there is no obvious reason why this crossmodal influence would be specific for faces. Here we investigated whether perception of emotions expressed in whole body movements is influenced by affective information provided by human and by animal vocalizations. Participants were instructed to attend to the action displayed by the body and to categorize the expressed emotion. The results indicate that recognition of body language is biased towards the emotion expressed by the simultaneously presented auditory information, whether it consist of human or of animal sounds. Our results show that a crossmodal influence from auditory to visual emotional information obtains for whole body video images with the facial expression blanked and includes human as well as animal sounds.

The Effects of Bilingualism on Infant Language Development : The Acquisition of Sounds and Words

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Liu, Liquan

2014-01-01

This dissertation reports on the influence of bilingualism on infants’ sound and word acquisition in the first two years of life. It targets the question of whether mono- and bilingual infants follow the same developmental trajectory of language acquisition, it displays similarities and differences

Systems Biology Graphical Notation: Process Description language Level 1 Version 1.3.

Science.gov (United States)

Moodie, Stuart; Le Novère, Nicolas; Demir, Emek; Mi, Huaiyu; Villéger, Alice

2015-09-04

The Systems Biological Graphical Notation (SBGN) is an international community effort for standardized graphical representations of biological pathways and networks. The goal of SBGN is to provide unambiguous pathway and network maps for readers with different scientific backgrounds as well as to support efficient and accurate exchange of biological knowledge between different research communities, industry, and other players in systems biology. Three SBGN languages, Process Description (PD), Entity Relationship (ER) and Activity Flow (AF), allow for the representation of different aspects of biological and biochemical systems at different levels of detail. The SBGN Process Description language represents biological entities and processes between these entities within a network. SBGN PD focuses on the mechanistic description and temporal dependencies of biological interactions and transformations. The nodes (elements) are split into entity nodes describing, e.g., metabolites, proteins, genes and complexes, and process nodes describing, e.g., reactions and associations. The edges (connections) provide descriptions of relationships (or influences) between the nodes, such as consumption, production, stimulation and inhibition. Among all three languages of SBGN, PD is the closest to metabolic and regulatory pathways in biological literature and textbooks, but its well-defined semantics offer a superior precision in expressing biological knowledge.

Using Open Geographic Data to Generate Natural Language Descriptions for Hydrological Sensor Networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Molina, Martin; Sanchez-Soriano, Javier; Corcho, Oscar

2015-07-03

Providing descriptions of isolated sensors and sensor networks in natural language, understandable by the general public, is useful to help users find relevant sensors and analyze sensor data. In this paper, we discuss the feasibility of using geographic knowledge from public databases available on the Web (such as OpenStreetMap, Geonames, or DBpedia) to automatically construct such descriptions. We present a general method that uses such information to generate sensor descriptions in natural language. The results of the evaluation of our method in a hydrologic national sensor network showed that this approach is feasible and capable of generating adequate sensor descriptions with a lower development effort compared to other approaches. In the paper we also analyze certain problems that we found in public databases (e.g., heterogeneity, non-standard use of labels, or rigid search methods) and their impact in the generation of sensor descriptions.

Using Open Geographic Data to Generate Natural Language Descriptions for Hydrological Sensor Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Molina

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Providing descriptions of isolated sensors and sensor networks in natural language, understandable by the general public, is useful to help users find relevant sensors and analyze sensor data. In this paper, we discuss the feasibility of using geographic knowledge from public databases available on the Web (such as OpenStreetMap, Geonames, or DBpedia to automatically construct such descriptions. We present a general method that uses such information to generate sensor descriptions in natural language. The results of the evaluation of our method in a hydrologic national sensor network showed that this approach is feasible and capable of generating adequate sensor descriptions with a lower development effort compared to other approaches. In the paper we also analyze certain problems that we found in public databases (e.g., heterogeneity, non-standard use of labels, or rigid search methods and their impact in the generation of sensor descriptions.

Long-term memory traces for language sounds are highly context-sensitive: an MEG/ERF study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Andreas Højlund; Gebauer, Line; Mcgregor, William

impact on the proposed long-term memory traces for native phonological categories. In order to generate different MMF responses to the same language sound contrast depending on the phonetic context, these long-term memory traces must thus be context-sensitive themselves or exist as separate traces...

The GRAIL concept modelling language for medical terminology.

Science.gov (United States)

Rector, A L; Bechhofer, S; Goble, C A; Horrocks, I; Nowlan, W A; Solomon, W D

1997-02-01

The GALEN representation and integration language (GRAIL) has been developed to support effective clinical user interfaces and extensible re-usable models of medical terminology. It has been used successfully to develop the prototype GALEN common reference (CORE) model for medical terminology and for a series of projects in clinical user interfaces within the GALEN and PEN&PAD projects. GRAIL is a description logic or frame language with novel features to support part-whole and other transitive relations and to support the GALEN modelling style aimed at re-use and application independence. GRAIL began as an experimental language. However, it has clarified many requirements for an effective knowledge representation language for clinical concepts. It still has numerous limitations despite its practical successes. The GRAIL experience is expected to form the basis for future languages which meet the same requirements but have greater expressiveness and more soundly based semantics. This paper provides a description and motivation for the GRAIL language and gives examples of the modelling paradigm which it supports.

The influence of meaning on the perception of speech sounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Kazanina, Nina; Phillips, Colin; Idsardi, William

2006-07-25

As part of knowledge of language, an adult speaker possesses information on which sounds are used in the language and on the distribution of these sounds in a multidimensional acoustic space. However, a speaker must know not only the sound categories of his language but also the functional significance of these categories, in particular, which sound contrasts are relevant for storing words in memory and which sound contrasts are not. Using magnetoencephalographic brain recordings with speakers of Russian and Korean, we demonstrate that a speaker's perceptual space, as reflected in early auditory brain responses, is shaped not only by bottom-up analysis of the distribution of sounds in his language but also by more abstract analysis of the functional significance of those sounds.

Vocal Imitations of Non-Vocal Sounds

Science.gov (United States)

Houix, Olivier; Voisin, Frédéric; Misdariis, Nicolas; Susini, Patrick

2016-01-01

Imitative behaviors are widespread in humans, in particular whenever two persons communicate and interact. Several tokens of spoken languages (onomatopoeias, ideophones, and phonesthemes) also display different degrees of iconicity between the sound of a word and what it refers to. Thus, it probably comes at no surprise that human speakers use a lot of imitative vocalizations and gestures when they communicate about sounds, as sounds are notably difficult to describe. What is more surprising is that vocal imitations of non-vocal everyday sounds (e.g. the sound of a car passing by) are in practice very effective: listeners identify sounds better with vocal imitations than with verbal descriptions, despite the fact that vocal imitations are inaccurate reproductions of a sound created by a particular mechanical system (e.g. a car driving by) through a different system (the voice apparatus). The present study investigated the semantic representations evoked by vocal imitations of sounds by experimentally quantifying how well listeners could match sounds to category labels. The experiment used three different types of sounds: recordings of easily identifiable sounds (sounds of human actions and manufactured products), human vocal imitations, and computational “auditory sketches” (created by algorithmic computations). The results show that performance with the best vocal imitations was similar to the best auditory sketches for most categories of sounds, and even to the referent sounds themselves in some cases. More detailed analyses showed that the acoustic distance between a vocal imitation and a referent sound is not sufficient to account for such performance. Analyses suggested that instead of trying to reproduce the referent sound as accurately as vocally possible, vocal imitations focus on a few important features, which depend on each particular sound category. These results offer perspectives for understanding how human listeners store and access long

Prolog as description and implementation language in computer science teaching

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Henning

population with uneven mathematical backgrounds. % Definitional interpreters, compilers, and other models of computation are defined in a systematic way as Prolog programs, and as a result, formal descriptions become running prototypes that can be tested and modified by the students. These programs can......Prolog is a powerful pedagogical instrument for theoretical elements of computer science when used as combined description language and experimentation tool. A teaching methodology based on this principle has been developed and successfully applied in a context with a heterogeneous student...

The Clinical Practice of Speech and Language Therapists with Children with Phonologically Based Speech Sound Disorders

Science.gov (United States)

Oliveira, Carla; Lousada, Marisa; Jesus, Luis M. T.

2015-01-01

Children with speech sound disorders (SSD) represent a large number of speech and language therapists' caseloads. The intervention with children who have SSD can involve different therapy approaches, and these may be articulatory or phonologically based. Some international studies reveal a widespread application of articulatory based approaches in…

Language related differences of the sustained response evoked by natural speech sounds.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christina Siu-Dschu Fan

Full Text Available In tonal languages, such as Mandarin Chinese, the pitch contour of vowels discriminates lexical meaning, which is not the case in non-tonal languages such as German. Recent data provide evidence that pitch processing is influenced by language experience. However, there are still many open questions concerning the representation of such phonological and language-related differences at the level of the auditory cortex (AC. Using magnetoencephalography (MEG, we recorded transient and sustained auditory evoked fields (AEF in native Chinese and German speakers to investigate language related phonological and semantic aspects in the processing of acoustic stimuli. AEF were elicited by spoken meaningful and meaningless syllables, by vowels, and by a French horn tone. Speech sounds were recorded from a native speaker and showed frequency-modulations according to the pitch-contours of Mandarin. The sustained field (SF evoked by natural speech signals was significantly larger for Chinese than for German listeners. In contrast, the SF elicited by a horn tone was not significantly different between groups. Furthermore, the SF of Chinese subjects was larger when evoked by meaningful syllables compared to meaningless ones, but there was no significant difference regarding whether vowels were part of the Chinese phonological system or not. Moreover, the N100m gave subtle but clear evidence that for Chinese listeners other factors than purely physical properties play a role in processing meaningful signals. These findings show that the N100 and the SF generated in Heschl's gyrus are influenced by language experience, which suggests that AC activity related to specific pitch contours of vowels is influenced in a top-down fashion by higher, language related areas. Such interactions are in line with anatomical findings and neuroimaging data, as well as with the dual-stream model of language of Hickok and Poeppel that highlights the close and reciprocal interaction

Language related differences of the sustained response evoked by natural speech sounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Fan, Christina Siu-Dschu; Zhu, Xingyu; Dosch, Hans Günter; von Stutterheim, Christiane; Rupp, André

2017-01-01

In tonal languages, such as Mandarin Chinese, the pitch contour of vowels discriminates lexical meaning, which is not the case in non-tonal languages such as German. Recent data provide evidence that pitch processing is influenced by language experience. However, there are still many open questions concerning the representation of such phonological and language-related differences at the level of the auditory cortex (AC). Using magnetoencephalography (MEG), we recorded transient and sustained auditory evoked fields (AEF) in native Chinese and German speakers to investigate language related phonological and semantic aspects in the processing of acoustic stimuli. AEF were elicited by spoken meaningful and meaningless syllables, by vowels, and by a French horn tone. Speech sounds were recorded from a native speaker and showed frequency-modulations according to the pitch-contours of Mandarin. The sustained field (SF) evoked by natural speech signals was significantly larger for Chinese than for German listeners. In contrast, the SF elicited by a horn tone was not significantly different between groups. Furthermore, the SF of Chinese subjects was larger when evoked by meaningful syllables compared to meaningless ones, but there was no significant difference regarding whether vowels were part of the Chinese phonological system or not. Moreover, the N100m gave subtle but clear evidence that for Chinese listeners other factors than purely physical properties play a role in processing meaningful signals. These findings show that the N100 and the SF generated in Heschl's gyrus are influenced by language experience, which suggests that AC activity related to specific pitch contours of vowels is influenced in a top-down fashion by higher, language related areas. Such interactions are in line with anatomical findings and neuroimaging data, as well as with the dual-stream model of language of Hickok and Poeppel that highlights the close and reciprocal interaction between

Sound symbolism: the role of word sound in meaning.

Science.gov (United States)

Svantesson, Jan-Olof

2017-09-01

The question whether there is a natural connection between sound and meaning or if they are related only by convention has been debated since antiquity. In linguistics, it is usually taken for granted that 'the linguistic sign is arbitrary,' and exceptions like onomatopoeia have been regarded as marginal phenomena. However, it is becoming more and more clear that motivated relations between sound and meaning are more common and important than has been thought. There is now a large and rapidly growing literature on subjects as ideophones (or expressives), words that describe how a speaker perceives a situation with the senses, and phonaesthemes, units like English gl-, which occur in many words that share a meaning component (in this case 'light': gleam, glitter, etc.). Furthermore, psychological experiments have shown that sound symbolism in one language can be understood by speakers of other languages, suggesting that some kinds of sound symbolism are universal. WIREs Cogn Sci 2017, 8:e1441. doi: 10.1002/wcs.1441 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Efficiency of Picture Description and Storytelling Methods in Language Sampling According to the Mean Length of Utterance Index

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Salime Jafari

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Background and Aim: Due to limitation of standardized tests for Persian-speakers with language disorders, spontaneous language sampling collection is an important part of assessment of languageprotocol. Therefore, selection of a language sampling method, which will provide information of linguistic competence in a short time, is important. Therefore, in this study, we compared the languagesamples elicited with picture description and storytelling methods in order to determine the effectiveness of the two methods.Methods: In this study 30 first-grade elementary school girls were selected with simple sampling. To investigate picture description method, we used two illustrated stories with four pictures. Languagesamples were collected through storytelling by telling a famous children’s story. To determine the effectiveness of these two methods the two indices of duration of sampling and mean length ofutterance (MLU were compared.Results: There was no significant difference between MLU in description and storytelling methods(p>0.05. However, duration of sampling was shorter in the picture description method than the storytelling method (p<0.05.Conclusion: Findings show that, the two methods of picture description and storytelling have the same potential in language sampling. Since, picture description method can provide language samples with the same complexity in a shorter time than storytelling, it can be used as a beneficial method forclinical purposes.

The Subsystem of Numerals in Catalan Sign Language: Description and Examples from a Psycholinguistic Study

Science.gov (United States)

Fuentes, Mariana; Tolchinsky, Liliana

2004-01-01

Linguistic descriptions of sign languages are important to the recognition of their linguistic status. These languages are an essential part of the cultural heritage of the communities that create and use them and vital in the education of deaf children. They are also the reference point in language acquisition studies. Ours is exploratory…

What's in a Name? Sound Symbolism and Gender in First Names.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David M Sidhu

Full Text Available Although the arbitrariness of language has been considered one of its defining features, studies have demonstrated that certain phonemes tend to be associated with certain kinds of meaning. A well-known example is the Bouba/Kiki effect, in which nonwords like bouba are associated with round shapes while nonwords like kiki are associated with sharp shapes. These sound symbolic associations have thus far been limited to nonwords. Here we tested whether or not the Bouba/Kiki effect extends to existing lexical stimuli; in particular, real first names. We found that the roundness/sharpness of the phonemes in first names impacted whether the names were associated with round or sharp shapes in the form of character silhouettes (Experiments 1a and 1b. We also observed an association between femaleness and round shapes, and maleness and sharp shapes. We next investigated whether this association would extend to the features of language and found the proportion of round-sounding phonemes was related to name gender (Analysis of Category Norms. Finally, we investigated whether sound symbolic associations for first names would be observed for other abstract properties; in particular, personality traits (Experiment 2. We found that adjectives previously judged to be either descriptive of a figuratively 'round' or a 'sharp' personality were associated with names containing either round- or sharp-sounding phonemes, respectively. These results demonstrate that sound symbolic associations extend to existing lexical stimuli, providing a new example of non-arbitrary mappings between form and meaning.

Reproducible computational biology experiments with SED-ML--the Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language.

Science.gov (United States)

Waltemath, Dagmar; Adams, Richard; Bergmann, Frank T; Hucka, Michael; Kolpakov, Fedor; Miller, Andrew K; Moraru, Ion I; Nickerson, David; Sahle, Sven; Snoep, Jacky L; Le Novère, Nicolas

2011-12-15

The increasing use of computational simulation experiments to inform modern biological research creates new challenges to annotate, archive, share and reproduce such experiments. The recently published Minimum Information About a Simulation Experiment (MIASE) proposes a minimal set of information that should be provided to allow the reproduction of simulation experiments among users and software tools. In this article, we present the Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML). SED-ML encodes in a computer-readable exchange format the information required by MIASE to enable reproduction of simulation experiments. It has been developed as a community project and it is defined in a detailed technical specification and additionally provides an XML schema. The version of SED-ML described in this publication is Level 1 Version 1. It covers the description of the most frequent type of simulation experiments in the area, namely time course simulations. SED-ML documents specify which models to use in an experiment, modifications to apply on the models before using them, which simulation procedures to run on each model, what analysis results to output, and how the results should be presented. These descriptions are independent of the underlying model implementation. SED-ML is a software-independent format for encoding the description of simulation experiments; it is not specific to particular simulation tools. Here, we demonstrate that with the growing software support for SED-ML we can effectively exchange executable simulation descriptions. With SED-ML, software can exchange simulation experiment descriptions, enabling the validation and reuse of simulation experiments in different tools. Authors of papers reporting simulation experiments can make their simulation protocols available for other scientists to reproduce the results. Because SED-ML is agnostic about exact modeling language(s) used, experiments covering models from different fields of research

Reproducible computational biology experiments with SED-ML - The Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background The increasing use of computational simulation experiments to inform modern biological research creates new challenges to annotate, archive, share and reproduce such experiments. The recently published Minimum Information About a Simulation Experiment (MIASE) proposes a minimal set of information that should be provided to allow the reproduction of simulation experiments among users and software tools. Results In this article, we present the Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML). SED-ML encodes in a computer-readable exchange format the information required by MIASE to enable reproduction of simulation experiments. It has been developed as a community project and it is defined in a detailed technical specification and additionally provides an XML schema. The version of SED-ML described in this publication is Level 1 Version 1. It covers the description of the most frequent type of simulation experiments in the area, namely time course simulations. SED-ML documents specify which models to use in an experiment, modifications to apply on the models before using them, which simulation procedures to run on each model, what analysis results to output, and how the results should be presented. These descriptions are independent of the underlying model implementation. SED-ML is a software-independent format for encoding the description of simulation experiments; it is not specific to particular simulation tools. Here, we demonstrate that with the growing software support for SED-ML we can effectively exchange executable simulation descriptions. Conclusions With SED-ML, software can exchange simulation experiment descriptions, enabling the validation and reuse of simulation experiments in different tools. Authors of papers reporting simulation experiments can make their simulation protocols available for other scientists to reproduce the results. Because SED-ML is agnostic about exact modeling language(s) used, experiments covering models from

Cross-language and second language speech perception

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bohn, Ocke-Schwen

2017-01-01

in cross-language and second language speech perception research: The mapping issue (the perceptual relationship of sounds of the native and the nonnative language in the mind of the native listener and the L2 learner), the perceptual and learning difficulty/ease issue (how this relationship may or may...... not cause perceptual and learning difficulty), and the plasticity issue (whether and how experience with the nonnative language affects the perceptual organization of speech sounds in the mind of L2 learners). One important general conclusion from this research is that perceptual learning is possible at all...

A comparison of hardware description languages. [describing digital systems structure and behavior to a computer

Science.gov (United States)

Shiva, S. G.

1978-01-01

Several high level languages which evolved over the past few years for describing and simulating the structure and behavior of digital systems, on digital computers are assessed. The characteristics of the four prominent languages (CDL, DDL, AHPL, ISP) are summarized. A criterion for selecting a suitable hardware description language for use in an automatic integrated circuit design environment is provided.

Oral and Hand Movement Speeds Are Associated with Expressive Language Ability in Children with Speech Sound Disorder

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Peter, Beate

2012-01-01

This study tested the hypothesis that children with speech sound disorder have generalized slowed motor speeds. It evaluated associations among oral and hand motor speeds and measures of speech (articulation and phonology) and language (receptive vocabulary, sentence comprehension, sentence imitation), in 11 children with moderate to severe SSD…

Analyzing the Pattern of L1 Sounds on L2 Sounds Produced by Javanese Students of Stkip PGRI Jombang

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daning Hentasmaka

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The studyconcerns on an analysis on the tendency of first language (L1 sound patterning on second language (L2 sounds done by Javanese students.Focusing on the consonant sounds, the data were collected by recording students’ pronunciationof English words during the pronunciation test. The data then analysed through three activities: data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing/ verification. Theresult showedthatthe patterning of L1 sounds happened on L2 sounds especially on eleven consonant sounds: the fricatives [v, θ, ð, ʃ, ʒ], the voiceless stops [p, t, k], and the voiced stops [b, d, g].Thosepatterning case emergedmostlyduetothe difference in the existence of consonant sounds and rules of consonant distribution. Besides, one of the cases was caused by the difference in consonant clusters between L1 and L2

ANALYZING THE PATTERN OF L1 SOUNDS ON L2 SOUNDS PRODUCED BY JAVANESE STUDENTS OF STKIP PGRI JOMBANG

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daning Hentasmaka

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The studyconcerns on an analysis on the tendency of first language (L1 sound patterning on second language (L2 sounds done by Javanese students.Focusing on the consonant sounds, the data were collected by recording students’ pronunciationof English words during the pronunciation test. The data then analysed through three activities: data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing/ verification. Theresult showedthatthe patterning of L1 sounds happened on L2 sounds especially on eleven consonant sounds: the fricatives [v, θ, ð, ʃ, ʒ], the voiceless stops [p, t, k], and the voiced stops [b, d, g].Thosepatterning case emergedmostlyduetothe difference in the existence of consonant sounds and rules of consonant distribution. Besides, one of the cases was caused by the difference in consonant clusters between L1 and L2.

The Comorbidity between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD in Children and Arabic Speech Sound Disorder

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Ruaa Osama Hariri

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Children with Attention-Deficiency/Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD often have co-existing learning disabilities and developmental weaknesses or delays in some areas including speech (Rief, 2005. Seeing that phonological disorders include articulation errors and other forms of speech disorders, studies pertaining to children with ADHD symptoms who demonstrate signs of phonological disorders in their native Arabic language are lacking. The purpose of this study is to provide a description of Arabic language deficits and to present a theoretical model of potential associations between phonological language deficits and ADHD. Dodd and McCormack’s (1995 four subgroups classification of speech disorder and the phonological disorders pertaining to the Arabic language provided by a Saudi Institute for Speech and Hearing are examined within the theoretical framework. Since intervention may improve articulation and focuses a child’s attention on the sound structure of words, findings in this study are based on the assumption that children with ADHD may acquire phonology for their Arabic language in the same way, and following the same developmental stages as intelligible children. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses have proven that the ADHD group analyzed in this study had indeed failed to acquire most of their Arabic consonants as they should have. Keywords: speech sound disorder, attention-deficiency/hyperactive, developmental disorder, phonological disorder, language disorder/delay, language impairment

Rheo: Japanese sound art interrogating digital mediality

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Vandsø Anette

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The article asks in what way the Japanese sound artist, Ryoichi Kurokawa’s audiovisual installation, Rheo: 5 Horisonz (2010, is “digital.” Using professor Lars Elleström’s concept of “mediality,” the main claim in this article is that Rheo not only uses digital technology but also interrogates digital mediality as such. This argument is pursued in an analysis of Rheo that draws in various descriptions of digital media by N. Catherine Hayles, Lev Manovic, Bolter, and Grusin among other. The article will show how the critical potential in Rheo is directed both towards digital media as a language (Meyrowitz (or a place for representation and towards the digital as a milieu (Meyrowitz or as our culture (Gere. The overall goal of the article is not just analyse this singular art work, but also to show how such a sound art work can contribute to our understanding of our own contemporary culture as a digital culture.

The carbohydrate sequence markup language (CabosML): an XML description of carbohydrate structures.

Science.gov (United States)

Kikuchi, Norihiro; Kameyama, Akihiko; Nakaya, Shuuichi; Ito, Hiromi; Sato, Takashi; Shikanai, Toshihide; Takahashi, Yoriko; Narimatsu, Hisashi

2005-04-15

Bioinformatics resources for glycomics are very poor as compared with those for genomics and proteomics. The complexity of carbohydrate sequences makes it difficult to define a common language to represent them, and the development of bioinformatics tools for glycomics has not progressed. In this study, we developed a carbohydrate sequence markup language (CabosML), an XML description of carbohydrate structures. The language definition (XML Schema) and an experimental database of carbohydrate structures using an XML database management system are available at http://www.phoenix.hydra.mki.co.jp/CabosDemo.html kikuchi@hydra.mki.co.jp.

Unsupervised Language Acquisition

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de Marcken, Carl

1996-11-01

This thesis presents a computational theory of unsupervised language acquisition, precisely defining procedures for learning language from ordinary spoken or written utterances, with no explicit help from a teacher. The theory is based heavily on concepts borrowed from machine learning and statistical estimation. In particular, learning takes place by fitting a stochastic, generative model of language to the evidence. Much of the thesis is devoted to explaining conditions that must hold for this general learning strategy to arrive at linguistically desirable grammars. The thesis introduces a variety of technical innovations, among them a common representation for evidence and grammars, and a learning strategy that separates the ``content'' of linguistic parameters from their representation. Algorithms based on it suffer from few of the search problems that have plagued other computational approaches to language acquisition. The theory has been tested on problems of learning vocabularies and grammars from unsegmented text and continuous speech, and mappings between sound and representations of meaning. It performs extremely well on various objective criteria, acquiring knowledge that causes it to assign almost exactly the same structure to utterances as humans do. This work has application to data compression, language modeling, speech recognition, machine translation, information retrieval, and other tasks that rely on either structural or stochastic descriptions of language.

Flexible Description Language for HPC based Processing of Remote Sense Data

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Nandra, Constantin; Gorgan, Dorian; Bacu, Victor

2016-04-01

When talking about Big Data, the most challenging aspect lays in processing them in order to gain new insight, find new patterns and gain knowledge from them. This problem is likely most apparent in the case of Earth Observation (EO) data. With ever higher numbers of data sources and increasing data acquisition rates, dealing with EO data is indeed a challenge [1]. Geoscientists should address this challenge by using flexible and efficient tools and platforms. To answer this trend, the BigEarth project [2] aims to combine the advantages of high performance computing solutions with flexible processing description methodologies in order to reduce both task execution times and task definition time and effort. As a component of the BigEarth platform, WorDeL (Workflow Description Language) [3] is intended to offer a flexible, compact and modular approach to the task definition process. WorDeL, unlike other description alternatives such as Python or shell scripts, is oriented towards the description topologies, using them as abstractions for the processing programs. This feature is intended to make it an attractive alternative for users lacking in programming experience. By promoting modular designs, WorDeL not only makes the processing descriptions more user-readable and intuitive, but also helps organizing the processing tasks into independent sub-tasks, which can be executed in parallel on multi-processor platforms in order to improve execution times. As a BigEarth platform [4] component, WorDeL represents the means by which the user interacts with the system, describing processing algorithms in terms of existing operators and workflows [5], which are ultimately translated into sets of executable commands. The WorDeL language has been designed to help in the definition of compute-intensive, batch tasks which can be distributed and executed on high-performance, cloud or grid-based architectures in order to improve the processing time. Main references for further

Sound creation and artistic language hybridization through the use of the collaborative creation system: Soundcool

OpenAIRE

Berbel-Gómez, Noemy; Murillo-Ribes, Adolf; Sastre-Martínez, Jorge; Riaño Galán, María Elena

2017-01-01

Abstract: We submit the development of a collaborative sound creation proposal made reality using the Soundcool system from its initial design phase to the scenic performance at the International Festival of Contemporary Music ENSEMS, Valencia (Spain). The "interstellar machine", a transdisciplinary piece whose linking thread is a story, is characterized by hybridization of languages and artistic fusion.It's a piece made possible by the joint work between students of Primary and Secondary Edu...

Breaking the Sound Barrier

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Tom; Boehringer, Kim

2007-01-01

Students in a fourth-grade class participated in a series of dynamic sound learning centers followed by a dramatic capstone event--an exploration of the amazing Trashcan Whoosh Waves. It's a notoriously difficult subject to teach, but this hands-on, exploratory approach ignited student interest in sound, promoted language acquisition, and built…

Evaluating Pragmatic Competence in Nigerian Undergraduates’ Language Errors within Descriptive ESL Writing

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Anas Sa’idu Muhammad

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This study investigates the level of pragmatic competence for ESL writing skills among Nigerian undergraduates. Methodologically, it adopts descriptive research design within the explanatory framework of the QUAN-Qual model. The instruments used are descriptive essay text and focus group interview questions. In writing the descriptive essays, a total of 402 undergraduates’ participated through convenience sampling. Quantitatively, an independent samples t-test was carried out. The results indicated the females required putting more efforts towards improving their pragmatic competence in the ESL writing as they achieved a higher means for language errors, compared to that of the males. Moreover, the ttest value demonstrated that the females lacked skills in the pragmatic skills of mechanical structure, grammatical function, and sentence structures and this made them commit more language errors. Qualitatively, a focus group interview was held randomly with 12 participants out of the 402 undergraduates through purposive sampling. The results of the interview sessions revealed novelties of culture-specific, learning feasibility and the academic discourse as the key elements that constraint most of the Nigerian undergraduates ESL writing skills, particularly the females. Therefore, this study revealed strong implications on how best to develop Nigerian learners’ pragmatic competence in ESL writing skills

Sound-Symbolism Boosts Novel Word Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Lockwood, Gwilym; Dingemanse, Mark; Hagoort, Peter

2016-01-01

The existence of sound-symbolism (or a non-arbitrary link between form and meaning) is well-attested. However, sound-symbolism has mostly been investigated with nonwords in forced choice tasks, neither of which are representative of natural language. This study uses ideophones, which are naturally occurring sound-symbolic words that depict sensory…

The Structural Connectivity Underpinning Language Aptitude, Working Memory, and IQ in the Perisylvian Language Network

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Xiang, Huadong; Dediu, Dan; Roberts, Leah; van Oort, Erik; Norris, David G.; Hagoort, Peter

2012-01-01

In this article, we report the results of a study on the relationship between individual differences in language learning aptitude and the structural connectivity of language pathways in the adult brain, the first of its kind. We measured four components of language aptitude ("vocabulary learning"; "sound recognition"; "sound-symbol…

Acceptance Testing Of Web Applications With Test Description Language

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Łukasz Olek

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Acceptance tests are usually created by a client after a part of a system is implemented. However, some methodologies propose the elaboration of test cases before implementing a system. This approach increases the probability of system implementation that fulfills requirements, but may be problematic for customers and testers. To allow acceptance testing in such conditions, we propose to define test cases by recording them on an interactive mockup (a low detailed user-interface prototype. The paper focuses on Test Description Language, a notation used to store test cases.

Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML) Level 1 Version 2.

Science.gov (United States)

Bergmann, Frank T; Cooper, Jonathan; Le Novère, Nicolas; Nickerson, David; Waltemath, Dagmar

2015-09-04

The number, size and complexity of computational models of biological systems are growing at an ever increasing pace. It is imperative to build on existing studies by reusing and adapting existing models and parts thereof. The description of the structure of models is not sufficient to enable the reproduction of simulation results. One also needs to describe the procedures the models are subjected to, as recommended by the Minimum Information About a Simulation Experiment (MIASE) guidelines. This document presents Level 1 Version 2 of the Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML), a computer-readable format for encoding simulation and analysis experiments to apply to computational models. SED-ML files are encoded in the Extensible Markup Language (XML) and can be used in conjunction with any XML-based model encoding format, such as CellML or SBML. A SED-ML file includes details of which models to use, how to modify them prior to executing a simulation, which simulation and analysis procedures to apply, which results to extract and how to present them. Level 1 Version 2 extends the format by allowing the encoding of repeated and chained procedures.

A Description and Linguistic Analysis of the Tai Khuen Writing System

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R. Wyn Owen

2017-03-01

Full Text Available This article provides a description and linguistic analysis of the Tai Tham script-based orthography of Tai Khuen, a Tai-Kadai language spoken in Eastern Shan State, Myanmar. The language has a long history of writing flowing out of the literary and religious culture nurtured by the Lan Na Kingdom from the 13th Century onwards. Comparison of phoneme and grapheme inventories shows that the orthography is well able to represent the spoken language as well as ancient Pali religious texts. Apart from spelling conventions reflecting the etymology of borrowed Pali and Sanskrit morphemes, sound changes over time have also decreased the phonological transparency of the orthography, notwithstanding the need of some more conservative varieties which still preserve distinctions lost in other varieties. Despite the complexities of the script, the literacy rates in Khuen are remarkably high for a minority language not taught in the government school system.

Using Specification and Description Language for Life Cycle Assesment in Buildings

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Pau Fonseca i Casas

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The definition of a Life Cycle Assesment (LCA for a building or an urban area is a complex task due to the inherent complexity of all the elements that must be considered. Furthermore, a multidisciplinary approach is required due to the different sources of knowledge involved in this project. This multidisciplinary approach makes it necessary to use formal language to fully represent the complexity of the used models. In this paper, we explore the use of Specification and Description Language (SDL to represent the LCA of a building and residential area. We also introduce a tool that uses this idea to implement an optimization and simulation mechanism to define the optimal solution for the sustainability of a specific building or residential.

Evidence for direct geographic influences on linguistic sounds: the case of ejectives.

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Caleb Everett

Full Text Available We present evidence that the geographic context in which a language is spoken may directly impact its phonological form. We examined the geographic coordinates and elevations of 567 language locations represented in a worldwide phonetic database. Languages with phonemic ejective consonants were found to occur closer to inhabitable regions of high elevation, when contrasted to languages without this class of sounds. In addition, the mean and median elevations of the locations of languages with ejectives were found to be comparatively high. The patterns uncovered surface on all major world landmasses, and are not the result of the influence of particular language families. They reflect a significant and positive worldwide correlation between elevation and the likelihood that a language employs ejective phonemes. In addition to documenting this correlation in detail, we offer two plausible motivations for its existence. We suggest that ejective sounds might be facilitated at higher elevations due to the associated decrease in ambient air pressure, which reduces the physiological effort required for the compression of air in the pharyngeal cavity--a unique articulatory component of ejective sounds. In addition, we hypothesize that ejective sounds may help to mitigate rates of water vapor loss through exhaled air. These explications demonstrate how a reduction of ambient air density could promote the usage of ejective phonemes in a given language. Our results reveal the direct influence of a geographic factor on the basic sound inventories of human languages.

VAL language: description and analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McGraw, J.R.

1982-01-01

VAL is a high-level, function-based language designed for use on data flow computers. A data flow computer has many small processors organized to cooperate in the executive of a single computation. A computation is represented by its data flow graph; each operator in a graph is scheduled for execution on one of the processors after all of its operands' values are known. VAL promotes the indentification of concurrency in algorithms and simplifies the mapping into data graphs. This paper presents a detailed introduction to VAL and analyzes its usefulness for programming in a highly concurrent environment. VAL provides implicit concurrency (operations that can execute simultaneously are evident without the need for any explicit language notation). The language uses function- and expression-based features that prohibit all side effects, which simplifies translation to graphs. The salient language features are described and illustrated through examples taken from a complete VAL program for adaptive quadrature. Analysis of the language shows that VAL meets the critical needs for a data flow environment. The language encourages programmers to think in terms of general concurrency, enhances readability (due to the absence of side effects), and possesses a structure amenable to verification techniques. However, VAL is still evolving. The language definition needs refining, and more support tools for programmer use need to be developed. Also, some new kinds of optimization problems should be addressed

Sound-symbolism boosts novel word learning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lockwood, G.F.; Dingemanse, M.; Hagoort, P.

2016-01-01

The existence of sound-symbolism (or a non-arbitrary link between form and meaning) is well-attested. However, sound-symbolism has mostly been investigated with nonwords in forced choice tasks, neither of which are representative of natural language. This study uses ideophones, which are naturally

Neural systems language: a formal modeling language for the systematic description, unambiguous communication, and automated digital curation of neural connectivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Ramsay A; Swanson, Larry W

2013-09-01

Systematic description and the unambiguous communication of findings and models remain among the unresolved fundamental challenges in systems neuroscience. No common descriptive frameworks exist to describe systematically the connective architecture of the nervous system, even at the grossest level of observation. Furthermore, the accelerating volume of novel data generated on neural connectivity outpaces the rate at which this data is curated into neuroinformatics databases to synthesize digitally systems-level insights from disjointed reports and observations. To help address these challenges, we propose the Neural Systems Language (NSyL). NSyL is a modeling language to be used by investigators to encode and communicate systematically reports of neural connectivity from neuroanatomy and brain imaging. NSyL engenders systematic description and communication of connectivity irrespective of the animal taxon described, experimental or observational technique implemented, or nomenclature referenced. As a language, NSyL is internally consistent, concise, and comprehensible to both humans and computers. NSyL is a promising development for systematizing the representation of neural architecture, effectively managing the increasing volume of data on neural connectivity and streamlining systems neuroscience research. Here we present similar precedent systems, how NSyL extends existing frameworks, and the reasoning behind NSyL's development. We explore NSyL's potential for balancing robustness and consistency in representation by encoding previously reported assertions of connectivity from the literature as examples. Finally, we propose and discuss the implications of a framework for how NSyL will be digitally implemented in the future to streamline curation of experimental results and bridge the gaps among anatomists, imagers, and neuroinformatics databases. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Speech abilities in preschool children with speech sound disorder with and without co-occurring language impairment.

Science.gov (United States)

Macrae, Toby; Tyler, Ann A

2014-10-01

The authors compared preschool children with co-occurring speech sound disorder (SSD) and language impairment (LI) to children with SSD only in their numbers and types of speech sound errors. In this post hoc quasi-experimental study, independent samples t tests were used to compare the groups in the standard score from different tests of articulation/phonology, percent consonants correct, and the number of omission, substitution, distortion, typical, and atypical error patterns used in the production of different wordlists that had similar levels of phonetic and structural complexity. In comparison with children with SSD only, children with SSD and LI used similar numbers but different types of errors, including more omission patterns ( p < .001, d = 1.55) and fewer distortion patterns ( p = .022, d = 1.03). There were no significant differences in substitution, typical, and atypical error pattern use. Frequent omission error pattern use may reflect a more compromised linguistic system characterized by absent phonological representations for target sounds (see Shriberg et al., 2005). Research is required to examine the diagnostic potential of early frequent omission error pattern use in predicting later diagnoses of co-occurring SSD and LI and/or reading problems.

LISp-Miner Control Language description of scripting language implementation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Milan Simunek

2014-04-01

Full Text Available This paper introduces the LISp-Miner Control Language – a scripting language for the LISp-Miner system, an academic system for knowledge discovery in databases. The main purpose of this language is to provide programmable means to all the features of the LISp-Miner system and mainly to automate the main phases of data mining – from data introduction and preprocessing, formulation of analytical tasks, to discovery of the most interesting patterns. In this sense, the language is a necessary prerequisite for the EverMiner project of data mining automation. Language will serve other purposes too – for an automated verification of the LISp-Miner system functionality before a new version is released and as an educational tool in advanced data mining courses.

Predictive Brain Mechanisms in Sound-to-Meaning Mapping during Speech Processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Lyu, Bingjiang; Ge, Jianqiao; Niu, Zhendong; Tan, Li Hai; Gao, Jia-Hong

2016-10-19

Spoken language comprehension relies not only on the identification of individual words, but also on the expectations arising from contextual information. A distributed frontotemporal network is known to facilitate the mapping of speech sounds onto their corresponding meanings. However, how prior expectations influence this efficient mapping at the neuroanatomical level, especially in terms of individual words, remains unclear. Using fMRI, we addressed this question in the framework of the dual-stream model by scanning native speakers of Mandarin Chinese, a language highly dependent on context. We found that, within the ventral pathway, the violated expectations elicited stronger activations in the left anterior superior temporal gyrus and the ventral inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) for the phonological-semantic prediction of spoken words. Functional connectivity analysis showed that expectations were mediated by both top-down modulation from the left ventral IFG to the anterior temporal regions and enhanced cross-stream integration through strengthened connections between different subregions of the left IFG. By further investigating the dynamic causality within the dual-stream model, we elucidated how the human brain accomplishes sound-to-meaning mapping for words in a predictive manner. In daily communication via spoken language, one of the core processes is understanding the words being used. Effortless and efficient information exchange via speech relies not only on the identification of individual spoken words, but also on the contextual information giving rise to expected meanings. Despite the accumulating evidence for the bottom-up perception of auditory input, it is still not fully understood how the top-down modulation is achieved in the extensive frontotemporal cortical network. Here, we provide a comprehensive description of the neural substrates underlying sound-to-meaning mapping and demonstrate how the dual-stream model functions in the modulation of

Teaching of science and language by elementary teachers who emphasize the integrated language approach: A descriptive study

Science.gov (United States)

Blouch, Kathleen Kennedy

This research involved investigating the nature of science and language instruction in 13 elementary classrooms where teachers have restructured their language programs to reflect an integrated or holistic view of language instruction. The teachers were identified by school administrators and other professionals as teachers who have implemented instructional reforms described in the Pennsylvania Framework for Reading, Writing and Speaking Across the Curriculum (PCRPII), (Lytle & Botel, 1900). The instruction utilized by these teachers was described as atypical when compared to that of teachers utilizing the more traditional didactic skills oriented approach to language literacy. The research involved observing, recording and categorizing teaching behaviors during both science and language instruction. Videotaped observations were followed by analyses and descriptions of these behaviors. Interviews were also conducted to ascertain the basis for selection of the various instructional approaches. The instruction was compared on four dimensions: participation patterns, time the behaviors were practiced, type of tasks and levels of questioning. The instruction was then described in light of constructivist teaching practices: student collaboration, student autonomy, integration and higher order thinking. Constructivist practices differed among teachers for science and language instruction. During science instruction teachers spent more time involved in teacher-whole group participation patterns with more direct questioning as compared to language instruction in which children participated alone or in groups and had opportunity to initiate conversations and questions. Student inquiry was evidenced during language instruction more so than during science. The 13 teachers asked a variety of levels and types of questions both in science and language instruction. More hands-on science experiences were observed when science was taught separately compared to when integrated with

Cross-Modal Associations between Sounds and Drink Tastes/Textures: A Study with Spontaneous Production of Sound-Symbolic Words.

Science.gov (United States)

Sakamoto, Maki; Watanabe, Junji

2016-03-01

Many languages have a word class whose speech sounds are linked to sensory experiences. Several recent studies have demonstrated cross-modal associations (or correspondences) between sounds and gustatory sensations by asking participants to match predefined sound-symbolic words (e.g., "maluma/takete") with the taste/texture of foods. Here, we further explore cross-modal associations using the spontaneous production of words and semantic ratings of sensations. In the experiment, after drinking liquids, participants were asked to express their taste/texture using Japanese sound-symbolic words, and at the same time, to evaluate it in terms of criteria expressed by adjectives. Because the Japanese language has a large vocabulary of sound-symbolic words, and Japanese people frequently use them to describe taste/texture, analyzing a variety of Japanese sound-symbolic words spontaneously produced to express taste/textures might enable us to explore the mechanism of taste/texture categorization. A hierarchical cluster analysis based on the relationship between linguistic sounds and taste/texture evaluations revealed the structure of sensation categories. The results indicate that an emotional evaluation like pleasant/unpleasant is the primary cluster in gustation. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

A description of externally recorded womb sounds in human subjects during gestation.

Science.gov (United States)

Parga, Joanna J; Daland, Robert; Kesavan, Kalpashri; Macey, Paul M; Zeltzer, Lonnie; Harper, Ronald M

2018-01-01

Reducing environmental noise benefits premature infants in neonatal intensive care units (NICU), but excessive reduction may lead to sensory deprivation, compromising development. Instead of minimal noise levels, environments that mimic intrauterine soundscapes may facilitate infant development by providing a sound environment reflecting fetal life. This soundscape may support autonomic and emotional development in preterm infants. We aimed to assess the efficacy and feasibility of external non-invasive recordings in pregnant women, endeavoring to capture intra-abdominal or womb sounds during pregnancy with electronic stethoscopes and build a womb sound library to assess sound trends with gestational development. We also compared these sounds to popular commercial womb sounds marketed to new parents. Intra-abdominal sounds from 50 mothers in their second and third trimester (13 to 40 weeks) of pregnancy were recorded for 6 minutes in a quiet clinic room with 4 electronic stethoscopes, placed in the right upper and lower quadrants, and left upper and lower quadrants of the abdomen. These recording were partitioned into 2-minute intervals in three different positions: standing, sitting and lying supine. Maternal and gestational age, Body Mass Index (BMI) and time since last meal were collected during recordings. Recordings were analyzed using long-term average spectral and waveform analysis, and compared to sounds from non-pregnant abdomens and commercially-marketed womb sounds selected for their availability, popularity, and claims they mimic the intrauterine environment. Maternal sounds shared certain common characteristics, but varied with gestational age. With fetal development, the maternal abdomen filtered high (500-5,000 Hz) and mid-frequency (100-500 Hz) energy bands, but no change appeared in contributions from low-frequency signals (10-100 Hz) with gestational age. Variation appeared between mothers, suggesting a resonant chamber role for intra

Understanding Language: A Primer for the Language Arts Teacher.

Science.gov (United States)

Malmstrom, Jean

This volume aims to bridge the gap between language arts teaching and linguistic theory. Part one discusses selected aspects of linguistics that are relevant to language arts teaching: the acquisition and development of language during childhood; the English sound system and its relation to spellings and meanings; traditional, structural, and…

Proceedings of the of the Tenth Workshop on Language Descriptions, Tools and Applications (LDTA 2010)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brabrand, Claus

2010-01-01

-Louis Giavitto ("A Domain Specific Language for Complex Natural & Artificial Systems Simulations") and the 11 contributed papers that were selected for presentation and the proceedings by the programme committee from 30 submissions (i.e., 37% acceptance rate). Every submission was reviewed by at least three......This volume contains the proceedings of the Tenth Workshop on Language Descriptions, Tools and Applications (LDTA 2010), held in Paphos, Cyprus on March 28--29, 2010. LDTA is a two-day satellite event of ETAPS (European Joint Conferences on Theory and Practice of Software) organized in cooperation...... with ACM Sigplan. LDTA is an application and tool-oriented forum on meta programming in a broad sense. A meta program is a program that takes other programs as input or output. The focus of LDTA is on generated or otherwise efficiently implemented meta programs, possibly using high level descriptions...

From Hearing Sounds to Recognizing Phonemes: Primary Auditory Cortex is A Truly Perceptual Language Area

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Byron Bernal

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The aim of this article is to present a systematic review about the anatomy, function, connectivity, and functional activation of the primary auditory cortex (PAC (Brodmann areas 41/42 when involved in language paradigms. PAC activates with a plethora of diverse basic stimuli including but not limited to tones, chords, natural sounds, consonants, and speech. Nonetheless, the PAC shows specific sensitivity to speech. Damage in the PAC is associated with so-called “pure word-deafness” (“auditory verbal agnosia”. BA41, and to a lesser extent BA42, are involved in early stages of phonological processing (phoneme recognition. Phonological processing may take place in either the right or left side, but customarily the left exerts an inhibitory tone over the right, gaining dominance in function. BA41/42 are primary auditory cortices harboring complex phoneme perception functions with asymmetrical expression, making it possible to include them as core language processing areas (Wernicke’s area.

Type Soundness in the Dart Programming Language

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Strocco, Fabio

Many mainstream programming languages are dynamically typed. This allows for rapid software development and programming flexibility because it gives programmers the freedom to use powerful programming patterns that are not allowed in statically typed programming languages. Nevertheless......, this freedom does not come without drawbacks: static bugs detection, IDE support, and compiler optimization techniques are harder to implement. In the last decades, the research literature and mainstream programming languages have been aiming to reach a trade-off between statically typed and dynamically typed...... languages. We investigate the trade-off, focusing on the area of optional typing, which allows programmers to choose when to use static type checking in parts of pro- grams. Our primary focus is Dart, an optionally typed programming language with a type system that is unsound by design. What makes Dart...

Lexical and perceptual grounding of a sound ontology

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lobanova, Anna; Spenader, Jennifer; Valkenier, Bea; Matousek,; Mautner, P

2007-01-01

Sound ontologies need to incorporate source unidentifiable sounds in an adequate and consistent manner. Computational lexical resources like WordNet have either inserted these descriptions into conceptual categories, or make no attempt to organize the terms for these sounds. This work attempts to

Proceedings of the of the Eleventh Workshop on Language Descriptions, Tools and Applications (LDTA 2011)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

This volume contains the proceedings of the Eleventh Workshop on Language Descriptions, Tools and Applications (LDTA 2011), held in Saarbrücken, Germany on March 26 & 27, 2011. LDTA is a two-day satellite event of ETAPS (European Joint Conferences on Theory and Practice of Software) and organized...... in cooperation with ACM SIGPLAN. LDTA is an application and tool-oriented workshop focused on grammarware---software based on grammars in some form. Grammarware applications are typically language processing applications and traditional examples include parsers, program analyzers, optimizers and translators......, as well as techniques and tools, to the test in a new way in the form of the LDTA Tool Challenge. Tool developers were invited to participate in the Challenge by developing solutions to a range of language processing tasks over a simple but evolving set of imperative programming languages. Tool challenge...

Letter-Sound Knowledge: Exploring Gender Differences in Children When They Start School Regarding Knowledge of Large Letters, Small Letters, Sound Large Letters, and Sound Small Letters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hermundur Sigmundsson

2017-09-01

Full Text Available This study explored whether there is a gender difference in letter-sound knowledge when children start at school. 485 children aged 5–6 years completed assessment of letter-sound knowledge, i.e., large letters; sound of large letters; small letters; sound of small letters. The findings indicate a significant difference between girls and boys in all four factors tested in this study in favor of the girls. There are still no clear explanations to the basis of a presumed gender difference in letter-sound knowledge. That the findings have origin in neuro-biological factors cannot be excluded, however, the fact that girls probably have been exposed to more language experience/stimulation compared to boys, lends support to explanations derived from environmental aspects.

The relevance of visual information on learning sounds in infancy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

ter Schure, S.M.M.

2016-01-01

Newborn infants are sensitive to combinations of visual and auditory speech. Does this ability to match sounds and sights affect how infants learn the sounds of their native language? And are visual articulations the only type of visual information that can influence sound learning? This

From General Game Descriptions to a Market Specification Language for General Trading Agents

Science.gov (United States)

Thielscher, Michael; Zhang, Dongmo

The idea behind General Game Playing is to build systems that, instead of being programmed for one specific task, are intelligent and flexible enough to negotiate an unknown environment solely on the basis of the rules which govern it. In this paper, we argue that this principle has the great potential to bring to a new level artificially intelligent systems in other application areas as well. Our specific interest lies in General Trading Agents, which are able to understand the rules of unknown markets and then to actively participate in them without human intervention. To this end, we extend the general Game Description Language into a language that allows to formally describe arbitrary markets in such a way that these specifications can be automatically processed by a computer. We present both syntax and a transition-based semantics for this Market Specification Language and illustrate its expressive power by presenting axiomatizations of several well-known auction types.

Introducing the Oxford Vocal (OxVoc Sounds Database: A validated set of non-acted affective sounds from human infants, adults and domestic animals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christine eParsons

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Sound moves us. Nowhere is this more apparent than in our responses to genuine emotional vocalisations, be they heartfelt distress cries or raucous laughter. Here, we present perceptual ratings and a description of a freely available, large database of natural affective vocal sounds from human infants, adults and domestic animals, the Oxford Vocal (OxVoc Sounds database. This database consists of 173 non-verbal sounds expressing a range of happy, sad and neutral emotional states. Ratings are presented for the sounds on a range of dimensions from a number of independent participant samples. Perceptions related to valence, including distress, vocaliser mood, and listener mood are presented in Study 1. Perceptions of the arousal of the sound, listener motivation to respond and valence (positive, negative are presented in Study 2. Perceptions of the emotional content of the stimuli in both Study 1 and Study 2 were consistent with the predefined categories (e.g., laugh stimuli perceived as positive. While the adult vocalisations received more extreme valence ratings, rated motivation to respond to the sounds was highest for the infant sounds. The major advantages of this database are the inclusion of vocalisations from naturalistic situations, which represent genuine expressions of emotion, and the inclusion of vocalisations from animals and infants, providing comparison stimuli for use in cross-species and developmental studies. The associated website provides a detailed description of the physical properties of the each sound stimulus along with cross-category descriptions.

Music and language expertise influence the categorization of speech and musical sounds: behavioral and electrophysiological measurements.

Science.gov (United States)

Elmer, Stefan; Klein, Carina; Kühnis, Jürg; Liem, Franziskus; Meyer, Martin; Jäncke, Lutz

2014-10-01

In this study, we used high-density EEG to evaluate whether speech and music expertise has an influence on the categorization of expertise-related and unrelated sounds. With this purpose in mind, we compared the categorization of speech, music, and neutral sounds between professional musicians, simultaneous interpreters (SIs), and controls in response to morphed speech-noise, music-noise, and speech-music continua. Our hypothesis was that music and language expertise will strengthen the memory representations of prototypical sounds, which act as a perceptual magnet for morphed variants. This means that the prototype would "attract" variants. This so-called magnet effect should be manifested by an increased assignment of morphed items to the trained category, by a reduced maximal slope of the psychometric function, as well as by differential event-related brain responses reflecting memory comparison processes (i.e., N400 and P600 responses). As a main result, we provide first evidence for a domain-specific behavioral bias of musicians and SIs toward the trained categories, namely music and speech. In addition, SIs showed a bias toward musical items, indicating that interpreting training has a generic influence on the cognitive representation of spectrotemporal signals with similar acoustic properties to speech sounds. Notably, EEG measurements revealed clear distinct N400 and P600 responses to both prototypical and ambiguous items between the three groups at anterior, central, and posterior scalp sites. These differential N400 and P600 responses represent synchronous activity occurring across widely distributed brain networks, and indicate a dynamical recruitment of memory processes that vary as a function of training and expertise.

The French, German, and Spanish sound of eating fresh fruits and vegetables.

Science.gov (United States)

Arboleda, Ana M; Arce-Lopera, Carlos

2017-12-01

A set of onomatopoeic expressions for eating fruits and vegetables is compared across subjects whose native language is Spanish, French, or German. Subjects chose the onomatopoeia that best represented the sound of eating a fruit or vegetable (celery, banana, strawberry, passion fruit, mango, apple, orange, and tomato). Results show there are onomatopoeias that have a higher frequency of response in one language compared to the others. Thus, it is possible to assume that depending on the language there is a better way to express haptic and auditory information associated to fruit and vegetable consumption. Moreover, and considering the three languages, results show there are three categories of responses based on the relative strength of the material (strong and medium strength, and soft). Thus, there is some consistency in the onomatopoeias that represent the sound of eating a fruit or a vegetable. To conclude, results differ by language, but they are consistent within a category of sound. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Descriptive study of 192 adults with speech and language disturbances

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Letícia Lessa Mansur

Full Text Available CONTEXT: Aphasia is a very disabling condition caused by neurological diseases. In Brazil, we have little data on the profile of aphasics treated in rehabilitation centers. OBJECTIVE: To present a descriptive study of 192 patients, providing a reference sample of speech and language disturbances among Brazilians. DESIGN: Retrospective study. SETTING: Speech Pathology Unit linked to the Neurology Division of the Hospital das Clínicas of the Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo. SAMPLE: All patients (192 referred to our Speech Pathology service from 1995 to 2000. PROCEDURES: We collected data relating to demographic variables, etiology, language evaluation (functional evaluation, Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination, Boston Naming and Token Test, and neuroimaging studies. MAIN MEASUREMENTS: The results obtained in language tests and the clinical and neuroimaging data were organized and classified. Seventy aphasics were chosen for constructing a profile. Fourteen subjects with left single-lobe dysfunction were analyzed in detail. Seventeen aphasics were compared with 17 normal subjects, all performing the Token Test. RESULTS: One hundred subjects (52% were men and 92 (48% women. Their education varied from 0 to 16 years (average: 6.5; standard deviation: 4.53. We identified the lesion sites in 104 patients: 89% in the left hemisphere and 58% due to stroke. The incidence of aphasia was 70%; dysarthria and apraxia, 6%; functional alterations in communication, 17%; and 7% were normal. Statistically significant differences appeared when comparing the subgroup to controls in the Token Test. CONCLUSIONS: We believe that this sample contributes to a better understanding of neurological patients with speech and language disturbances and may be useful as a reference for health professionals involved in the rehabilitation of such disorders.

Visualizing Natural Language Descriptions: A Survey

OpenAIRE

Hassani, Kaveh; Lee, Won-Sook

2016-01-01

A natural language interface exploits the conceptual simplicity and naturalness of the language to create a high-level user-friendly communication channel between humans and machines. One of the promising applications of such interfaces is generating visual interpretations of semantic content of a given natural language that can be then visualized either as a static scene or a dynamic animation. This survey discusses requirements and challenges of developing such systems and reports 26 graphi...

A comparison of English and Japanese taste languages: taste descriptive methodology, codability and the umami taste.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Mahony, M; Ishii, R

1986-05-01

Everyday taste descriptions for a range of stimuli were obtained from selected groups of American and Japanese subjects, using a variety of stimuli, stimulus presentation procedures and response conditions. In English there was a tendency to use a quadrapartite classification system: 'sweet', 'sour', 'salty' and 'bitter'. The Japanese had a different strategy, adding a fifth label: 'Ajinomoto', referring to the taste of monosodium glutamate. This label was generally replaced by umami--the scientific term--by Japanese who were workers or trained tasters involved with glutamate manufacture. Cultural differences in taste language have consequences for taste psychophysicists who impose a quadrapartite restriction on allowable taste descriptions. Stimulus presentation by filter-paper or aqueous solution elicited the same response trends. Language codability was only an indicator of degree of taste mixedness/singularity if used statistically with samples of sufficient size; it had little value as an indicator for individual subjects.

SADE: system of acquisition of experimental data. Definition and analysis of an experiment description language

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gagniere, Jean-Michel

1983-01-01

This research thesis presents a computer system for the acquisition of experimental data. It is aimed at acquiring, at processing and at storing information from particle detectors. The acquisition configuration is described by an experiment description language. The system comprises a lexical analyser, a syntactic analyser, a translator, and a data processing module. It also comprises a control language and a statistics management and plotting module. The translator builds up series of tables which allow, during an experiment, different sequences to be executed: experiment running, calculations to be performed on this data, building up of statistics. Short execution time and ease of use are always looked for [fr

Analysis of Respiratory Sounds: State of the Art

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sandra Reichert

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Objective This paper describes state of the art, scientific publications and ongoing research related to the methods of analysis of respiratory sounds. Methods and material Review of the current medical and technological literature using Pubmed and personal experience. Results The study includes a description of the various techniques that are being used to collect auscultation sounds, a physical description of known pathologic sounds for which automatic detection tools were developed. Modern tools are based on artificial intelligence and on technics such as artificial neural networks, fuzzy systems, and genetic algorithms… Conclusion The next step will consist in finding new markers so as to increase the efficiency of decision aid algorithms and tools.

An automated approach for generating and checking control logic for reversible hardware description language-based designs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wille, Robert; Keszocze, Oliver; Othmer, Lars

2017-01-01

to significantly different design challenges to be addressed. In this work, we consider problems that occur when describing a reversible control flow using Hardware Description Languages (HDLs). Here, the commonly used conditional statements must, in addition to the established if-condition for forward computation......, be provided with an additional fi-condition for backward computation. Unfortunately, deriving correct and consistent fi-conditions is often not obvious. Moreover, HDL descriptions exist which may not be realized with a reversible control flow at all. In this work, we propose automatic solutions, which...

Physics 3204. Course Description.

Science.gov (United States)

Newfoundland and Labrador Dept. of Education.

A description of the physics 3204 course in Newfoundland and Labrador is provided. The description includes: (1) statement of purpose, including general objectives of science education; (2) a list of six course objectives; (3) course content for units on sound, light, optical instruments, electrostatics, current electricity, Michael Faraday and…

From the Bob/Kirk effect to the Benoit/Éric effect: Testing the mechanism of name sound symbolism in two languages.

Science.gov (United States)

Sidhu, David M; Pexman, Penny M; Saint-Aubin, Jean

2016-09-01

Although it is often assumed that language involves an arbitrary relationship between form and meaning, many studies have demonstrated that nonwords like maluma are associated with round shapes, while nonwords like takete are associated with sharp shapes (i.e., the Maluma/Takete effect, Köhler, 1929/1947). The majority of the research on sound symbolism has used nonwords, but Sidhu and Pexman (2015) recently extended this effect to existing labels: real English first names (i.e., the Bob/Kirk effect). In the present research we tested whether the effects of name sound symbolism generalize to French speakers (Experiment 1) and French names (Experiment 2). In addition, we assessed the underlying mechanism of name sound symbolism, investigating the roles of phonology and orthography in the effect. Results showed that name sound symbolism does generalize to French speakers and French names. Further, this robust effect remained the same when names were presented in a curved vs. angular font (Experiment 3), or when the salience of orthographic information was reduced through auditory presentation (Experiment 4). Together these results suggest that the Bob/Kirk effect is pervasive, and that it is based on fundamental features of name phonemes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Changing Role of Sound-Symbolism for Small Versus Large Vocabularies.

Science.gov (United States)

Brand, James; Monaghan, Padraic; Walker, Peter

2017-12-12

Natural language contains many examples of sound-symbolism, where the form of the word carries information about its meaning. Such systematicity is more prevalent in the words children acquire first, but arbitrariness dominates during later vocabulary development. Furthermore, systematicity appears to promote learning category distinctions, which may become more important as the vocabulary grows. In this study, we tested the relative costs and benefits of sound-symbolism for word learning as vocabulary size varies. Participants learned form-meaning mappings for words which were either congruent or incongruent with regard to sound-symbolic relations. For the smaller vocabulary, sound-symbolism facilitated learning individual words, whereas for larger vocabularies sound-symbolism supported learning category distinctions. The changing properties of form-meaning mappings according to vocabulary size may reflect the different ways in which language is learned at different stages of development. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Cognitive Science published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Cognitive Science Society.

Artificial intelligence techniques used in respiratory sound analysis--a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Palaniappan, Rajkumar; Sundaraj, Kenneth; Sundaraj, Sebastian

2014-02-01

Artificial intelligence (AI) has recently been established as an alternative method to many conventional methods. The implementation of AI techniques for respiratory sound analysis can assist medical professionals in the diagnosis of lung pathologies. This article highlights the importance of AI techniques in the implementation of computer-based respiratory sound analysis. Articles on computer-based respiratory sound analysis using AI techniques were identified by searches conducted on various electronic resources, such as the IEEE, Springer, Elsevier, PubMed, and ACM digital library databases. Brief descriptions of the types of respiratory sounds and their respective characteristics are provided. We then analyzed each of the previous studies to determine the specific respiratory sounds/pathology analyzed, the number of subjects, the signal processing method used, the AI techniques used, and the performance of the AI technique used in the analysis of respiratory sounds. A detailed description of each of these studies is provided. In conclusion, this article provides recommendations for further advancements in respiratory sound analysis.

Hearing sounds, understanding actions: action representation in mirror neurons.

Science.gov (United States)

Kohler, Evelyne; Keysers, Christian; Umiltà, M Alessandra; Fogassi, Leonardo; Gallese, Vittorio; Rizzolatti, Giacomo

2002-08-02

Many object-related actions can be recognized by their sound. We found neurons in monkey premotor cortex that discharge when the animal performs a specific action and when it hears the related sound. Most of the neurons also discharge when the monkey observes the same action. These audiovisual mirror neurons code actions independently of whether these actions are performed, heard, or seen. This discovery in the monkey homolog of Broca's area might shed light on the origin of language: audiovisual mirror neurons code abstract contents-the meaning of actions-and have the auditory access typical of human language to these contents.

Abstraction and the (misnamed) language familiarity effect

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Johnson, E.K.; Bruggeman, L.L.I.C.; Cutler, A.

2018-01-01

Talkers are recognized more accurately if they are speaking the listeners’ native language rather than an unfamiliar language. This "language familiarity effect" has been shown not to depend upon comprehension and must instead involve language sound patterns. We further examine the level of

Sound waves in (2+1) dimensional holographic magnetic fluids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buchbinder, Evgeny I.; Buchel, Alex; Vazquez, Samuel E.

2008-01-01

We use the AdS/CFT correspondence to study propagation of sound waves in strongly coupled (2+1) dimensional conformal magnetic fluids. Our computation provides a nontrivial consistency check of the viscous magneto-hydrodynamics of Hartnoll-Kovtun-Mueller-Sachdev to leading order in the external field. Depending on the behavior of the magnetic field in the hydrodynamic limit, we show that it can lead to further attenuation of sound waves in the (2+1) dimensional conformal plasma, or reduce the speed of sound. We present both field theory and dual supergravity descriptions of these phenomena. While to the leading order in momenta the dispersion of the sound waves obtained from the dual supergravity description agrees with the one predicted from field theory, we find a discrepancy at higher order. This suggests that further corrections to HKMS magneto-hydrodynamics are necessary.

Five mechanisms of sound symbolic association.

Science.gov (United States)

Sidhu, David M; Pexman, Penny M

2017-08-24

Sound symbolism refers to an association between phonemes and stimuli containing particular perceptual and/or semantic elements (e.g., objects of a certain size or shape). Some of the best-known examples include the mil/mal effect (Sapir, Journal of Experimental Psychology, 12, 225-239, 1929) and the maluma/takete effect (Köhler, 1929). Interest in this topic has been on the rise within psychology, and studies have demonstrated that sound symbolic effects are relevant for many facets of cognition, including language, action, memory, and categorization. Sound symbolism also provides a mechanism by which words' forms can have nonarbitrary, iconic relationships with their meanings. Although various proposals have been put forth for how phonetic features (both acoustic and articulatory) come to be associated with stimuli, there is as yet no generally agreed-upon explanation. We review five proposals: statistical co-occurrence between phonetic features and associated stimuli in the environment, a shared property among phonetic features and stimuli; neural factors; species-general, evolved associations; and patterns extracted from language. We identify a number of outstanding questions that need to be addressed on this topic and suggest next steps for the field.

GSFC Systems Test and Operation Language (STOL) functional requirements and language description

Science.gov (United States)

Desjardins, R.; Hall, G.; Mcguire, J.; Merwarth, P.; Mocarsky, W.; Truszkowski, W.; Villasenor, A.; Brosi, F.; Burch, P.; Carey, D.

1978-01-01

The Systems Tests and Operation Language (STOL) provides the means for user communication with payloads, applications programs, and other ground system elements. It is a systems operation language that enables an operator or user to communicate a command to a computer system. The system interprets each high level language directive from the user and performs the indicated action, such as executing a program, printing out a snapshot, or sending a payload command. This document presents the following: (1) required language features and implementation considerations; (2) basic capabilities; (3) telemetry, command, and input/output directives; (4) procedure definition and control; (5) listing, extension, and STOL nucleus capabilities.

Sound Stories for General Music

Science.gov (United States)

Cardany, Audrey Berger

2013-01-01

Language and music literacy share a similar process of understanding that progresses from sensory experience to symbolic representation. The author identifies Bruner’s modes of understanding as they relate to using narrative in the music classroom to enhance music reading at iconic and symbolic levels. Two sound stories are included for…

Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML Level 1 Version 3 (L1V3

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bergmann Frank T.

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The creation of computational simulation experiments to inform modern biological research poses challenges to reproduce, annotate, archive, and share such experiments. Efforts such as SBML or CellML standardize the formal representation of computational models in various areas of biology. The Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML describes what procedures the models are subjected to, and the details of those procedures. These standards, together with further COMBINE standards, describe models sufficiently well for the reproduction of simulation studies among users and software tools. The Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML is an XML-based format that encodes, for a given simulation experiment, (i which models to use; (ii which modifications to apply to models before simulation; (iii which simulation procedures to run on each model; (iv how to post-process the data; and (v how these results should be plotted and reported. SED-ML Level 1 Version 1 (L1V1 implemented support for the encoding of basic time course simulations. SED-ML L1V2 added support for more complex types of simulations, specifically repeated tasks and chained simulation procedures. SED-ML L1V3 extends L1V2 by means to describe which datasets and subsets thereof to use within a simulation experiment.

Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML) Level 1 Version 3 (L1V3).

Science.gov (United States)

Bergmann, Frank T; Cooper, Jonathan; König, Matthias; Moraru, Ion; Nickerson, David; Le Novère, Nicolas; Olivier, Brett G; Sahle, Sven; Smith, Lucian; Waltemath, Dagmar

2018-03-19

The creation of computational simulation experiments to inform modern biological research poses challenges to reproduce, annotate, archive, and share such experiments. Efforts such as SBML or CellML standardize the formal representation of computational models in various areas of biology. The Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML) describes what procedures the models are subjected to, and the details of those procedures. These standards, together with further COMBINE standards, describe models sufficiently well for the reproduction of simulation studies among users and software tools. The Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language (SED-ML) is an XML-based format that encodes, for a given simulation experiment, (i) which models to use; (ii) which modifications to apply to models before simulation; (iii) which simulation procedures to run on each model; (iv) how to post-process the data; and (v) how these results should be plotted and reported. SED-ML Level 1 Version 1 (L1V1) implemented support for the encoding of basic time course simulations. SED-ML L1V2 added support for more complex types of simulations, specifically repeated tasks and chained simulation procedures. SED-ML L1V3 extends L1V2 by means to describe which datasets and subsets thereof to use within a simulation experiment.

Building Languages

Science.gov (United States)

... Glossary Contact Information Information For… Media Policy Makers Building Languages Recommend on Facebook Tweet Share Compartir Communicating ... any speech and only very loud sounds. Close × “Building Blocks” “Building Blocks” refers to the different skills ...

Exploring Australian speech-language pathologists' use and perceptions ofnon-speech oral motor exercises.

Science.gov (United States)

Rumbach, Anna F; Rose, Tanya A; Cheah, Mynn

2018-01-29

To explore Australian speech-language pathologists' use of non-speech oral motor exercises, and rationales for using/not using non-speech oral motor exercises in clinical practice. A total of 124 speech-language pathologists practising in Australia, working with paediatric and/or adult clients with speech sound difficulties, completed an online survey. The majority of speech-language pathologists reported that they did not use non-speech oral motor exercises when working with paediatric or adult clients with speech sound difficulties. However, more than half of the speech-language pathologists working with adult clients who have dysarthria reported using non-speech oral motor exercises with this population. The most frequently reported rationale for using non-speech oral motor exercises in speech sound difficulty management was to improve awareness/placement of articulators. The majority of speech-language pathologists agreed there is no clear clinical or research evidence base to support non-speech oral motor exercise use with clients who have speech sound difficulties. This study provides an overview of Australian speech-language pathologists' reported use and perceptions of non-speech oral motor exercises' applicability and efficacy in treating paediatric and adult clients who have speech sound difficulties. The research findings provide speech-language pathologists with insight into how and why non-speech oral motor exercises are currently used, and adds to the knowledge base regarding Australian speech-language pathology practice of non-speech oral motor exercises in the treatment of speech sound difficulties. Implications for Rehabilitation Non-speech oral motor exercises refer to oral motor activities which do not involve speech, but involve the manipulation or stimulation of oral structures including the lips, tongue, jaw, and soft palate. Non-speech oral motor exercises are intended to improve the function (e.g., movement, strength) of oral structures. The

Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment

Science.gov (United States)

Photinos, Panos

2017-12-01

'Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment' offers a basic understanding of sound, musical instruments and music equipment, geared towards a general audience and non-science majors. The book begins with an introduction of the fundamental properties of sound waves, and the perception of the characteristics of sound. The relation between intensity and loudness, and the relation between frequency and pitch are discussed. The basics of propagation of sound waves, and the interaction of sound waves with objects and structures of various sizes are introduced. Standing waves, harmonics and resonance are explained in simple terms, using graphics that provide a visual understanding. The development is focused on musical instruments and acoustics. The construction of musical scales and the frequency relations are reviewed and applied in the description of musical instruments. The frequency spectrum of selected instruments is explored using freely available sound analysis software. Sound amplification and sound recording, including analog and digital approaches, are discussed in two separate chapters. The book concludes with a chapter on acoustics, the physical factors that affect the quality of the music experience, and practical ways to improve the acoustics at home or small recording studios. A brief technical section is provided at the end of each chapter, where the interested reader can find the relevant physics and sample calculations. These quantitative sections can be skipped without affecting the comprehension of the basic material. Questions are provided to test the reader's understanding of the material. Answers are given in the appendix.

The Technique of the Sound Studio: Radio, Record Production, Television, and Film. Revised Edition.

Science.gov (United States)

Nisbett, Alec

Detailed explanations of the studio techniques used in radio, record, television, and film sound production are presented in as non-technical language as possible. An introductory chapter discusses the physics and physiology of sound. Subsequent chapters detail standards for sound control in the studio; explain the planning and routine of a sound…

Sign language typology: The contribution of rural sign languages

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Vos, C.; Pfau, R.

2015-01-01

Since the 1990s, the field of sign language typology has shown that sign languages exhibit typological variation at all relevant levels of linguistic description. These initial typological comparisons were heavily skewed toward the urban sign languages of developed countries, mostly in the Western

Sound Visualisation

OpenAIRE

Dolenc, Peter

2013-01-01

This thesis contains a description of a construction of subwoofer case that has an extra functionality of being able to produce special visual effects and display visualizations that match the currently playing sound. For this reason, multiple lighting elements made out of LED (Light Emitting Diode) diodes were installed onto the subwoofer case. The lighting elements are controlled by dedicated software that was also developed. The software runs on STM32F4-Discovery evaluation board inside a ...

Gender Issues in Language Change.

Science.gov (United States)

Cameron, Deborah

2003-01-01

Drawing on recent work in variationist sociolinguistics, sociology of language and linguistic anthropology, focuses on new approaches to explaining gender differentiated patterns of sound change and language shift, the success or failure of planned linguistic reforms, and changes in the social evaluation of gendered speech styles. (Author/VWL)

Neural Correlates of Indicators of Sound Change in Cantonese: Evidence from Cortical and Subcortical Processes

OpenAIRE

Maggu, Akshay R.; Liu, Fang; Antoniou, Mark; Wong, Patrick C. M.

2016-01-01

Across time, languages undergo changes in phonetic, syntactic, and semantic dimensions. Social, cognitive, and cultural factors contribute to sound change, a phenomenon in which the phonetics of a language undergo changes over time. Individuals who misperceive and produce speech in a slightly divergent manner (called innovators) contribute to variability in the society, eventually leading to sound change. However, the cause of variability in these individuals is still unknown. In this study, ...

Detecting regular sound changes in linguistics as events of concerted evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Hruschka, Daniel J; Branford, Simon; Smith, Eric D; Wilkins, Jon; Meade, Andrew; Pagel, Mark; Bhattacharya, Tanmoy

2015-01-05

Concerted evolution is normally used to describe parallel changes at different sites in a genome, but it is also observed in languages where a specific phoneme changes to the same other phoneme in many words in the lexicon—a phenomenon known as regular sound change. We develop a general statistical model that can detect concerted changes in aligned sequence data and apply it to study regular sound changes in the Turkic language family. Linguistic evolution, unlike the genetic substitutional process, is dominated by events of concerted evolutionary change. Our model identified more than 70 historical events of regular sound change that occurred throughout the evolution of the Turkic language family, while simultaneously inferring a dated phylogenetic tree. Including regular sound changes yielded an approximately 4-fold improvement in the characterization of linguistic change over a simpler model of sporadic change, improved phylogenetic inference, and returned more reliable and plausible dates for events on the phylogenies. The historical timings of the concerted changes closely follow a Poisson process model, and the sound transition networks derived from our model mirror linguistic expectations. We demonstrate that a model with no prior knowledge of complex concerted or regular changes can nevertheless infer the historical timings and genealogical placements of events of concerted change from the signals left in contemporary data. Our model can be applied wherever discrete elements—such as genes, words, cultural trends, technologies, or morphological traits—can change in parallel within an organism or other evolving group. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Phonological Encoding in Speech-Sound Disorder: Evidence from a Cross-Modal Priming Experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Munson, Benjamin; Krause, Miriam O. P.

2017-01-01

Background: Psycholinguistic models of language production provide a framework for determining the locus of language breakdown that leads to speech-sound disorder (SSD) in children. Aims: To examine whether children with SSD differ from their age-matched peers with typical speech and language development (TD) in the ability phonologically to…

Speech sound disorder at 4 years: prevalence, comorbidities, and predictors in a community cohort of children.

Science.gov (United States)

Eadie, Patricia; Morgan, Angela; Ukoumunne, Obioha C; Ttofari Eecen, Kyriaki; Wake, Melissa; Reilly, Sheena

2015-06-01

The epidemiology of preschool speech sound disorder is poorly understood. Our aims were to determine: the prevalence of idiopathic speech sound disorder; the comorbidity of speech sound disorder with language and pre-literacy difficulties; and the factors contributing to speech outcome at 4 years. One thousand four hundred and ninety-four participants from an Australian longitudinal cohort completed speech, language, and pre-literacy assessments at 4 years. Prevalence of speech sound disorder (SSD) was defined by standard score performance of ≤79 on a speech assessment. Logistic regression examined predictors of SSD within four domains: child and family; parent-reported speech; cognitive-linguistic; and parent-reported motor skills. At 4 years the prevalence of speech disorder in an Australian cohort was 3.4%. Comorbidity with SSD was 40.8% for language disorder and 20.8% for poor pre-literacy skills. Sex, maternal vocabulary, socio-economic status, and family history of speech and language difficulties predicted SSD, as did 2-year speech, language, and motor skills. Together these variables provided good discrimination of SSD (area under the curve=0.78). This is the first epidemiological study to demonstrate prevalence of SSD at 4 years of age that was consistent with previous clinical studies. Early detection of SSD at 4 years should focus on family variables and speech, language, and motor skills measured at 2 years. © 2014 Mac Keith Press.

Structured multi-stream command language

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glad, A.S.

1982-12-01

A multi-stream command language was implemented to provide the sequential and decision-making operations necessary to run the neutral-beam ion sources connected to the Doublet III tokamak fusion device. A multi-stream command language was implemented in Pascal on a Classic 7870 running under MAX IV. The purpose of this paper is threefold. First, to provide a brief description of the programs comprising the command language including the operating system interaction. Second, to give a description of the language syntax and commands necessary to develop a procedure stream. Third, to provide a description of the normal operating procedures for executing either the sequential or interactive streams

Sound Clocks and Sonic Relativity

Science.gov (United States)

Todd, Scott L.; Menicucci, Nicolas C.

2017-10-01

Sound propagation within certain non-relativistic condensed matter models obeys a relativistic wave equation despite such systems admitting entirely non-relativistic descriptions. A natural question that arises upon consideration of this is, "do devices exist that will experience the relativity in these systems?" We describe a thought experiment in which `acoustic observers' possess devices called sound clocks that can be connected to form chains. Careful investigation shows that appropriately constructed chains of stationary and moving sound clocks are perceived by observers on the other chain as undergoing the relativistic phenomena of length contraction and time dilation by the Lorentz factor, γ , with c the speed of sound. Sound clocks within moving chains actually tick less frequently than stationary ones and must be separated by a shorter distance than when stationary to satisfy simultaneity conditions. Stationary sound clocks appear to be length contracted and time dilated to moving observers due to their misunderstanding of their own state of motion with respect to the laboratory. Observers restricted to using sound clocks describe a universe kinematically consistent with the theory of special relativity, despite the preferred frame of their universe in the laboratory. Such devices show promise in further probing analogue relativity models, for example in investigating phenomena that require careful consideration of the proper time elapsed for observers.

Phonetic and lexical processing in a second language

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Broersma, M.

2005-01-01

Speech comprehension is more difficult in a second language than in one's native language. This dissertation examines the recognition of speech sounds and the recognition of words in a second language. First, Dutch and English listeners' perception of the British English vowels /ae/-/E/, was

The effects of ethnicity, musicianship, and tone language experience on pitch perception.

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Yi; Samuel, Arthur G

2018-02-01

Language and music are intertwined: music training can facilitate language abilities, and language experiences can also help with some music tasks. Possible language-music transfer effects are explored in two experiments in this study. In Experiment 1, we tested native Mandarin, Korean, and English speakers on a pitch discrimination task with two types of sounds: speech sounds and fundamental frequency (F0) patterns derived from speech sounds. To control for factors that might influence participants' performance, we included cognitive ability tasks testing memory and intelligence. In addition, two music skill tasks were used to examine general transfer effects from language to music. Prior studies showing that tone language speakers have an advantage on pitch tasks have been taken as support for three alternative hypotheses: specific transfer effects, general transfer effects, and an ethnicity effect. In Experiment 1, musicians outperformed non-musicians on both speech and F0 sounds, suggesting a music-to-language transfer effect. Korean and Mandarin speakers performed similarly, and they both outperformed English speakers, providing some evidence for an ethnicity effect. Alternatively, this could be due to population selection bias. In Experiment 2, we recruited Chinese Americans approximating the native English speakers' language background to further test the ethnicity effect. Chinese Americans, regardless of their tone language experiences, performed similarly to their non-Asian American counterparts in all tasks. Therefore, although this study provides additional evidence of transfer effects across music and language, it casts doubt on the contribution of ethnicity to differences observed in pitch perception and general music abilities.

Spoken Indian language identification: a review of features and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

BAKSHI AARTI

2018-04-12

Apr 12, 2018 ... languages and can be used for the purposes of spoken language identification. Keywords. SLID .... branch of linguistics to study the sound structure of human language. ... countries, work in the area of Indian language identification has not ...... English and speech database has been collected over tele-.

The Manu-Facturing of a Language.

Science.gov (United States)

Washabaugh, William

1980-01-01

Discusses Providence Island Sign Language (PSL), an autochthonous and relatively immature language of about 20 speakers. It is a nascent and evolving language whose description can produce rich results for linguistic theory. Such a description will also be an explanation of the phylogeny of a linguistic system. (Author/PJM)

Neural Correlates of Indicators of Sound Change in Cantonese: Evidence from Cortical and Subcortical Processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Maggu, Akshay R; Liu, Fang; Antoniou, Mark; Wong, Patrick C M

2016-01-01

Across time, languages undergo changes in phonetic, syntactic, and semantic dimensions. Social, cognitive, and cultural factors contribute to sound change, a phenomenon in which the phonetics of a language undergo changes over time. Individuals who misperceive and produce speech in a slightly divergent manner (called innovators ) contribute to variability in the society, eventually leading to sound change. However, the cause of variability in these individuals is still unknown. In this study, we examined whether such misperceptions are represented in neural processes of the auditory system. We investigated behavioral, subcortical (via FFR), and cortical (via P300) manifestations of sound change processing in Cantonese, a Chinese language in which several lexical tones are merging. Across the merging categories, we observed a similar gradation of speech perception abilities in both behavior and the brain (subcortical and cortical processes). Further, we also found that behavioral evidence of tone merging correlated with subjects' encoding at the subcortical and cortical levels. These findings indicate that tone-merger categories, that are indicators of sound change in Cantonese, are represented neurophysiologically with high fidelity. Using our results, we speculate that innovators encode speech in a slightly deviant neurophysiological manner, and thus produce speech divergently that eventually spreads across the community and contributes to sound change.

Developmental change in children's sensitivity to sound symbolism.

Science.gov (United States)

Tzeng, Christina Y; Nygaard, Lynne C; Namy, Laura L

2017-08-01

The current study examined developmental change in children's sensitivity to sound symbolism. Three-, five-, and seven-year-old children heard sound symbolic novel words and foreign words meaning round and pointy and chose which of two pictures (one round and one pointy) best corresponded to each word they heard. Task performance varied as a function of both word type and age group such that accuracy was greater for novel words than for foreign words, and task performance increased with age for both word types. For novel words, children in all age groups reliably chose the correct corresponding picture. For foreign words, 3-year-olds showed chance performance, whereas 5- and 7-year-olds showed reliably above-chance performance. Results suggest increased sensitivity to sound symbolic cues with development and imply that although sensitivity to sound symbolism may be available early and facilitate children's word-referent mappings, sensitivity to subtler sound symbolic cues requires greater language experience. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Why 'piss' is ruder than 'pee'? The role of sound in affective meaning making.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arash Aryani

Full Text Available Most language users agree that some words sound harsh (e.g. grotesque whereas others sound soft and pleasing (e.g. lagoon. While this prominent feature of human language has always been creatively deployed in art and poetry, it is still largely unknown whether the sound of a word in itself makes any contribution to the word's meaning as perceived and interpreted by the listener. In a large-scale lexicon analysis, we focused on the affective substrates of words' meaning (i.e. affective meaning and words' sound (i.e. affective sound; both being measured on a two-dimensional space of valence (ranging from pleasant to unpleasant and arousal (ranging from calm to excited. We tested the hypothesis that the sound of a word possesses affective iconic characteristics that can implicitly influence listeners when evaluating the affective meaning of that word. The results show that a significant portion of the variance in affective meaning ratings of printed words depends on a number of spectral and temporal acoustic features extracted from these words after converting them to their spoken form (study1. In order to test the affective nature of this effect, we independently assessed the affective sound of these words using two different methods: through direct rating (study2a, and through acoustic models that we implemented based on pseudoword materials (study2b. In line with our hypothesis, the estimated contribution of words' sound to ratings of words' affective meaning was indeed associated with the affective sound of these words; with a stronger effect for arousal than for valence. Further analyses revealed crucial phonetic features potentially causing the effect of sound on meaning: For instance, words with short vowels, voiceless consonants, and hissing sibilants (as in 'piss' feel more arousing and negative. Our findings suggest that the process of meaning making is not solely determined by arbitrary mappings between formal aspects of words and

Why 'piss' is ruder than 'pee'? The role of sound in affective meaning making.

Science.gov (United States)

Aryani, Arash; Conrad, Markus; Schmidtke, David; Jacobs, Arthur

2018-01-01

Most language users agree that some words sound harsh (e.g. grotesque) whereas others sound soft and pleasing (e.g. lagoon). While this prominent feature of human language has always been creatively deployed in art and poetry, it is still largely unknown whether the sound of a word in itself makes any contribution to the word's meaning as perceived and interpreted by the listener. In a large-scale lexicon analysis, we focused on the affective substrates of words' meaning (i.e. affective meaning) and words' sound (i.e. affective sound); both being measured on a two-dimensional space of valence (ranging from pleasant to unpleasant) and arousal (ranging from calm to excited). We tested the hypothesis that the sound of a word possesses affective iconic characteristics that can implicitly influence listeners when evaluating the affective meaning of that word. The results show that a significant portion of the variance in affective meaning ratings of printed words depends on a number of spectral and temporal acoustic features extracted from these words after converting them to their spoken form (study1). In order to test the affective nature of this effect, we independently assessed the affective sound of these words using two different methods: through direct rating (study2a), and through acoustic models that we implemented based on pseudoword materials (study2b). In line with our hypothesis, the estimated contribution of words' sound to ratings of words' affective meaning was indeed associated with the affective sound of these words; with a stronger effect for arousal than for valence. Further analyses revealed crucial phonetic features potentially causing the effect of sound on meaning: For instance, words with short vowels, voiceless consonants, and hissing sibilants (as in 'piss') feel more arousing and negative. Our findings suggest that the process of meaning making is not solely determined by arbitrary mappings between formal aspects of words and concepts they

Language Play and Linguistic Hybridity as Current Trends in Hungarian Word-Formation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Réka Benczes

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Hungarian literature on word-formation typically focuses on rule-governed descriptions of regular and typologically relevant patterns. However, there are plenty of other word-formation trends that usually go unnoticed in mainstream morphological research. The present paper will focus on two such trends: 1 rhyming and alliterating compounds such as pannon puma ‘Pannonian puma’ (a euphemism for Hungary’s economic performance, on the analogy of Asian tiger; and 2 creative prefixations such as meggugliz (‘to google’ and felhájpol (‘to hype’. Although these are seemingly two quite different patterns, in fact they share two significant traits. On the one hand, they are demonstrations of the fact that language users make full use of the creative possibilities in language and routinely play with sounds and meanings. On the other hand, they are also indications of the influential role of English in present-day Hungarian word-formation. It seems that language users are not only aware of the possibilities that this interference can result in but are also able to exploit these consciously. This crossing of language boundaries is becoming increasingly inevitable with the global spread of English.

Use of Authentic-Speech Technique for Teaching Sound Recognition to EFL Students

Science.gov (United States)

Sersen, William J.

2011-01-01

The main objective of this research was to test an authentic-speech technique for improving the sound-recognition skills of EFL (English as a foreign language) students at Roi-Et Rajabhat University. The secondary objective was to determine the correlation, if any, between students' self-evaluation of sound-recognition progress and the actual…

Physics of thermo-acoustic sound generation

Science.gov (United States)

Daschewski, M.; Boehm, R.; Prager, J.; Kreutzbruck, M.; Harrer, A.

2013-09-01

We present a generalized analytical model of thermo-acoustic sound generation based on the analysis of thermally induced energy density fluctuations and their propagation into the adjacent matter. The model provides exact analytical prediction of the sound pressure generated in fluids and solids; consequently, it can be applied to arbitrary thermal power sources such as thermophones, plasma firings, laser beams, and chemical reactions. Unlike existing approaches, our description also includes acoustic near-field effects and sound-field attenuation. Analytical results are compared with measurements of sound pressures generated by thermo-acoustic transducers in air for frequencies up to 1 MHz. The tested transducers consist of titanium and indium tin oxide coatings on quartz glass and polycarbonate substrates. The model reveals that thermo-acoustic efficiency increases linearly with the supplied thermal power and quadratically with thermal excitation frequency. Comparison of the efficiency of our thermo-acoustic transducers with those of piezoelectric-based airborne ultrasound transducers using impulse excitation showed comparable sound pressure values. The present results show that thermo-acoustic transducers can be applied as broadband, non-resonant, high-performance ultrasound sources.

A categorical foundation for structured reversible flowchart languages: Soundness and adequacy

OpenAIRE

Glück, Robert; Kaarsgaard, Robin

2017-01-01

Structured reversible flowchart languages is a class of imperative reversible programming languages allowing for a simple diagrammatic representation of control flow built from a limited set of control flow structures. This class includes the reversible programming language Janus (without recursion), as well as more recently developed reversible programming languages such as R-CORE and R-WHILE. In the present paper, we develop a categorical foundation for this class of languages based on inve...

Differences in phonetic discrimination stem from differences in psychoacoustic abilities in learning the sounds of a second language: Evidence from ERP research.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Yi; Fan, Ruolin; Mo, Lei

2017-01-01

The scientific community has been divided as to the origin of individual differences in perceiving the sounds of a second language (L2). There are two alternative explanations: a general psychoacoustic origin vs. a speech-specific one. A previous study showed that such individual variability is linked to the perceivers' speech-specific capabilities, rather than the perceivers' psychoacoustic abilities. However, we assume that the selection of participants and parameters of sound stimuli might not appropriate. Therefore, we adjusted the sound stimuli and recorded event-related potentials (ERPs) from two groups of early, proficient Cantonese (L1)-Mandarin (L2) bilinguals who differed in their mastery of the Mandarin (L2) phonetic contrast /in-ing/, to explore whether the individual differences in perceiving L2 stem from participants' ability to discriminate various pure tones (frequency, duration and pattern). To precisely measure the participants' acoustic discrimination, mismatch negativity (MMN) elicited by the oddball paradigm was recorded in the experiment. The results showed that significant differences between good perceivers (GPs) and poor perceivers (PPs) were found in the three general acoustic conditions (frequency, duration and pattern), and the MMN amplitude for GP was significantly larger than for PP. Therefore, our results support a general psychoacoustic origin of individual variability in L2 phonetic mastery.

Formal Specification and Description Language and Message Sequence Chart to Model and Validate Session Initiation Protocol Services

OpenAIRE

Sa'ed Abed; Mohammad H. Al Shayeji; Ovais Ahmed; Sahel Alouneh

2016-01-01

Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) is a signaling layer protocol for building, adjusting and ending sessions among participants including Internet conferences, telephone calls and multimedia distribution. SIP facilitates user movement by proxying and forwarding requests to the present location of the user. In this paper, we provide a formal Specification and Description Language (SDL) and Message Sequence Chart (MSC) to model and define the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) SIP protocol a...

Bridging the Gap Between Speech and Language: Using Multimodal Treatment in a Child With Apraxia.

Science.gov (United States)

Tierney, Cheryl D; Pitterle, Kathleen; Kurtz, Marie; Nakhla, Mark; Todorow, Carlyn

2016-09-01

Childhood apraxia of speech is a neurologic speech sound disorder in which children have difficulty constructing words and sounds due to poor motor planning and coordination of the articulators required for speech sound production. We report the case of a 3-year-old boy strongly suspected to have childhood apraxia of speech at 18 months of age who used multimodal communication to facilitate language development throughout his work with a speech language pathologist. In 18 months of an intensive structured program, he exhibited atypical rapid improvement, progressing from having no intelligible speech to achieving age-appropriate articulation. We suspect that early introduction of sign language by family proved to be a highly effective form of language development, that when coupled with intensive oro-motor and speech sound therapy, resulted in rapid resolution of symptoms. Copyright © 2016 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Emergence of category-level sensitivities in non-native speech sound learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emily eMyers

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Over the course of development, speech sounds that are contrastive in one’s native language tend to become perceived categorically: that is, listeners are unaware of variation within phonetic categories while showing excellent sensitivity to speech sounds that span linguistically meaningful phonetic category boundaries. The end stage of this developmental process is that the perceptual systems that handle acoustic-phonetic information show special tuning to native language contrasts, and as such, category-level information appears to be present at even fairly low levels of the neural processing stream. Research on adults acquiring non-native speech categories offers an avenue for investigating the interplay of category-level information and perceptual sensitivities to these sounds as speech categories emerge. In particular, one can observe the neural changes that unfold as listeners learn not only to perceive acoustic distinctions that mark non-native speech sound contrasts, but also to map these distinctions onto category-level representations. An emergent literature on the neural basis of novel and non-native speech sound learning offers new insight into this question. In this review, I will examine this literature in order to answer two key questions. First, where in the neural pathway does sensitivity to category-level phonetic information first emerge over the trajectory of speech sound learning? Second, how do frontal and temporal brain areas work in concert over the course of non-native speech sound learning? Finally, in the context of this literature I will describe a model of speech sound learning in which rapidly-adapting access to categorical information in the frontal lobes modulates the sensitivity of stable, slowly-adapting responses in the temporal lobes.

Interventions for Speech Sound Disorders in Children

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, A. Lynn, Ed.; McLeod, Sharynne, Ed.; McCauley, Rebecca J., Ed.

2010-01-01

With detailed discussion and invaluable video footage of 23 treatment interventions for speech sound disorders (SSDs) in children, this textbook and DVD set should be part of every speech-language pathologist's professional preparation. Focusing on children with functional or motor-based speech disorders from early childhood through the early…

Hardware Descriptive Languages: An Efficient Approach to Device ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Contemporarily, owing to astronomical advancements in the very large scale integration (VLSI) market segments, hardware engineers are now focusing on how to develop their new digital system designs in programmable languages like very high speed integrated circuit hardwaredescription language (VHDL) and Verilog ...

Descriptions of Selected Career-Related College Language Courses

Science.gov (United States)

Knodel, Arthur J.; And Others

1977-01-01

Seven courses or programs at different colleges emphasizing specific career applications of languages are described. They include: Technical French; Spanish for Law Enforcement and Correctional Personnel; Executive German; Proyecto Desarrollo Economico; Spanish for Medical Professions; Elements of Foreign Language, and Business French and Business…

The Perception of Sounds in Phonographic Space

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Walther-Hansen, Mads

. The third chapter examines how listeners understand and make sense of phonographic space. In the form of a critique of Pierre Schaeffer and Roger Scruton’s notion of the acousmatic situation, I argue that our experience of recorded music has a twofold focus: the sound-in-itself and the sound’s causality...... the use of metaphors and image schemas in the experience and conceptualisation of phonographic space. With reference to descriptions of recordings by sound engineers, I argue that metaphors are central to our understanding of recorded music. This work is grounded in the tradition of cognitive linguistics......This thesis is about the perception of space in recorded music, with particular reference to stereo recordings of popular music. It explores how sound engineers create imaginary musical environments in which sounds appear to listeners in different ways. It also investigates some of the conditions...

Sound and sound sources

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Ole Næsbye; Wahlberg, Magnus

2017-01-01

There is no difference in principle between the infrasonic and ultrasonic sounds, which are inaudible to humans (or other animals) and the sounds that we can hear. In all cases, sound is a wave of pressure and particle oscillations propagating through an elastic medium, such as air. This chapter...... is about the physical laws that govern how animals produce sound signals and how physical principles determine the signals’ frequency content and sound level, the nature of the sound field (sound pressure versus particle vibrations) as well as directional properties of the emitted signal. Many...... of these properties are dictated by simple physical relationships between the size of the sound emitter and the wavelength of emitted sound. The wavelengths of the signals need to be sufficiently short in relation to the size of the emitter to allow for the efficient production of propagating sound pressure waves...

Specialized Language Activities: A Description of the First Year.

Science.gov (United States)

Oxford Hills High School, South Paris, ME.

The Specialized Language Activities Program (ESEA Title 3 Project) to motivate students to improve their oral language was conducted in an essentially rural section of Maine with an experimental group and a control group of 80 ninth-grade students with an I.Q. range of 85-100 and poor language usage. Sixty-seven percent of them had repeated at…

Training the Brain to Weight Speech Cues Differently: A Study of Finnish Second-language Users of English

Science.gov (United States)

Ylinen, Sari; Uther, Maria; Latvala, Antti; Vepsalainen, Sara; Iverson, Paul; Akahane-Yamada, Reiko; Naatanen, Risto

2010-01-01

Foreign-language learning is a prime example of a task that entails perceptual learning. The correct comprehension of foreign-language speech requires the correct recognition of speech sounds. The most difficult speech-sound contrasts for foreign-language learners often are the ones that have multiple phonetic cues, especially if the cues are…

LANGUAGE SCHOOLS AND FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDYING PROGRAMS IN PORTUGAL

OpenAIRE

Hritchenko, Iryna

2017-01-01

The article is devoted to the description and characterizing of language schools and foreign language studying programs in Portugal. The relevance of language learning for professional, mobility, self-developing means is shown. The main courses and programs are observed and the advantages and disadvantages of each of them are given. It is stated that Portuguese courses mostly follow the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. A small synopsis of the abilities for each level is p...

Language and status: On the limits of language planning

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Post-1994 language planning: the rise of a new policy discourse. 'Language .... was post-1945 'nation building' (Fishman 1968:54) and the emergence of new nationalist movements ..... professional scholars in Africa played in the production of "'inventory' descriptions of ... appropriate conceptualization of its subject matter.

Body language in health care: a contribution to nursing communication.

Science.gov (United States)

de Rezende, Rachel de Carvalho; de Oliveira, Rosane Mara Pontes; de Araújo, Sílvia Teresa Carvalho; Guimarães, Tereza Cristina Felippe; do Espírito Santo, Fátima Helena; Porto, Isaura Setenta

2015-01-01

to classify body language used in nursing care, and propose "Body language in nursing care" as an analytical category for nursing communication. quantitative research with the systematic observation of 21:43 care situations, with 21 members representing the nursing teams of two hospitals. Empirical categories: sound, facial, eye and body expressions. sound expressions emphasized laughter. Facial expressions communicated satisfaction and happiness. Eye contact with members stood out in visual expressions. The most frequent body expressions were head movements and indistinct touches. nursing care team members use body language to establish rapport with patients, clarify their needs and plan care. The study classified body language characteristics of humanized care, which involves, in addition to technical, non-technical issues arising from nursing communication.

Linguistic Corpora and Language Teaching.

Science.gov (United States)

Murison-Bowie, Simon

1996-01-01

Examines issues raised by corpus linguistics concerning the description of language. The article argues that it is necessary to start from correct descriptions of linguistic units and the contexts in which they occur. Corpus linguistics has joined with language teaching by sharing a recognition of the importance of a larger, schematic view of…

Justifying Innovative Language Programs in an Environment of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

pkurgat

Justifying Innovative Language Programs in an Environment of Change: The Case ... Key words: project management, change management, educational management, .... the sustainability of the course considering that there were and continue to be problems .... language teaching in general on a sound scientific base.

Difficulty in Learning Similar-Sounding Words: A Developmental Stage or a General Property of Learning?

Science.gov (United States)

Pajak, Bozena; Creel, Sarah C.; Levy, Roger

2016-01-01

How are languages learned, and to what extent are learning mechanisms similar in infant native-language (L1) and adult second-language (L2) acquisition? In terms of vocabulary acquisition, we know from the infant literature that the ability to discriminate similar-sounding words at a particular age does not guarantee successful word-meaning…

Object Language and the Language Subject: On the Mediating Role of Applied Linguistics.

Science.gov (United States)

Widdowson, Henry G.

2000-01-01

Examines the extent to which linguistic descriptions can adequately account for their reality for learners and provide a reference point for the design of language courses. Special concern is focused on second language learners as a particular kind of language user. (Author/VWL)

Text-Based Argumentation with Multiple Sources: A Descriptive Study of Opportunity to Learn in Secondary English Language Arts, History, and Science

Science.gov (United States)

Litman, Cindy; Marple, Stacy; Greenleaf, Cynthia; Charney-Sirott, Irisa; Bolz, Michael J.; Richardson, Lisa K.; Hall, Allison H.; George, MariAnne; Goldman, Susan R.

2017-01-01

This study presents a descriptive analysis of 71 videotaped lessons taught by 34 highly regarded secondary English language arts, history, and science teachers, collected to inform an intervention focused on evidence-based argumentation from multiple text sources. Studying the practices of highly regarded teachers is valuable for identifying…

Affective Congruence between Sound and Meaning of Words Facilitates Semantic Decision.

Science.gov (United States)

Aryani, Arash; Jacobs, Arthur M

2018-05-31

A similarity between the form and meaning of a word (i.e., iconicity) may help language users to more readily access its meaning through direct form-meaning mapping. Previous work has supported this view by providing empirical evidence for this facilitatory effect in sign language, as well as for onomatopoetic words (e.g., cuckoo) and ideophones (e.g., zigzag). Thus, it remains largely unknown whether the beneficial role of iconicity in making semantic decisions can be considered a general feature in spoken language applying also to "ordinary" words in the lexicon. By capitalizing on the affective domain, and in particular arousal, we organized words in two distinctive groups of iconic vs. non-iconic based on the congruence vs. incongruence of their lexical (meaning) and sublexical (sound) arousal. In a two-alternative forced choice task, we asked participants to evaluate the arousal of printed words that were lexically either high or low arousing. In line with our hypothesis, iconic words were evaluated more quickly and more accurately than their non-iconic counterparts. These results indicate a processing advantage for iconic words, suggesting that language users are sensitive to sound-meaning mappings even when words are presented visually and read silently.

What’s in a name? The effects of sound symbolism and package shape on consumer responses to food products

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fenko, Anna; Lotterman, Henriët; Galetzka, Mirjam

2016-01-01

In the global market, consumers are exposed to multiple brand names in unfamiliar languages. Even meaningless words can trigger certain semantic associations. This phenomenon is known as sound symbolism, i.e., the direct link between a sound and a meaning. Sound symbolism helps consumers to form

XML Diagnostics Description Standard

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Neto, A.; Fernandes, H.; Varandas, C.; Lister, J.; Yonekawa, I.

2006-01-01

A standard for the self-description of fusion plasma diagnostics will be presented, based on the Extensible Markup Language (XML). The motivation is to maintain and organise the information on all the components of a laboratory experiment, from the hardware to the access security, to save time and money when problems arises. Since there is no existing standard to organise this kind of information, every Association stores and organises each experiment in different ways. This can lead to severe problems when the organisation schema is poorly documented or written in national languages. The exchange of scientists, researchers and engineers between laboratories is a common practice nowadays. Sometimes they have to install new diagnostics or to update existing ones and frequently they lose a great deal of time trying to understand the currently installed system. The most common problems are: no documentation available; the person who understands it has left; documentation written in the national language. Standardisation is the key to solving all the problems mentioned. From the commercial information on the diagnostic (component supplier; component price) to the hardware description (component specifications; drawings) to the operation of the equipment (finite state machines) through change control (who changed what and when) and internationalisation (information at least in the native language and in English), a common XML schema will be proposed. This paper will also discuss an extension of these ideas to the self-description of ITER plant systems, since the problems will be identical. (author)

Which Methodology Works Better? English Language Teachers' Awareness of the Innovative Language Learning Methodologies

Science.gov (United States)

Kurt, Mustafa

2015-01-01

The present study investigated whether English language teachers were aware of the innovative language learning methodologies in language learning, how they made use of these methodologies and the learners' reactions to them. The descriptive survey method was employed to disclose the frequencies and percentages of 175 English language teachers'…

What Constitutes a Phrase in Sound-Based Music? A Mixed-Methods Investigation of Perception and Acoustics.

Science.gov (United States)

Olsen, Kirk N; Dean, Roger T; Leung, Yvonne

2016-01-01

Phrasing facilitates the organization of auditory information and is central to speech and music. Not surprisingly, aspects of changing intensity, rhythm, and pitch are key determinants of musical phrases and their boundaries in instrumental note-based music. Different kinds of speech (such as tone- vs. stress-languages) share these features in different proportions and form an instructive comparison. However, little is known about whether or how musical phrasing is perceived in sound-based music, where the basic musical unit from which a piece is created is commonly non-instrumental continuous sounds, rather than instrumental discontinuous notes. This issue forms the target of the present paper. Twenty participants (17 untrained in music) were presented with six stimuli derived from sound-based music, note-based music, and environmental sound. Their task was to indicate each occurrence of a perceived phrase and qualitatively describe key characteristics of the stimulus associated with each phrase response. It was hypothesized that sound-based music does elicit phrase perception, and that this is primarily associated with temporal changes in intensity and timbre, rather than rhythm and pitch. Results supported this hypothesis. Qualitative analysis of participant descriptions showed that for sound-based music, the majority of perceived phrases were associated with intensity or timbral change. For the note-based piano piece, rhythm was the main theme associated with perceived musical phrasing. We modeled the occurrence in time of perceived musical phrases with recurrent event 'hazard' analyses using time-series data representing acoustic predictors associated with intensity, spectral flatness, and rhythmic density. Acoustic intensity and timbre (represented here by spectral flatness) were strong predictors of perceived musical phrasing in sound-based music, and rhythm was only predictive for the piano piece. A further analysis including five additional spectral

Speed of sound in the solar interior

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Christensen-Dalsgaard, J.; Rhodes, E.J. Jr.

1985-01-01

Frequencies of solar 5-min oscillations can be used to determine directly the sound speed of the solar interior. The determination described does not depend on a solar model, but relies only on a simple asymptotic description of the oscillations in terms of trapped acoustic waves. (author)

Language comprehension in ape and child.

Science.gov (United States)

Savage-Rumbaugh, E S; Murphy, J; Sevcik, R A; Brakke, K E; Williams, S L; Rumbaugh, D M

1993-01-01

Previous investigations of the linguistic capacities of apes have focused on the ape's ability to produce words, and there has been little concern for comprehension. By contrast, it is increasingly recognized that comprehension precedes production in the language development of normal human children, and it may indeed guide production. It has been demonstrated that some species can process speech sounds categorically in a manner similar to that observed in humans. Consequently, it should be possible for such species to comprehend language if they have the cognitive capacity to understand word-referent relations and syntactic structure. Popular theories of human language acquisition suggest that the ability to process syntactic information is unique to humans and reflects a novel biological adaptation not seen in other animals. The current report addresses this issue through systematic experimental comparisons of the language comprehension skills of a 2-year-old child and an 8 year-old bonobo (Pan paniscus) who was raised in a language environment similar to that in which children are raised but specifically modified to be appropriate for an ape. Both subjects (child and bonobo) were exposed to spoken English and lexigrams from infancy, and neither was trained to comprehend speech. A common caretaker participated in the rearing of both subjects. All language acquisition was through observational learning. Without prior training, subjects were asked to respond to the same 660 novel sentences. All responses were videotaped and scored for accuracy of comprehension of the English language. The results indicated that both subjects comprehended novel requests and simple syntactic devices. The bonobo decoded the syntactic device of word recursion with higher accuracy than the child; however, the child tended to do better than the bonobo on the conjunctive, a structure that places a greater burden on short-term memory. Both subjects performed as well on sentences that

THE ( AND ( PHONEMES AS FOSSILIZED PRONUNCIATION ERRORS FOR TURKISH ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS AND STUDENTS: UNDOING THE FOSSILIZED PRONUNCIATION ERROR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehmet Demirezen

2008-10-01

Full Text Available According to Haycraft, (1984: 90, “Since all humans have almost identical speechorgans, there should not be any ‘difficult’ sounds.” This is not a totally true thought becausethe nonnative speaking students apply the pronunciation rules of their native language, andthe result of such a conduct is the establishment of mother-tongue interference which boilsdown to be an unavoidable intrusion while learning a foreign language. A great majority ofpronunciation errors are due to inevitable mother-tongue pronunciation habits, which exhibitcertain resistance to the sounds of the target language. The mother-tongue association to theacquisition of some target language phonemes that are called the core sounds. (Demirezen2007e. The core sounds of the English language, such “consonants like / t ---> T, d ---> D, v---> w / and vowels like / e ---> Q, e ---> E, Q ----> E, « ---> Q, Q ---> Ã,  ----> ow, V-----> Vw /, constitute the prime fossilized mistake continuum for the Turkish teachers,teacher trainees and students in learning and teaching English as a foreign language.”Demirezen, 2007e: 306. This articles aims at analyzing and offering rehabilitative solutionsto one of such core sounds, namely / Q ---> à / contrast that harms the pronunciation ofTurkish learners of English.

Tutorial: Speech Assessment for Multilingual Children Who Do Not Speak the Same Language(s) as the Speech-Language Pathologist.

Science.gov (United States)

McLeod, Sharynne; Verdon, Sarah

2017-08-15

The aim of this tutorial is to support speech-language pathologists (SLPs) undertaking assessments of multilingual children with suspected speech sound disorders, particularly children who speak languages that are not shared with their SLP. The tutorial was written by the International Expert Panel on Multilingual Children's Speech, which comprises 46 researchers (SLPs, linguists, phoneticians, and speech scientists) who have worked in 43 countries and used 27 languages in professional practice. Seventeen panel members met for a 1-day workshop to identify key points for inclusion in the tutorial, 26 panel members contributed to writing this tutorial, and 34 members contributed to revising this tutorial online (some members contributed to more than 1 task). This tutorial draws on international research evidence and professional expertise to provide a comprehensive overview of working with multilingual children with suspected speech sound disorders. This overview addresses referral, case history, assessment, analysis, diagnosis, and goal setting and the SLP's cultural competence and preparation for working with interpreters and multicultural support workers and dealing with organizational and government barriers to and facilitators of culturally competent practice. The issues raised in this tutorial are applied in a hypothetical case study of an English-speaking SLP's assessment of a multilingual Cantonese- and English-speaking 4-year-old boy. Resources are listed throughout the tutorial.

Evaluating the Use of Plain Language in a Cancer Clinical Trial Website/App.

Science.gov (United States)

Schultz, Paula L; Carlisle, Regina; Cheatham, Chesley; O'Grady, Melissa

2017-12-01

Medically complex titles and descriptions found on clinical trial websites and online applications present a barrier to comprehension for users from the general public. In this study, we examine the effectiveness of plain language trial descriptions for user comprehension of basic trial details. Two hundred seventeen volunteers recruited from patient waiting areas completed 441 user tests of ten plain language trial descriptions. The majority of volunteers adequately comprehended the cancer type and basic inclusion/exclusion criteria from plain language trial descriptions. Difficulty comprehending the treatment being studied was seen in seven of ten descriptions tested. Revision and retesting of the seven trial descriptions showed continued user challenges in comprehending the treatment being studied. Plain language clinical trial descriptions integrated into a website/app allowed users to understand basic inclusion/exclusion criteria. Despite plain language used, discerning the treatment being studied may be difficult for some users. Integration of plain language descriptions into clinical trial online applications can help users understand trial basics. Further research regarding effective use of plain language to communicate the treatment being studied is needed.

The Elements of Language Curriculum: A Systematic Approach to Program Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, James Dean

A systematic approach to second language curriculum development is outlined, enumerating the phases and activities involved in developing and implementing a sound and effective language program. The first chapter describes a system whereby all language teaching activities can be classified into approaches, syllabuses, techniques, exercises, or…

Sound of mind : electrophysiological and behavioural evidence for the role of context, variation and informativity in human speech processing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nixon, Jessie Sophia

2014-01-01

Spoken communication involves transmission of a message which takes physical form in acoustic waves. Within any given language, acoustic cues pattern in language-specific ways along language-specific acoustic dimensions to create speech sound contrasts. These cues are utilized by listeners to

Machine tongues. X. Constraint languages

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Levitt, D.

Constraint languages and programming environments will help the designer produce a lucid description of a problem domain, and then of particular situations and problems in it. Early versions of these languages were given descriptions of real world domain constraints, like the operation of electrical and mechanical parts. More recently, the author has automated a vocabulary for describing musical jazz phrases, using constraint language as a jazz improviser. General constraint languages will handle all of these domains. Once the model is in place, the system will connect built-in code fragments and algorithms to answer questions about situations; that is, to help solve problems. Bugs will surface not in code, but in designs themselves. 15 references.

Automation in the Teaching of Descriptive Geometry and CAD. High-Level CAD Templates Using Script Languages

Science.gov (United States)

Moreno, R.; Bazán, A. M.

2017-10-01

The main purpose of this work is to study improvements to the learning method of technical drawing and descriptive geometry through exercises with traditional techniques that are usually solved manually by applying automated processes assisted by high-level CAD templates (HLCts). Given that an exercise with traditional procedures can be solved, detailed step by step in technical drawing and descriptive geometry manuals, CAD applications allow us to do the same and generalize it later, incorporating references. Traditional teachings have become obsolete and current curricula have been relegated. However, they can be applied in certain automation processes. The use of geometric references (using variables in script languages) and their incorporation into HLCts allows the automation of drawing processes. Instead of repeatedly creating similar exercises or modifying data in the same exercises, users should be able to use HLCts to generate future modifications of these exercises. This paper introduces the automation process when generating exercises based on CAD script files, aided by parametric geometry calculation tools. The proposed method allows us to design new exercises without user intervention. The integration of CAD, mathematics, and descriptive geometry facilitates their joint learning. Automation in the generation of exercises not only saves time but also increases the quality of the statements and reduces the possibility of human error.

Sound post production in advertising and in the film, case study of Studio Beep s.r.o.

OpenAIRE

Struhařová, Michaela

2012-01-01

Main topic of this thesis is description of sound post production in advertising and in the film film industry and making case study of company Studio Beep s.r.o. First aim of this thesis is describe as clearly as possible the theory of sound and sound post production in advertising and in film industry and also show specifics accompanying production of sound in each discipline. The theoretical part contains basic overview about history of sound, sound dramaturgy and about general principles ...

Anglophonic Influence in the Use of Sound Symbolism in Italian Disney Comics: A Corpus-based Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pischedda Pier Simone

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This article will explore the linguistic implications of employing and creating sound symbolism (ideophones, onomatopoeia and interjections in Italian Disney comics. It will endeavour to investigate the way sound symbolic forms in both imported Disney US comics and original Italian stories have profoundly influenced the development of Italian sound symbolism in the last century. The diachronic analysis is carried out thanks to the creation of a corpus of ideophones and interjections from 210 Disney stories published between 1932 and 2013. The corpus will allow the author to investigate how these forms have changed diachronically throughout the eighty years under investigation with the final aim of highlighting changes and patterns in both original and translated Italian stories. The unique status of ideophones, confirmed by language, sociological and neurological studies, has led to interesting experimentations but also to complicated dynamics. Certain linguistic settings seem to foster a better affinity towards the device- particularly if compared to Romance languages, such as Italian and Spanish, that often have to rely on Anglophone renditions. Anglicisation has indeed overshadowed previous original attempts. Nevertheless, recent creations, particularly from cartoonists, bear witness to a willingness to stretch language again in order to enhance language iconicity.

Neural Correlates of Phonological Processing in Speech Sound Disorder: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Science.gov (United States)

Tkach, Jean A.; Chen, Xu; Freebairn, Lisa A.; Schmithorst, Vincent J.; Holland, Scott K.; Lewis, Barbara A.

2011-01-01

Speech sound disorders (SSD) are the largest group of communication disorders observed in children. One explanation for these disorders is that children with SSD fail to form stable phonological representations when acquiring the speech sound system of their language due to poor phonological memory (PM). The goal of this study was to examine PM in…

TEACHING AND TRAINING WITH MOTION PICTURES (MAGNETIC SOUND).

Science.gov (United States)

Bell and Howell Co., Lincolnwood, IL.

THE PREPARATION OF A MAGNETIC-SOUND TRACK FOR 16 MM. MOTION PICTURE FILMS IS DESCRIBED. IN SCRIPT PREPARATION, THE SCRIPT SHOULD BE WRITTEN IN NARRATIVE FORM TO INCLUDE ALL SHOTS NEEDED AND TO SUPPLEMENT AND GIVE INFORMATION NOT IN THE FILM. LANGUAGE SHOULD BE KEPT SIMPLE, AND UNAVOIDABLE TECHNICAL TERMS SHOULD BE EXPLAINED. IN REWRITING THE…

The Mechanics of Fingerspelling: Analyzing Ethiopian Sign Language

Science.gov (United States)

Duarte, Kyle

2010-01-01

Ethiopian Sign Language utilizes a fingerspelling system that represents Amharic orthography. Just as each character of the Amharic abugida encodes a consonant-vowel sound pair, each sign in the Ethiopian Sign Language fingerspelling system uses handshape to encode a base consonant, as well as a combination of timing, placement, and orientation to…

ENGLISH IN PRESCHOOL CURRICULUM: A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH AS AN INTRA-SCHOOL CURRICULUM IN A PRESCHOOL IN BANDUNG

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuli Rachmawati

2014-10-01

Full Text Available In this era, the importance of English leads people to introduce English education even in preschools. English education for preschoolers isbelieved to help fosterchildren’s language and cognitive developments. However, to achieve this benefit, a sound curriculum is required.Since creating a sound English curriculum is not an easy thing to do, a careful examination on English in the preschool curriculum needs to be performed. This study therefore aims to find out the goals of integrating English as an intra-school curriculum in a preschool in Bandung and the teacher’s attempts to achieve these goals in terms of four basic components of curriculum taken fromCayadong (2011 and Tyler (Posner,1992; the objectives, the materials, the methods and the assessments. A descriptive study using a document analysis, an interview and an observation as the data collection techniques was employed. The finding showed that English was integrated to help children to be able to communicate using English in school and family context in a simple language. Theme-based teaching and learning using drilling and total physical response (TPR as methods were conducted to achieve the goals. Meanwhile, to make sure of the goals attainment, students wereassessed by using observations and tests.

Unconscious improvement in foreign language learning using mismatch negativity neurofeedback: A preliminary study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ming Chang

Full Text Available When people learn foreign languages, they find it difficult to perceive speech sounds that are nonexistent in their native language, and extensive training is consequently necessary. Our previous studies have shown that by using neurofeedback based on the mismatch negativity event-related brain potential, participants could unconsciously achieve learning in the auditory discrimination of pure tones that could not be consciously discriminated without the neurofeedback. Here, we examined whether mismatch negativity neurofeedback is effective for helping someone to perceive new speech sounds in foreign language learning. We developed a task for training native Japanese speakers to discriminate between 'l' and 'r' sounds in English, as they usually cannot discriminate between these two sounds. Without participants attending to auditory stimuli or being aware of the nature of the experiment, neurofeedback training helped them to achieve significant improvement in unconscious auditory discrimination and recognition of the target words 'light' and 'right'. There was also improvement in the recognition of other words containing 'l' and 'r' (e.g., 'blight' and 'bright', even though these words had not been presented during training. This method could be used to facilitate foreign language learning and can be extended to other fields of auditory and clinical research and even other senses.

The Sizing and Optimization Language, (SOL): Computer language for design problems

Science.gov (United States)

Lucas, Stephen H.; Scotti, Stephen J.

1988-01-01

The Sizing and Optimization Language, (SOL), a new high level, special purpose computer language was developed to expedite application of numerical optimization to design problems and to make the process less error prone. SOL utilizes the ADS optimization software and provides a clear, concise syntax for describing an optimization problem, the OPTIMIZE description, which closely parallels the mathematical description of the problem. SOL offers language statements which can be used to model a design mathematically, with subroutines or code logic, and with existing FORTRAN routines. In addition, SOL provides error checking and clear output of the optimization results. Because of these language features, SOL is best suited to model and optimize a design concept when the model consits of mathematical expressions written in SOL. For such cases, SOL's unique syntax and error checking can be fully utilized. SOL is presently available for DEC VAX/VMS systems. A SOL package is available which includes the SOL compiler, runtime library routines, and a SOL reference manual.

Foley Sounds vs Real Sounds

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trento, Stefano; Götzen, Amalia De

2011-01-01

This paper is an initial attempt to study the world of sound effects for motion pictures, also known as Foley sounds. Throughout several audio and audio-video tests we have compared both Foley and real sounds originated by an identical action. The main purpose was to evaluate if sound effects...

Why are some languages confused for others? Investigating data from the Great Language Game.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hedvig Skirgård

Full Text Available In this paper we explore the results of a large-scale online game called 'the Great Language Game', in which people listen to an audio speech sample and make a forced-choice guess about the identity of the language from 2 or more alternatives. The data include 15 million guesses from 400 audio recordings of 78 languages. We investigate which languages are confused for which in the game, and if this correlates with the similarities that linguists identify between languages. This includes shared lexical items, similar sound inventories and established historical relationships. Our findings are, as expected, that players are more likely to confuse two languages that are objectively more similar. We also investigate factors that may affect players' ability to accurately select the target language, such as how many people speak the language, how often the language is mentioned in written materials and the economic power of the target language community. We see that non-linguistic factors affect players' ability to accurately identify the target. For example, languages with wider 'global reach' are more often identified correctly. This suggests that both linguistic and cultural knowledge influence the perception and recognition of languages and their similarity.

Why are some languages confused for others? Investigating data from the Great Language Game.

Science.gov (United States)

Skirgård, Hedvig; Roberts, Seán G; Yencken, Lars

2017-01-01

In this paper we explore the results of a large-scale online game called 'the Great Language Game', in which people listen to an audio speech sample and make a forced-choice guess about the identity of the language from 2 or more alternatives. The data include 15 million guesses from 400 audio recordings of 78 languages. We investigate which languages are confused for which in the game, and if this correlates with the similarities that linguists identify between languages. This includes shared lexical items, similar sound inventories and established historical relationships. Our findings are, as expected, that players are more likely to confuse two languages that are objectively more similar. We also investigate factors that may affect players' ability to accurately select the target language, such as how many people speak the language, how often the language is mentioned in written materials and the economic power of the target language community. We see that non-linguistic factors affect players' ability to accurately identify the target. For example, languages with wider 'global reach' are more often identified correctly. This suggests that both linguistic and cultural knowledge influence the perception and recognition of languages and their similarity.

Quantum logical description of microsystems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stachow, E.-W.

1984-01-01

An abstract object language with respect to single microsystems and its pragmatic foundation are considered in a systematic way. The quantum physical restrictions of local operations of a speaker lead to a propositional language which, under certain conditions, can be referred to an individual microsystem. The time dependence of the propositions according to the measuring process is discussed. Finally the language is extended to a space-time description of microsystems. Hereby relativity imposes certain constraints on the validi ty regions of propositions in space-time. Via realization, the language establishes the essential features of quantum physics in Hilbert space. (author)

A descriptive study of culture related terms in translation of Harry Potter Novel from English to Urdu language

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sana Mansoor

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Translation of children fantasy novels and problems faced by translators in translating these novels into different languages is one of the core issues in the field of translation studies. This issue has got attention of many researchers and an extensive study has been carried out on various novels. The Harry Potter series of novels written by British author J.K. Rowling is one of the famous children fantasy novels that gained popularity worldwide and was translated into 73 languages. The use of various cultural terms and made up words in the novel has posed a great challenge for the translators. The purpose of the present study is to identify these cultural related terms and made up words in the novel “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” and to investigate the strategies used by the translator in translating them into Urdu language. A descriptive analysis of the translation of culture related items and made up words was made using the strategies proposed by Davies (2003. The findings of this research showed that translator mostly emphasized and predominantly used localization and transformation strategies for food items, magical objects and imaginative words.

Descriptive studies of Purepecha: Introductory study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Violeta Vázquez Rojas Maldonado

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Seven papers in this volume are the result of a collective project of linguistic description. This introduction offers a general background for such enterprise. It provides information about some sociolinguistic and grammatical aspects of the Purepecha language, a list of some recent studies on the language, it describes the orthographic conventions employed. We also provide details about the elicitation methodology and the demographic information of the language consultants.

78 FR 13869 - Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-01

...-123-LNG; 12-128-NG; 12-148-NG; 12- 158-NG] Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy, Inc.; CE FLNG, LLC; Consolidated...-NG Puget Sound Energy, Inc Order granting long- term authority to import/export natural gas from/to...

THE COMPARISONS AND CONTRASTS BETWEEN ENGLISH AND MALAY LANGUAGES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohd Nazri Latiff Azmi

2016-06-01

Full Text Available English and Malay languages are categorized as popular languages in the world. However, both languages underwent different history and composition. This study investigates the languages in terms of history, phonology, loanwords, grammar, morphology and semantics. The purposes of studying the comparisons and contrasts of both languages are not only to analyze the uniqueness of the languages but also to identify the process of understanding the languages especially the view of second language learners. It is found that two languages come from different background; somehow they share similar characteristics such as the vowels sounds, loanwords and semantics. However, the learners face difficulty in learning both languages especially in pronunciations and spelling.

Noise barriers and the harmonoise sound propagation model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Salomons, E.M.; Maercke, D. van; Randrianoelina, A.

2009-01-01

The Harmonoise sound propagation model ('the Harmonoise engineering model') was developed in the European project Harmonoise (2001-2004) for road and rail traffic noise. In 2008, CSTB Grenoble and TNO Delft have prepared a detailed description of the various steps involved in a calculation with the

Automated Linguistic Personality Description and Recognition Methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Danylyuk Illya

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Background: The relevance of our research, above all, is theoretically motivated by the development of extraordinary scientific and practical interest in the possibilities of language processing of huge amount of data generated by people in everyday professional and personal life in the electronic forms of communication (e-mail, sms, voice, audio and video blogs, social networks, etc.. Purpose: The purpose of the article is to describe the theoretical and practical framework of the project "Communicative-pragmatic and discourse-grammatical lingvopersonology: structuring linguistic identity and computer modeling". The description of key techniques is given, such as machine learning for language modeling, speech synthesis, handwriting simulation. Results: Lingvopersonology developed some great theoretical foundations, its methods, tools, and significant achievements let us predict that the newest promising trend is a linguistic identity modeling by means of information technology, including language. We see three aspects of the modeling: 1 modeling the semantic level of linguistic identity – by means of the use of corpus linguistics; 2 sound level formal modeling of linguistic identity – with the help of speech synthesis; 3 formal graphic level modeling of linguistic identity – with the help of image synthesis (handwriting. For the first case, we suppose to use machine learning technics and vector-space (word2vec algorithm for textual speech modeling. Hybrid CUTE method for personality speech modeling will be applied to the second case. Finally, trained with the person handwriting images neural network can be an instrument for the last case. Discussion: The project "Communicative-pragmatic, discourse, and grammatical lingvopersonology: structuring linguistic identity and computer modeling", which is implementing by the Department of General and Applied Linguistics and Slavonic philology, selected a task to model Yuriy Shevelyov (Sherekh�

The impact of second language learning on semantic and nonsemantic first language reading.

Science.gov (United States)

Nosarti, Chiara; Mechelli, Andrea; Green, David W; Price, Cathy J

2010-02-01

The relationship between orthography (spelling) and phonology (speech sounds) varies across alphabetic languages. Consequently, learning to read a second alphabetic language, that uses the same letters as the first, increases the phonological associations that can be linked to the same orthographic units. In subjects with English as their first language, previous functional imaging studies have reported increased left ventral prefrontal activation for reading words with spellings that are inconsistent with their orthographic neighbors (e.g., PINT) compared with words that are consistent with their orthographic neighbors (e.g., SHIP). Here, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in 17 Italian-English and 13 English-Italian bilinguals, we demonstrate that left ventral prefrontal activation for first language reading increases with second language vocabulary knowledge. This suggests that learning a second alphabetic language changes the way that words are read in the first alphabetic language. Specifically, first language reading is more reliant on both lexical/semantic and nonlexical processing when new orthographic to phonological mappings are introduced by second language learning. Our observations were in a context that required participants to switch between languages. They motivate future fMRI studies to test whether first language reading is also altered in contexts when the second language is not in use.

Agent based models of language competition: macroscopic descriptions and order–disorder transitions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vazquez, F; Castelló, X; San Miguel, M

2010-01-01

We investigate the dynamics of two agent based models of language competition. In the first model, each individual can be in one of two possible states, either using language X or language Y, while the second model incorporates a third state XY, representing individuals that use both languages (bilinguals). We analyze the models on complex networks and two-dimensional square lattices by analytical and numerical methods, and show that they exhibit a transition from one-language dominance to language coexistence. We find that the coexistence of languages is more difficult to maintain in the bilinguals model, where the presence of bilinguals facilitates the ultimate dominance of one of the two languages. A stability analysis reveals that the coexistence is more unlikely to happen in poorly connected than in fully connected networks, and that the dominance of just one language is enhanced as the connectivity decreases. This dominance effect is even stronger in a two-dimensional space, where domain coarsening tends to drive the system towards language consensus

Robust segmentation and retrieval of environmental sounds

Science.gov (United States)

Wichern, Gordon

retrieve audio information from sound or text queries, and can automatically annotate an unlabeled sound event with an appropriate semantic description. Successful retrieval of environmental sounds from the hybrid network using several test databases is demonstrated and quantified in terms of standard information retrieval metrics.

Detection and description of surface breaking cracks by means of optical sound field visualization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crostack, H.A.; Krueger, A.

1986-01-01

The authors present an ultrasound testing method for surface-breaking cracks in components. The method is based on large-area imaging of ultrasound by means of an optical receiver system. The receiver system is based on the principle of holographic interferometry. Application of double exposure technique using a double pulse laser and of sensitivity boosting measures allowed to construct a holographic sound field camera (sensitivity threshold: 0.2 nm) which allows large-area sound detection (in the square meter range) without requiring the usual methods for vibrational insulation in contrast to all the other optical interferometric and holographic techniques. (orig./DG) [de

The Relationship Between Speech, Language, and Phonological Awareness in Preschool-Age Children With Developmental Disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Barton-Hulsey, Andrea; Sevcik, Rose A; Romski, MaryAnn

2018-05-03

A number of intrinsic factors, including expressive speech skills, have been suggested to place children with developmental disabilities at risk for limited development of reading skills. This study examines the relationship between these factors, speech ability, and children's phonological awareness skills. A nonexperimental study design was used to examine the relationship between intrinsic skills of speech, language, print, and letter-sound knowledge to phonological awareness in 42 children with developmental disabilities between the ages of 48 and 69 months. Hierarchical multiple regression was done to determine if speech ability accounted for a unique amount of variance in phonological awareness skill beyond what would be expected by developmental skills inclusive of receptive language and print and letter-sound knowledge. A range of skill in all areas of direct assessment was found. Children with limited speech were found to have emerging skills in print knowledge, letter-sound knowledge, and phonological awareness. Speech ability did not predict a significant amount of variance in phonological awareness beyond what would be expected by developmental skills of receptive language and print and letter-sound knowledge. Children with limited speech ability were found to have receptive language and letter-sound knowledge that supported the development of phonological awareness skills. This study provides implications for practitioners and researchers concerning the factors related to early reading development in children with limited speech ability and developmental disabilities.

Whys & therefores a rational look at the English language

CERN Document Server

Rutherford, William

2011-01-01

Whys & Therefores aids the reader to arrive at generalizations for the shape of the English language: words, grammar, meaning, sound and spelling. The format adopted throughout is that of a light-hearted ongoing Socratic dialogue between a mentor and a pupil. The intended effects of such activity are: awareness of what it means to 'know' a language; reliance upon native-language intuition; discovery of what one didn't know that one already 'knows' about the language; use of ungrammaticality as an investigative tool; healthy questioning of received facts about language from so-called experts; a

Music and language: relations and disconnections.

Science.gov (United States)

Kraus, Nina; Slater, Jessica

2015-01-01

Music and language provide an important context in which to understand the human auditory system. While they perform distinct and complementary communicative functions, music and language are both rooted in the human desire to connect with others. Since sensory function is ultimately shaped by what is biologically important to the organism, the human urge to communicate has been a powerful driving force in both the evolution of auditory function and the ways in which it can be changed by experience within an individual lifetime. This chapter emphasizes the highly interactive nature of the auditory system as well as the depth of its integration with other sensory and cognitive systems. From the origins of music and language to the effects of auditory expertise on the neural encoding of sound, we consider key themes in auditory processing, learning, and plasticity. We emphasize the unique role of the auditory system as the temporal processing "expert" in the brain, and explore relationships between communication and cognition. We demonstrate how experience with music and language can have a significant impact on underlying neural function, and that auditory expertise strengthens some of the very same aspects of sound encoding that are deficient in impaired populations. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Graphic Description: The Mystery of Ibn Khafaja\\'s Success in Description

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جواد رنجبر

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Graphic Description:   The Mystery of Ibn Khafaja's Success in Description    Ali Bagher Taheriniya *  Javad Ranjbar **      Abstract Ibn Khafaja is one of the poets and men of letters in Spain. He is titled to Sanobari of Spain. He is one of the masters of description. Hence, the analysis of successful techniques he has used in the descriptive art could illuminate the way for others. Al-Taswir al-harfi (graphic description is a term which denotes the highest and most detailed poems. On this basis, the best descriptive poem is one which is closer to a painting. He has used some elements called conforming elements of description which contain: imagination, feeling, faculty, and dialogue as well as three other elements: to be inborn in description, enchanting nature and convenient life. This article is going to give an analysis of the reasons for Ibn Khafaja’s success in description and portrait making.   Key words: Ibn Khafaja, poetry, description, portrait   * Associate Professor, Bu Ali Sina University of Hamadan E-mail: bTaheriniya@yahoo.com  ** M.A. in Arabic Language and Literature

Cognitive Bias for Learning Speech Sounds From a Continuous Signal Space Seems Nonlinguistic

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Sabine van der Ham

2015-10-01

Full Text Available When learning language, humans have a tendency to produce more extreme distributions of speech sounds than those observed most frequently: In rapid, casual speech, vowel sounds are centralized, yet cross-linguistically, peripheral vowels occur almost universally. We investigate whether adults’ generalization behavior reveals selective pressure for communication when they learn skewed distributions of speech-like sounds from a continuous signal space. The domain-specific hypothesis predicts that the emergence of sound categories is driven by a cognitive bias to make these categories maximally distinct, resulting in more skewed distributions in participants’ reproductions. However, our participants showed more centered distributions, which goes against this hypothesis, indicating that there are no strong innate linguistic biases that affect learning these speech-like sounds. The centralization behavior can be explained by a lack of communicative pressure to maintain categories.

Language and Speech Improvement for Kindergarten and First Grade. A Supplementary Handbook.

Science.gov (United States)

Cole, Roberta; And Others

The 16-unit language and speech improvement handbook for kindergarten and first grade students contains an introductory section which includes a discussion of the child's developmental speech and language characteristics, a sound development chart, a speech and hearing language screening test, the Henja articulation test, and a general outline of…

Sound Evidence: The Missing Piece of the Jigsaw in Formulaic Language Research

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Phoebe M. S.

2012-01-01

With the ever increasing number of studies on formulaic language, we are beginning to learn more about the processing of formulaic language (e.g. Ellis et al. 2008; Siyanova et al. 2011), its use in speech (e.g. Aijmer 1996; Wood 2012) and writing (e.g. Hyland 2008a, 2008b) and its application in natural language processing (e.g. Tschichold 2000).…

A multipole-expanded effective field theory for vortex ring-sound interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Saenz, Sebastian; Mitsou, Ermis; Nicolis, Alberto

2018-02-01

The low-energy dynamics of a zero temperature superfluid or of the compressional modes of an ordinary fluid can be described by a simple effective theory for a scalar field — the superfluid `phase'. However, when vortex lines are present, to describe all interactions in a local fashion one has to switch to a magnetic-type dual two-form description, which comes with six degrees of freedom (in place of one) and an associated gauge redundancy, and is thus considerably more complicated. Here we show that, in the case of vortex rings and for bulk modes that are much longer than the typical ring size, one can perform a systematic multipole expansion of the effective action and recast it into the simpler scalar field language. In a sense, in the presence of vortex rings the non-single valuedness of the scalar can be hidden inside the rings, and thus out of the reach of the multipole expansion. As an application of our techniques, we compute by standard effective field theory methods the sound emitted by an oscillating vortex ring.

The language parallel Pascal and other aspects of the massively parallel processor

Science.gov (United States)

Reeves, A. P.; Bruner, J. D.

1982-01-01

A high level language for the Massively Parallel Processor (MPP) was designed. This language, called Parallel Pascal, is described in detail. A description of the language design, a description of the intermediate language, Parallel P-Code, and details for the MPP implementation are included. Formal descriptions of Parallel Pascal and Parallel P-Code are given. A compiler was developed which converts programs in Parallel Pascal into the intermediate Parallel P-Code language. The code generator to complete the compiler for the MPP is being developed independently. A Parallel Pascal to Pascal translator was also developed. The architecture design for a VLSI version of the MPP was completed with a description of fault tolerant interconnection networks. The memory arrangement aspects of the MPP are discussed and a survey of other high level languages is given.

Description logic rules

CERN Document Server

Krötzsch, M

2010-01-01

Ontological modelling today is applied in many areas of science and technology,including the Semantic Web. The W3C standard OWL defines one of the most important ontology languages based on the semantics of description logics. An alternative is to use rule languages in knowledge modelling, as proposed in the W3C's RIF standard. So far, it has often been unclear how to combine both technologies without sacrificing essential computational properties. This book explains this problem and presents new solutions that have recently been proposed. Extensive introductory chapters provide the necessary

Language of advertising

OpenAIRE

Krchňáková, Leontina

2015-01-01

This work is devoted to the Russian language advertising, which examines in an independent system. It aims are analyzing the text of Russian advertising in terms of its information and formal structure. It focuses on a specific aesthetic qualities of language, which the text uses. Work is further focused on the categorization of neologisms and neologisation of the Russian advertising. Next focus is on loanwords from the English language. Used research methods are descriptive and comparative. ...

Language Planning and Planned Languages: How Can Planned Languages Inform Language Planning?

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Humphrey Tonkin

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The field of language planning (LP has largely ignored planned languages. Of classic descriptions of LP processes, only Tauli (preceded by Wüster suggests that planned languages (what Wüster calls Plansprache might bear on LP theory and practice. If LP aims "to modify the linguistic behaviour of some community for some reason," as Kaplan and Baldauf put it, creating a language de novo is little different. Language policy and planning are increasingly seen as more local and less official, and occasionally more international and cosmopolitan. Zamenhof's work on Esperanto provides extensive material, little studied, documenting the formation of the language and linking it particularly to issues of supranational LP. Defining LP decision-making, Kaplan & Baldauf begin with context and target population. Zamenhof's Esperanto came shortly before Ben-Yehuda's revived Hebrew. His target community was (mostly the world's educated elite; Ben-Yehuda's was worldwide Jewry. Both planners were driven not by linguistic interest but by sociopolitical ideology rooted in reaction to anti-Semitism and imbued with the idea of progress. Their territories had no boundaries, but were not imaginary. Function mattered as much as form (Haugen's terms, status as much as corpus. For Zamenhof, status planning involved emphasis on Esperanto's ownership by its community - a collective planning process embracing all speakers (cf. Hebrew. Corpus planning included a standardized European semantics, lexical selectivity based not simply on standardization but on representation, and the development of written, and literary, style. Esperanto was successful as linguistic system and community language, less as generally accepted lingua franca. Its terminology development and language cultivation offers a model for language revival, but Zamenhof's somewhat limited analysis of language economy left him unprepared to deal with language as power.

Children with language problems in a speech and hearing clinic : Background variables and extent of language problems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Keegstra, A.L.; Knijff, W.A.; Post, W.J.; Goorhuis-Brouwer, S.M.

Objective: Analysis of a clinical population referred for language analysis in terms of background variables and extent of language problems. Design: Descriptive study. Materials and methods: Children referred to a speech and hearing clinic because of assumed language problems were analyzed with

Why are some languages confused for others? Investigating data from the Great Language Game

Science.gov (United States)

2017-01-01

In this paper we explore the results of a large-scale online game called ‘the Great Language Game’, in which people listen to an audio speech sample and make a forced-choice guess about the identity of the language from 2 or more alternatives. The data include 15 million guesses from 400 audio recordings of 78 languages. We investigate which languages are confused for which in the game, and if this correlates with the similarities that linguists identify between languages. This includes shared lexical items, similar sound inventories and established historical relationships. Our findings are, as expected, that players are more likely to confuse two languages that are objectively more similar. We also investigate factors that may affect players’ ability to accurately select the target language, such as how many people speak the language, how often the language is mentioned in written materials and the economic power of the target language community. We see that non-linguistic factors affect players’ ability to accurately identify the target. For example, languages with wider ‘global reach’ are more often identified correctly. This suggests that both linguistic and cultural knowledge influence the perception and recognition of languages and their similarity. PMID:28379970

The English ( and ( Vowel Sounds as Fossilized Pronunciation Errors for the Turkish Teachers of English and Solutions to the Problem

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Mehmet DEMİREZEN

2006-10-01

Full Text Available The Fossilized pronunciation errors constitute a great problem in the mastery of L2in second or foreign language learning and teaching (Odlin 1989; Demirezen, 2003;Demirezen, 2004; Johnson, 2001. One of such errors, which is committed by a greatmajority of Turkish teachers of English and student teachers, is the acquisition of ƒËƒÁƒÍ andƒËƒµƒÍ vowel sounds of the English language. There has been no specific material or lessonplan encountered so far in the literature to rehabilitate the pronunciation difficulty, createdby ƒËƒÁƒÍ and ƒËƒµƒÍ vowel sounds of the English language. Therefore, this article aims toprovide pronunciation teaching material and a sample lesson on two difficult sounds forTurks, like ƒËƒÁƒÍ and ƒËƒµƒÍ, to the Turkish teachers-on-the-job and student teachers ofEnglish.

Using Specification and Description Language (SDL) for capturing and reusing human experts' knowledge

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Far, B.H.; Koono, Zenya

1994-01-01

Conventional knowledge engineering techniques for acquiring experts' knowledge can not produce quality knowledge due to improper knowledge documentation and informal knowledge acquisition method. We propose a new method for knowledge documentation and acquisition using Specification and Description Language (SDL). SDL is used to describe both the target system and the reasoning process. The main idea is to follow deterministic problem solving behavior of human experts and document it. Then knowledge can be extracted by comparing documents of the successive steps. This knowledge is recorded and reused in similar or novel cases. We present an implementation of this method in a tool for software design. The implemented system consists of a SDL CASE tool and an expert system for applying the design knowledge. This system serves as an experimental platform for the study of human design by simulating the design at the lowest level. However, we have found that by acquiring enough domain knowledge, this system can simulate general problem solving of human experts. (author)

Cross-Modal Correspondence between Brightness and Chinese Speech Sound with Aspiration

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Sachiko Hirata

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Phonetic symbolism is the phenomenon of speech sounds evoking images based on sensory experiences; it is often discussed with cross-modal correspondence. By using Garner's task, Hirata, Kita, and Ukita (2009 showed the cross-modal congruence between brightness and voiced/voiceless consonants in Japanese speech sound, which is known as phonetic symbolism. In the present study, we examined the effect of the meaning of mimetics (lexical words whose sound reflects its meaning, like “ding-dong” in Japanese language on the cross-modal correspondence. We conducted an experiment with Chinese speech sounds with or without aspiration using Chinese people. Chinese vocabulary also contains mimetics but the existence of aspiration doesn't relate to the meaning of Chinese mimetics. As a result, Chinese speech sounds with aspiration, which resemble voiceless consonants, were matched with white color, whereas those without aspiration were matched with black. This result is identical to its pattern in Japanese people and consequently suggests that cross-modal correspondence occurs without the effect of the meaning of mimetics. The problem that whether these cross-modal correspondences are purely based on physical properties of speech sound or affected from phonetic properties remains for further study.

Driving the SID chip: Assembly language, composition, and sound design for the C64

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James Newman

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The MOS6581, more commonly known as the Sound Interface Device, or SID chip, was the sonic heart of the Commodore 64 home computer. By considering the chip’s development, specification, uses and creative abuses by composers and programmers, alongside its continuing legacy, this paper argues that, more than any other device, the SID chip is responsible for shaping the sound of videogame music. Compared with the brutal atonality of chips such as Atari’s TIA, the SID chip offers a complex 3-channel synthesizer with dynamic waveform selection, per-channel ADSR envelopes, multi-mode filter, ring and cross modulation. However, while the specification is sophisticated, the exploitation of the vagaries and imperfections of the chip are just as significant to its sonic character. As such, the compositional, sound design and programming techniques developed by 1980s composer-coders like Rob Hubbard and Martin Galway are central in defining the distinctive sound of C64 gameplay. Exploring the affordances of the chip and the distinctive ways they were harnessed, the argument of this paper centers on the inexorable link between the technological and the musical. Crucially, composers like Hubbard et al. developed their own bespoke low-level drivers to interface with the SID chip to create pseudo-polyphony through rapid arpeggiation and channel sharing, drum synthesis through waveform manipulation, portamento, and even sample playback. This paper analyses the indivisibility of sound design, synthesis and composition in the birth of these musical forms and aesthetics, and assesses their impact on what would go on to be defined as chiptunes.

Language and Ageing--Exploring Propositional Density in Written Language--Stability over Time

Science.gov (United States)

Spencer, Elizabeth; Craig, Hugh; Ferguson, Alison; Colyvas, Kim

2012-01-01

This study investigated the stability of propositional density (PD) in written texts, as this aspect of language shows promise as an indicator and as a predictor of language decline with ageing. This descriptive longitudinal study analysed written texts obtained from the Australian Longitudinal Study of Women's Health in which participants were…

Philippine and North Bornean Languages: Issues in Description, Subgrouping, and Reconstruction

Science.gov (United States)

Lobel, Jason William

2013-01-01

The Philippines, northern Sulawesi, and northern Borneo are home to two or three hundred languages that can be described as Philippine-type. In spite of nearly five hundred years of language documentation in the Philippines, and at least a century of work in Borneo and Sulawesi, the majority of these languages remain grossly underdocumented, and…

MALL Technology: Use of Academic Podcasting in the Foreign Language Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Abdous, M'hammed; Camarena, Margaret M.; Facer, Betty Rose

2009-01-01

Integrating Mobile Assisted Language Learning (MALL) technology (personal multimedia players, cell phones, and handheld devices) into the foreign language curriculum is becoming commonplace in many secondary and higher education institutions. Current research has identified both pedagogically sound applications and important benefits to students.…

The Keyimage Method of Learning Sound-Symbol Correspondences: A Case Study of Learning Written Khmer

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Elizabeth Lavolette

2009-01-01

Full Text Available I documented my strategies for learning sound-symbol correspondences during a Khmer course. I used a mnemonic strategy that I call the keyimage method. In this method, a character evokes an image (the keyimage, which evokes the corresponding sound. For example, the keyimage for the character 2 could be a swan with its head tucked in. This evokes the sound "kaw" that a swan makes, which sounds similar to the Khmer sound corresponding to 2. The method has some similarities to the keyword method. Considering the results of keyword studies, I hypothesize that the keyimage method is more effective than rote learning and that peer-generated keyimages are more effective than researcher- or teacher-generated keyimages, which are more effective than learner-generated ones. In Dr. Andrew Cohen's plenary presentation at the Hawaii TESOL 2007 conference, he mentioned that more case studies are needed on learning strategies (LSs. One reason to study LSs is that what learners do with input to produce output is unclear, and knowing what strategies learners use may help us understand that process (Dornyei, 2005, p. 170. Hopefully, we can use that knowledge to improve language learning, perhaps by teaching learners to use the strategies that we find. With that in mind, I have examined the LSs that I used in studying Khmer as a foreign language, focusing on learning the syllabic alphabet.

Winter sound-level characterization of the Deaf Smith County location in the Palo Duro Basin, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-03-01

A description of sound levels and sound sources in the Deaf Smith County location in the Palo Duro Basin during a period representative of the winter season is presented. Data were collected during the period February 26 through March 1, 1983. 4 references, 1 figure, 3 tables

Making Room for Second Language Phonotactics: Effects of L2 Learning and Environment on First Language Speech Perception.

Science.gov (United States)

Carlson, Matthew T

2018-04-01

Language-specific restrictions on sound sequences in words can lead to automatic perceptual repair of illicit sound sequences. As an example, no Spanish words begin with /s/-consonant sequences ([#sC]), and where necessary (e.g., foreign loanwords) [#sC] is repaired by inserting an initial [e], (e.g. foreign loanwords, cf., esnob, from English snob). As a result, Spanish speakers tend to perceive an illusory [e] before [#sC] sequences. Interestingly, this perceptual illusion is weaker in early Spanish-English bilinguals, whose other language, English, allows [#sC]. The present study explored whether this apparent influence of the English language on Spanish is restricted to early bilinguals, whose early language experience includes a mixture of both languages, or whether later learning of second language (L2) English can also induce a weakening of the first language (L1) perceptual illusion. Two groups of late Spanish-English bilinguals, immersed in Spanish or English, were tested on the same Spanish AX (same-different) discrimination task used in a study by Carlson et al., (2016) and their results compared with the Spanish monolinguals from Carlson et al.'s study. Like early bilinguals, late bilinguals exhibited a reduced impact of perceptual prothesis on discrimination accuracy. Additionally, late bilinguals, particularly in English immersion, were slowest when responding against the Spanish perceptual illusion. Robust L1 perceptual illusions thus appear to be malleable in the face of later L2 learning. It is argued that these results are consonant with the need for late bilinguals to navigate alternative, conflicting representations of the same acoustic material, even in unilingual L1 speech perception tasks.

First Steps to Endangered Language Documentation: The Kalasha Language, a Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Mela-Athanasopoulou, Elizabeth

2011-01-01

The present paper based on extensive fieldwork D conducted on Kalasha, an endangered language spoken in the three small valleys in Chitral District of Northwestern Pakistan, exposes a spontaneous dialogue-based elicitation of linguistic material used for the description and documentation of the language. After a brief display of the basic typology…

Effects of early language, speech, and cognition on later reading: A mediation analysis

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Vanessa N Durand

2013-09-01

Full Text Available This longitudinal secondary analysis examined which early language and speech abilities are associated with school-aged reading skills, and whether these associations are mediated by cognitive ability. We analyzed vocabulary, syntax, speech sound maturity, and cognition in a sample of healthy children at age 3 years (N=241 in relation to single word reading (decoding, comprehension, and oral reading fluency in the same children at age 9 to 11 years. All predictor variables and the mediator variable were associated with the three reading outcomes. The predictor variables were all associated with cognitive abilities, the mediator. Cognitive abilities partially mediated the effects of language on reading. After mediation, decoding was associated with speech sound maturity; comprehension was associated with receptive vocabulary; and oral fluency was associated with speech sound maturity, receptive vocabulary, and syntax. In summary, all of the effects of language on reading could not be explained by cognition as a mediator. Specific components of language and speech skills in preschool made independent contributions to reading skills 6 to 8 years later. These early precursors to later reading skill represent potential targets for early intervention to improve reading.

Sound

CERN Document Server

Robertson, William C

2003-01-01

Muddled about what makes music? Stuck on the study of harmonics? Dumbfounded by how sound gets around? Now you no longer have to struggle to teach concepts you really don t grasp yourself. Sound takes an intentionally light touch to help out all those adults science teachers, parents wanting to help with homework, home-schoolers seeking necessary scientific background to teach middle school physics with confidence. The book introduces sound waves and uses that model to explain sound-related occurrences. Starting with the basics of what causes sound and how it travels, you'll learn how musical instruments work, how sound waves add and subtract, how the human ear works, and even why you can sound like a Munchkin when you inhale helium. Sound is the fourth book in the award-winning Stop Faking It! Series, published by NSTA Press. Like the other popular volumes, it is written by irreverent educator Bill Robertson, who offers this Sound recommendation: One of the coolest activities is whacking a spinning metal rod...

From acoustic descriptors to evoked quality of car door sounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Bezat, Marie-Céline; Kronland-Martinet, Richard; Roussarie, Vincent; Ystad, Sølvi

2014-07-01

This article describes the first part of a study aiming at adapting the mechanical car door construction to the drivers' expectancies in terms of perceived quality of cars deduced from car door sounds. A perceptual cartography of car door sounds is obtained from various listening tests aiming at revealing both ecological and analytical properties linked to evoked car quality. In the first test naive listeners performed absolute evaluations of five ecological properties (i.e., solidity, quality, weight, closure energy, and success of closure). Then experts in the area of automobile doors categorized the sounds according to organic constituents (lock, joints, door panel), in particular whether or not the lock mechanism could be perceived. Further, a sensory panel of naive listeners identified sensory descriptors such as classical descriptors or onomatopoeia that characterize the sounds, hereby providing an analytic description of the sounds. Finally, acoustic descriptors were calculated after decomposition of the signal into a lock and a closure component by the Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) method. A statistical relationship between the acoustic descriptors and the perceptual evaluations of the car door sounds could then be obtained through linear regression analysis.

A Fundamental Scale of Descriptions for Analyzing Information Content of Communication Systems

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Gerardo Febres

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The complexity of the description of a system is a function of the entropy of its symbolic description. Prior to computing the entropy of the system’s description, an observation scale has to be assumed. In texts written in artificial and natural languages, typical scales are binary, characters, and words. However, considering languages as structures built around certain preconceived set of symbols, like words or characters, limits the level of complexity that can be revealed analytically. This study introduces the notion of the fundamental description scale to analyze the essence of the structure of a language. The concept of Fundamental Scale is tested for English and musical instrument digital interface (MIDI music texts using an algorithm developed to split a text in a collection of sets of symbols that minimizes the observed entropy of the system. This Fundamental Scale reflects more details of the complexity of the language than using bits, characters or words. Results show that this Fundamental Scale allows to compare completely different languages, such as English and MIDI coded music regarding its structural entropy. This comparative power facilitates the study of the complexity of the structure of different communication systems.

Intensive foreign language learning reveals effects on categorical perception of sibilant voicing after only 3 weeks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Andreas Højlund; Horn, Nynne Thorup; Derdau Sørensen, Stine

2015-01-01

Models of speech learning suggest that adaptations to foreign language sound categories take place within 6-12 months of exposure to a foreign language. Results from laboratory language training show effects of very targeted training on non-native speech contrasts within only one to three weeks...... of training. Results from immersion studies are inconclusive, but some suggest continued effects on non-native speech perception after 6-8 years of experience. We investigated this apparent discrepancy in the timing of adaptation to foreign speech sounds in a longitudinal study of foreign language learning....... We examined two groups of Danish language officer cadets learning either Arabic (MSA and Egyptian Arabic) or Dari (Afghan Farsi) through intensive multi-faceted language training. We conducted two experiments (identification and discrimination) with the cadets who were tested four times: at the start...

Numerological Phraseological Units in Multi-structural Languages

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Rauan Dossymbekova

2016-11-01

Full Text Available This paper is devoted to the comparative-semantic analysis of numerological phraseological units (PU in the unrelated languages, namely, Kazakh and English. The identification of the similarities and differences of fixed collocations of multiple languages is a spread type of comparative analysis in phraseology. The possibility of verbalization of the natural environment and man-made environment of ethnic group becomes apparent in comparative studies and description of any lexical-semantic groups of two or more languages. In our work we consider lexical-semantic group of numbers category in Kazakh and English. Numerals are actively involved in the formation of PU, thereby forming a large reservoir of numerological PU and deserve a special consideration. The work is ethnolinguistic and linguoculturological description of the main vernacular numerals, included in the set phrases of the languages. Main methods of the research are: method of semantic analysis, descriptive method, comparative analysis, method of sampling.

Second Language Acquisition and Schizophrenia

Science.gov (United States)

Dugan, James E.

2014-01-01

Schizophrenia is a complex mental disorder that results in language-related symptoms at various discourse levels, ranging from semantics (e.g. inventing words and producing nonsensical strands of similar-sounding words) to pragmatics and higher-level functioning (e.g. too little or too much information given to interlocutors, and tangential…

HI-VISUAL: A language supporting visual interaction in programming

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Monden, N.; Yoshino, Y.; Hirakawa, M.; Tanaka, M.; Ichikawa, T.

1984-01-01

This paper presents a language named HI-VISUAL which supports visual interaction in programming. Following a brief description of the language concept, the icon semantics and language primitives characterizing HI-VISUAL are extensively discussed. HI-VISUAL also shows a system extensively discussed. HI-VISUAL also shows a system extendability providing the possibility of organizing a high level application system as an integration of several existing subsystems, and will serve to developing systems in various fields of applications supporting simple and efficient interactions between programmer and computer. In this paper, the authors have presented a language named HI-VISUAL. Following a brief description of the language concept, the icon semantics and language primitives characterizing HI-VISUAL were extensively discussed

Descriptional Complexity of the Languages KaL: Automata, Monoids and Varieties

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Ondřej Klíma

2010-08-01

Full Text Available The first step when forming the polynomial hierarchies of languages is to consider languages of the form KaL where K and L are over a finite alphabet A and from a given variety V of languages, a being a letter from A. All such KaL's generate the variety of languages BPol1(V. We estimate the numerical parameters of the language KaL in terms of their values for K and L. These parameters include the state complexity of the minimal complete DFA and the size of the syntactic monoids. We also estimate the cardinality of the image of A* in the Schuetzenberger product of the syntactic monoids of K and L. In these three cases we obtain the optimal bounds. Finally, we also consider estimates for the cardinalities of free monoids in the variety of monoids corresponding to BPol1(V in terms of sizes of the free monoids in the variety of monoids corresponding to V.

RSYST - a short description of the modules

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruehle, R.

1976-04-01

The modular system RSYST is used for reactor and shielding calculations. A data base managed by a central program, data blocks containing structure descriptions, and hierarchical linking of data blocks enable flexible management of all data. Module sequences are formulated using a user command language. The language features logical branches, variables and arithmetic experssions. Sections of the user language may be stored in the data base and activated at any time. (orig.) [de

GlottoVis : Visualizing Language Endangerment and Documentation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Castermans, T.H.A.; Speckmann, B.; Verbeek, K.A.B.; Westenberg, M.A.; Hammarström, H.

2017-01-01

We present GlottoVis, a system designed to visualize language endangerment as collected by UNESCO and descriptive status as collected by the Glottolog project. Glottolog records bibliographic data for the world’s (lesser known) languages. Languages are documented with increasing detail, but the

Automatic classification of written descriptions by healthy adults: An overview of the application of natural language processing and machine learning techniques to clinical discourse analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Toledo, Cíntia Matsuda; Cunha, Andre; Scarton, Carolina; Aluísio, Sandra

2014-01-01

Discourse production is an important aspect in the evaluation of brain-injured individuals. We believe that studies comparing the performance of brain-injured subjects with that of healthy controls must use groups with compatible education. A pioneering application of machine learning methods using Brazilian Portuguese for clinical purposes is described, highlighting education as an important variable in the Brazilian scenario. The aims were to describe how to:(i) develop machine learning classifiers using features generated by natural language processing tools to distinguish descriptions produced by healthy individuals into classes based on their years of education; and(ii) automatically identify the features that best distinguish the groups. The approach proposed here extracts linguistic features automatically from the written descriptions with the aid of two Natural Language Processing tools: Coh-Metrix-Port and AIC. It also includes nine task-specific features (three new ones, two extracted manually, besides description time; type of scene described - simple or complex; presentation order - which type of picture was described first; and age). In this study, the descriptions by 144 of the subjects studied in Toledo 18 were used,which included 200 healthy Brazilians of both genders. A Support Vector Machine (SVM) with a radial basis function (RBF) kernel is the most recommended approach for the binary classification of our data, classifying three of the four initial classes. CfsSubsetEval (CFS) is a strong candidate to replace manual feature selection methods.

Automatic classification of written descriptions by healthy adults: An overview of the application of natural language processing and machine learning techniques to clinical discourse analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cíntia Matsuda Toledo

Full Text Available Discourse production is an important aspect in the evaluation of brain-injured individuals. We believe that studies comparing the performance of brain-injured subjects with that of healthy controls must use groups with compatible education. A pioneering application of machine learning methods using Brazilian Portuguese for clinical purposes is described, highlighting education as an important variable in the Brazilian scenario.OBJECTIVE: The aims were to describe how to: (i develop machine learning classifiers using features generated by natural language processing tools to distinguish descriptions produced by healthy individuals into classes based on their years of education; and (ii automatically identify the features that best distinguish the groups.METHODS: The approach proposed here extracts linguistic features automatically from the written descriptions with the aid of two Natural Language Processing tools: Coh-Metrix-Port and AIC. It also includes nine task-specific features (three new ones, two extracted manually, besides description time; type of scene described - simple or complex; presentation order - which type of picture was described first; and age. In this study, the descriptions by 144 of the subjects studied in Toledo18 were used, which included 200 healthy Brazilians of both genders.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:A Support Vector Machine (SVM with a radial basis function (RBF kernel is the most recommended approach for the binary classification of our data, classifying three of the four initial classes. CfsSubsetEval (CFS is a strong candidate to replace manual feature selection methods.

A Survey of Kurdish Students’ Sound Segment & Syllabic Pattern Errors in the Course of Learning EFL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jahangir Mohammadi

2014-06-01

Full Text Available This paper is devoted to finding adequate answers to the following queries: (A what are the segmental and syllabic pattern errors made by Kurdish students in their pronunciation? (B Can the problematic areas in pronunciation be predicted by a systematic comparison of the sound systems of both native and target languages? (C Can there be any consistency between the predictions and the results of the error analysis experiments in the same field? To reach the goals of the study the following steps were taken; 1.The sound systems and syllabic patterns of both languages Kurdish and English were clearly described on the basis of place and manner of articulation and the combinatory power of clusters. 2. To carry out a contrastive analysis, the sound segments (vowels, consonants and diphthongs and the syllabic patterns of both languages were compared in order to surface the similarities and differences.  3. The syllabic patterns and sound segments in English that had no counterparts in Kurdish were detected and considered as problematic areas in pronunciation. 4. To countercheck the acquired predictions, an experiment was carried out with 50 male and female pre-university students. Subjects were given some passages to read. The readability index of these passages ranged from 8.775 to 10.432 which are quite suitable in comparison to the readability index of pre-university texts ranging from 8.675 to 10.475. All samples of bound production were transcribed in IPA and the syllabic patterns were shown by symbols ‘V’ and ‘C’ indicating vowels and consonants respectively. An error analysis of the acquired data proved that English sound segments and syllabic patterns with no counterparts in Kurdish resulted in pronunciation errors.

Profile of Australian preschool children with speech sound disorders at risk for literacy difficulties

OpenAIRE

McLeod, S.; Crowe, K.; Masso, S.; Baker, E.; McCormack, J.; Wren, Y.; Roulstone, S.; Howland, C.

2017-01-01

Background: Speech sound disorders are a common communication difficulty in preschool children. Teachers indicate difficulty identifying and supporting these children.\\ud \\ud Aim: To describe speech and language characteristics of children identified by their parents and/or teachers as having possible communication concerns.\\ud \\ud Method: 275 Australian 4- to 5-year-old children from 45 preschools whose parents and teachers were concerned about their talking participated in speech-language p...

Towards the management of the databases founded on descriptions ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The canonical model is defined in the concept language, developed in our research ... the notion of classes to produce descriptions which are, also, used in the reasoning process. ... Keys-Words: Descriptions logic/ Databases/ Semantics.

The Effects of Motor Neurone Disease on Language: Further Evidence

Science.gov (United States)

Bak, Thomas H.; Hodges, John R.

2004-01-01

It might sound surprising that Motor Neurone Disease (MND), regarded still by many as the very example of a neurodegenerative disease affecting selectively the motor system and sparing the sensory functions as well as cognition, can have a significant influence on language. In this article we hope to demonstrate that language dysfunction is not…

Second-Language Composition Instruction, Computers and First-Language Pedagogy: A Descriptive Survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, T. Edward

1987-01-01

A national survey of full-time instructional faculty (N=208) at universities, 2-year colleges, and high schools regarding attitudes toward using computers in second-language composition instruction revealed a predomination of Apple and IBM-PC computers used, a major frustration in lack of foreign character support, and mixed opinions about real…

AN ANALYSIS OF STUDENT‘S DESCRIPTIVE TEXT: SYSTEMIC FUNCTIONAL LINGUISTICS PERSPECTIVES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rizka Maulina Wulandari

2017-12-01

Full Text Available In Indonesia where different languages co-exist, and where English is used as a foreign language, the learners‘ capabilities in writing toward English plays an important role in formulating effective learning method. This descriptive qualitative research aimed to investigate the student‘s errors in writing descriptive text in SFL perspectives. A secondary, yet important, objective of this research is also to design the appropriate pedagogical plans that can be used for junior high school students in Indonesian education based on the result of the research. The results indicated that the student has good control about the schematic structure of descriptive text although many of his idea still uses Indonesian context which make the reader can be confused in understanding his meaning. It can be concluded that there is intervention from L1, that is Indonesian language, while he wrote his descriptive text.. Hence, the study highlighted that cooperative learning could be an option as an appropriate learning method to solve the students problem on writing descriptive text.

Dealing with behavioral ambiguity in textual process descriptions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Aa, Han; Leopold, Henrik; Reijers, Hajo A.

2016-01-01

Textual process descriptions are widely used in organizations since they can be created and understood by virtually everyone. The inherent ambiguity of natural language, however, impedes the automated analysis of textual process descriptions. While human readers can use their context knowledge to

Music and language perception: expectations, structural integration, and cognitive sequencing.

Science.gov (United States)

Tillmann, Barbara

2012-10-01

Music can be described as sequences of events that are structured in pitch and time. Studying music processing provides insight into how complex event sequences are learned, perceived, and represented by the brain. Given the temporal nature of sound, expectations, structural integration, and cognitive sequencing are central in music perception (i.e., which sounds are most likely to come next and at what moment should they occur?). This paper focuses on similarities in music and language cognition research, showing that music cognition research provides insight into the understanding of not only music processing but also language processing and the processing of other structured stimuli. The hypothesis of shared resources between music and language processing and of domain-general dynamic attention has motivated the development of research to test music as a means to stimulate sensory, cognitive, and motor processes. Copyright © 2012 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

A taste for words and sounds: a case of lexical-gustatory and sound-gustatory synesthesia

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Olympia eColizoli

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Gustatory forms of synesthesia involve the automatic and consistent experience of tastes that are triggered by non-taste related inducers. We present a case of lexical-gustatory and sound-gustatory synesthesia within one individual, SC. Most words and a subset of nonlinguistic sounds induce the experience of taste, smell and physical sensations for SC. SC’s lexical-gustatory associations were significantly more consistent than those of a group of controls. We tested for effects of presentation modality (visual vs. auditory, taste-related congruency, and synesthetic inducer-concurrent direction using a priming task. SC’s performance did not differ significantly from a trained control group. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the neural correlates of SC’s synesthetic experiences by comparing her brain activation to the literature on brain networks related to language, music and sound processing, in addition to synesthesia. Words that induced a strong taste were contrasted to words that induced weak-to-no tastes (tasty vs. tasteless words. Brain activation was also measured during passive listening to music and environmental sounds. Brain activation patterns showed evidence that two regions are implicated in SC’s synesthetic experience of taste and smell: the left anterior insula and left superior parietal lobe. Anterior insula activation may reflect the synesthetic taste experience. The superior parietal lobe is proposed to be involved in binding sensory information across sub-types of synesthetes. We conclude that SC’s synesthesia is genuine and reflected in her brain activation. The type of inducer (visual-lexical, auditory-lexical, and non-lexical auditory stimuli could be differentiated based on patterns of brain activity.

Early Morphology and Recurring Sound Patterns

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kjærbæk, Laila; Basbøll, Hans; Lambertsen, Claus

Corpus is a longitudinal corpus of spontaneous Child Speech and Child Directed Speech recorded in the children's homes in interaction with their parents or caretaker and transcribed in CHILDES (MacWhinney 2007 a, b), supplemented by parts of Kim Plunkett's Danish corpus (CHILDES) (Plunkett 1985, 1986...... in creating the typologically characteristic syllable structure of Danish with extreme sound reductions (Rischel 2003, Basbøll 2005) presenting a challenge to the language acquiring child (Bleses & Basbøll 2004). Building upon the Danish CDI-studies as well as on the Odense Twin Corpus and experimental data...

114 African Languages and African Literature Cecilia A. Eme ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ike Odimegwu

multidimensional realizations which are represented in ideas, beliefs, and oral and ... broadly literature in African languages, literature in European languages etc. ..... death and language maintenance: Theoretical, practical and descriptive ...

Pow, Punch, Pika, and Chu : The Structure of Sound Effects in Genres of American Comics and Japanese Manga

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pratha, Nimish K.; Avunjian, Natalie; Cohn, Neil

2016-01-01

As multimodal works, comics are characterized as much by their use of language as by the style of their images. Sound effects in particular are exemplary of comics’ language-use, and we explored this facet of comics by analyzing a corpus of books from genres in the United States (mainstream and

Dual Sticky Hierarchical Dirichlet Process Hidden Markov Model and Its Application to Natural Language Description of Motions.

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Weiming; Tian, Guodong; Kang, Yongxin; Yuan, Chunfeng; Maybank, Stephen

2017-09-25

In this paper, a new nonparametric Bayesian model called the dual sticky hierarchical Dirichlet process hidden Markov model (HDP-HMM) is proposed for mining activities from a collection of time series data such as trajectories. All the time series data are clustered. Each cluster of time series data, corresponding to a motion pattern, is modeled by an HMM. Our model postulates a set of HMMs that share a common set of states (topics in an analogy with topic models for document processing), but have unique transition distributions. For the application to motion trajectory modeling, topics correspond to motion activities. The learnt topics are clustered into atomic activities which are assigned predicates. We propose a Bayesian inference method to decompose a given trajectory into a sequence of atomic activities. On combining the learnt sources and sinks, semantic motion regions, and the learnt sequence of atomic activities, the action represented by the trajectory can be described in natural language in as automatic a way as possible. The effectiveness of our dual sticky HDP-HMM is validated on several trajectory datasets. The effectiveness of the natural language descriptions for motions is demonstrated on the vehicle trajectories extracted from a traffic scene.

South Korea: Language Policy and Planning in the Making

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Jae Jung

2012-01-01

This monograph discusses South Korea's language situation in a language policy and planning context. This monograph consists of four parts. Part 1 presents a genetic, typological and sociolinguistic description of South Korea's national language, and an overview of minority languages, including English as well as other languages, recently…

Second sound velocities in superfluid 3He-4He solutions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dikina, L.S.; Kotenev, G.Ya.; Rudavskij, Eh.Ya.

1978-01-01

The velocities of the second sound in the superfluid He 3 -He 4 solutions were measured by the pulse method in the range of temperatures from 1.3 K to Tsub(lambda) and for He 3 concentrations up to 13%.The results obtained supplemented by those available before give the complete description of the concentration and temperature dependences of the second sound velocity in superfluid He 3 -He 4 solutions. The comprehensive comparison of the experimental data on the velocity of the second sound with the theoretical calculations for the superfluid solutions with arbitrary content of He 3 is performed. The good agreement is found between experiment and the theory. The experimental data obtained are used for determination of the potential, which determines the properties of the superfluid solutions

Productive Language Use with IT'S ENGLISH

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kanselaar, G.; Jaspers, J.G.M.; Kok, W.A.M.

1993-01-01

Based on the results of a study in 1989, a new Computer-Assisted Instruction program for foreign language teaching of English has been developed. Main features of this program are the communicative approach, a 70, 000 word dictionary, sound and a syntactic parser.An evaluation study was carried out

Sound Cross-synthesis and Morphing Using Dictionary-based Methods

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Collins, Nick; Sturm, Bob L.

2011-01-01

Dictionary-based methods (DBMs) provide rich possibilities for new sound transformations; as the analysis dual to granular synthesis, audio signals are decomposed into `atoms', allowing interesting manipulations. We present various approaches to audio signal cross-synthesis and cross-analysis via...... atomic decomposition using scale-time-frequency dictionaries. DBMs naturally provide high-level descriptions of a signal and its content, which can allow for greater control over what is modified and how. Through these models, we can make one signal decomposition influence that of another to create cross......-synthesized sounds. We present several examples of these techniques both theoretically and practically, and present on-going and further work....

Notes on the Phonological History of the Austronesian Languages of the Sarmi Coast.

Science.gov (United States)

Grace, George W.

This study analyzes the sound correspondences of six Oceanic languages using reconstructed forms from Proto-Oceanic as a frame of reference. Sobei, Wakde, Masimasi, Anus, Bojgo, and Tarpia provide the cognates used in the analysis. Consonants and vowels are analyzed, and sound correspondences are examined for regularity of development and possible…

Human-inspired sound environment recognition system for assistive vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

González Vidal, Eduardo; Fredes Zarricueta, Ernesto; Auat Cheein, Fernando

2015-02-01

. The proposed sound-based system is very efficient at providing general descriptions of the environment. Such descriptions are focused on vulnerable situations described by the ICF. The volunteers answered a questionnaire regarding the importance of constraining the vehicle velocities in risky environments, showing that all the volunteers felt comfortable with the system and its performance.

Socio-cultural differences in the self-descriptions of two groups of Azerbaijanian students learning in the Russian and Azerbaijani languages

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dzherelievskaya M.A.

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Background: The dimension of individualism-collectivism is regarded as one of the most important cultural factors that influence a person’s self-consciousness, and help shape his/her sense of self as independent or interdependent. Moreover, studies support the conclusion that the salience of both tendencies may vary not only within a single national culture (depending on the place of residence, language environment, etc., but also on the level of the individual self (depending on the current situation. In our research we have assumed that the language environment (receiving education in one’s native or a foreign language acts as a socio-cultural factor affecting the self-concept of students of the same nationality–more specifically, the intensity of their individualistic and collectivistic characteristics. Objective: Finding socio-cultural differences in self-image between two groups of Azerbaijanian students (learning in Russian and Azerbaijanian, respectively. Design: The sample included one hundred students from Baku colleges and universities equally divided into two groups. Participants in the first group were studying in Azerbaijani while those in the second group were learning in Russian. We collected data in the form of open-ended self-descriptions. We examined these texts using contentanalysis procedures. Then we calculated correlations between certain defined characteristics for each group. Results: The self-descriptions produced by students learning in Azerbaijanian contained the following features: norm compliance as a significant factor in emotional wellbeing; self-criticism related to negative feelings and expectation of outside criticism; the prevalence of self-justification and bravado as basic forms of psychological defense, combined with the lack of self-enhancement; and focus on society and interpersonal relations affecting the respondents’ inner feelings. The second group’s (those learning in Russian self-descriptions

A Pilot Investigation of Speech Sound Disorder Intervention Delivered by Telehealth to School-Age Children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sue Grogan-Johnson

2011-05-01

Full Text Available This article describes a school-based telehealth service delivery model and reports outcomes made by school-age students with speech sound disorders in a rural Ohio school district. Speech therapy using computer-based speech sound intervention materials was provided either by live interactive videoconferencing (telehealth, or conventional side-by-side intervention.  Progress was measured using pre- and post-intervention scores on the Goldman Fristoe Test of Articulation-2 (Goldman & Fristoe, 2002. Students in both service delivery models made significant improvements in speech sound production, with students in the telehealth condition demonstrating greater mastery of their Individual Education Plan (IEP goals. Live interactive videoconferencing thus appears to be a viable method for delivering intervention for speech sound disorders to children in a rural, public school setting. Keywords:  Telehealth, telerehabilitation, videoconferencing, speech sound disorder, speech therapy, speech-language pathology; E-Helper

CDL as a language for implementation systems in scientific environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marinescu, D.C.

1977-01-01

The special language is characterized which is convenient for system program description; compilers, editors, monitors, supervisors, etc. The definition for its basic syntactical constructions and some notes about the possible usage are described. The version of the compiler for this language has been implemented by the author for the CDC-6500 at JINR, and this report contains the description for the access to this compiler and some possibilities of using this language on different computers

CDL as a language for implementation systems in scientific environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marinescu, D.C.

1977-01-01

The special language is characterized which is convenient for system program description: translators, aditors, monitors, supervisors, etc. The definition for its basic syntactical constructions and some notes about the possible usage are described. The version of the translator for this language has been implemented by the author for CDC-6500 at JINR, and this report contains the description for the access to this translator and some possibilities of using this language on different computers. (Author)

Language and Cognition Interaction Neural Mechanisms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leonid Perlovsky

2011-01-01

Full Text Available How language and cognition interact in thinking? Is language just used for communication of completed thoughts, or is it fundamental for thinking? Existing approaches have not led to a computational theory. We develop a hypothesis that language and cognition are two separate but closely interacting mechanisms. Language accumulates cultural wisdom; cognition develops mental representations modeling surrounding world and adapts cultural knowledge to concrete circumstances of life. Language is acquired from surrounding language “ready-made” and therefore can be acquired early in life. This early acquisition of language in childhood encompasses the entire hierarchy from sounds to words, to phrases, and to highest concepts existing in culture. Cognition is developed from experience. Yet cognition cannot be acquired from experience alone; language is a necessary intermediary, a “teacher.” A mathematical model is developed; it overcomes previous difficulties and leads to a computational theory. This model is consistent with Arbib's “language prewired brain” built on top of mirror neuron system. It models recent neuroimaging data about cognition, remaining unnoticed by other theories. A number of properties of language and cognition are explained, which previously seemed mysterious, including influence of language grammar on cultural evolution, which may explain specifics of English and Arabic cultures.

Language and cognition interaction neural mechanisms.

Science.gov (United States)

Perlovsky, Leonid

2011-01-01

How language and cognition interact in thinking? Is language just used for communication of completed thoughts, or is it fundamental for thinking? Existing approaches have not led to a computational theory. We develop a hypothesis that language and cognition are two separate but closely interacting mechanisms. Language accumulates cultural wisdom; cognition develops mental representations modeling surrounding world and adapts cultural knowledge to concrete circumstances of life. Language is acquired from surrounding language "ready-made" and therefore can be acquired early in life. This early acquisition of language in childhood encompasses the entire hierarchy from sounds to words, to phrases, and to highest concepts existing in culture. Cognition is developed from experience. Yet cognition cannot be acquired from experience alone; language is a necessary intermediary, a "teacher." A mathematical model is developed; it overcomes previous difficulties and leads to a computational theory. This model is consistent with Arbib's "language prewired brain" built on top of mirror neuron system. It models recent neuroimaging data about cognition, remaining unnoticed by other theories. A number of properties of language and cognition are explained, which previously seemed mysterious, including influence of language grammar on cultural evolution, which may explain specifics of English and Arabic cultures.

Language and Cognition Interaction Neural Mechanisms

Science.gov (United States)

Perlovsky, Leonid

2011-01-01

How language and cognition interact in thinking? Is language just used for communication of completed thoughts, or is it fundamental for thinking? Existing approaches have not led to a computational theory. We develop a hypothesis that language and cognition are two separate but closely interacting mechanisms. Language accumulates cultural wisdom; cognition develops mental representations modeling surrounding world and adapts cultural knowledge to concrete circumstances of life. Language is acquired from surrounding language “ready-made” and therefore can be acquired early in life. This early acquisition of language in childhood encompasses the entire hierarchy from sounds to words, to phrases, and to highest concepts existing in culture. Cognition is developed from experience. Yet cognition cannot be acquired from experience alone; language is a necessary intermediary, a “teacher.” A mathematical model is developed; it overcomes previous difficulties and leads to a computational theory. This model is consistent with Arbib's “language prewired brain” built on top of mirror neuron system. It models recent neuroimaging data about cognition, remaining unnoticed by other theories. A number of properties of language and cognition are explained, which previously seemed mysterious, including influence of language grammar on cultural evolution, which may explain specifics of English and Arabic cultures. PMID:21876687

Which Language R You Speaking? /r/ as a Language Marker in Tyrolean and Italian Bilinguals.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaland, Constantijn; Galatà, Vincenzo; Spreafico, Lorenzo; Vietti, Alessandro

2017-12-01

Across languages of the world the /r/ sound is known for its variability. This variability has been investigated using articulatory models as well as in sociolinguistic studies. The current study investigates to what extent /r/ is a marker of a bilingual's dominant language. To this end, a reading task was carried out by bilingual speakers from South Tyrol, who produce /r/ differently according to whether they dominantly speak Tyrolean or Italian. The recorded reading data were subsequently used in a perception experiment to investigate whether South Tyrolean bilingual listeners are able to identify the dominant language of the speaker. Results indicate that listeners use /r/ as a cue to determine the dominant language of the speaker whilst relying on articulatory distinctions between the variants. It is furthermore shown that /r/ correlates with three interdependent variables: the sociolinguistic background of the speakers, their speech production, and how their speech is perceived.

Root system markup language: toward a unified root architecture description language.

Science.gov (United States)

Lobet, Guillaume; Pound, Michael P; Diener, Julien; Pradal, Christophe; Draye, Xavier; Godin, Christophe; Javaux, Mathieu; Leitner, Daniel; Meunier, Félicien; Nacry, Philippe; Pridmore, Tony P; Schnepf, Andrea

2015-03-01

The number of image analysis tools supporting the extraction of architectural features of root systems has increased in recent years. These tools offer a handy set of complementary facilities, yet it is widely accepted that none of these software tools is able to extract in an efficient way the growing array of static and dynamic features for different types of images and species. We describe the Root System Markup Language (RSML), which has been designed to overcome two major challenges: (1) to enable portability of root architecture data between different software tools in an easy and interoperable manner, allowing seamless collaborative work; and (2) to provide a standard format upon which to base central repositories that will soon arise following the expanding worldwide root phenotyping effort. RSML follows the XML standard to store two- or three-dimensional image metadata, plant and root properties and geometries, continuous functions along individual root paths, and a suite of annotations at the image, plant, or root scale at one or several time points. Plant ontologies are used to describe botanical entities that are relevant at the scale of root system architecture. An XML schema describes the features and constraints of RSML, and open-source packages have been developed in several languages (R, Excel, Java, Python, and C#) to enable researchers to integrate RSML files into popular research workflow. © 2015 American Society of Plant Biologists. All Rights Reserved.

Caught in the Middle: Child Language Brokering as a Form of Unrecognised Language Service

Science.gov (United States)

Antonini, Rachele

2016-01-01

This paper will present the findings of a wide-scale research aimed at studying the phenomenon of Child Language Brokering (henceforth CLB) in Italy. After providing a description of recent immigration patterns and the provision of language services in Italy, and an overview of current research in this field, this study will discuss narrative data…

The Study of the Use of Picture Descriptions in Enhancing Communication Skills among the 8th- Grade Students--Learners of English as a Foreign Language

Science.gov (United States)

Lavalle, Pamela I.; Briesmaster, Mark

2017-01-01

Teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) encourage students to take a more active role in the oral activities in the classroom through different strategies. This study examines the use of picture descriptions as a strategy to develop and enhance communication skills among the eighth-grade students attending a private English school in…

RSYST: short description of the modules

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruehle, R.

Since 1969, the modular system RSYST has been used for reactor and shielding calculations. A data base managed by a central program, data blocks containing structure descriptions, and hierarchical linking of data blocks enable flexible management of all data. Module sequences are formulated using a user command language. The language features logical branches, variables and arithmetic expressions. Sections of the user language may be stored in the data base and activated at any time. Presently, an interactive version of the system is developed. It supports basic operations and interactive input checking on a front end computer

Sound algorithms

OpenAIRE

De Götzen , Amalia; Mion , Luca; Tache , Olivier

2007-01-01

International audience; We call sound algorithms the categories of algorithms that deal with digital sound signal. Sound algorithms appeared in the very infancy of computer. Sound algorithms present strong specificities that are the consequence of two dual considerations: the properties of the digital sound signal itself and its uses, and the properties of auditory perception.

46 CFR 7.20 - Nantucket Sound, Vineyard Sound, Buzzards Bay, Narragansett Bay, MA, Block Island Sound and...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Nantucket Sound, Vineyard Sound, Buzzards Bay, Narragansett Bay, MA, Block Island Sound and easterly entrance to Long Island Sound, NY. 7.20 Section 7.20... Atlantic Coast § 7.20 Nantucket Sound, Vineyard Sound, Buzzards Bay, Narragansett Bay, MA, Block Island...

Inferior Frontal Sensitivity to Common Speech Sounds Is Amplified by Increasing Word Intelligibility

Science.gov (United States)

Vaden, Kenneth I., Jr.; Kuchinsky, Stefanie E.; Keren, Noam I.; Harris, Kelly C.; Ahlstrom, Jayne B.; Dubno, Judy R.; Eckert, Mark A.

2011-01-01

The left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) exhibits increased responsiveness when people listen to words composed of speech sounds that frequently co-occur in the English language (Vaden, Piquado, & Hickok, 2011), termed high phonotactic frequency (Vitevitch & Luce, 1998). The current experiment aimed to further characterize the relation of…

Identifying Residual Speech Sound Disorders in Bilingual Children: A Japanese-English Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Preston, Jonathan L.; Seki, Ayumi

2011-01-01

Purpose: To describe (a) the assessment of residual speech sound disorders (SSDs) in bilinguals by distinguishing speech patterns associated with second language acquisition from patterns associated with misarticulations and (b) how assessment of domains such as speech motor control and phonological awareness can provide a more complete…

A description of Automath and some aspects of its language theory

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Daalen, D.T.; Nederpelt, R.P.; Geuvers, J.H.; Vrijer, de R.C.

1994-01-01

definition and an overview of the language theory. Thus it can serve as an introduction to the papers [van Benthem Jutting 73] and [Zandlevem 73 (E.1)]. Among the various Automath languages this paper concentrates on the original version AUT-68 (because of its relative simplicity) and one extension

Multimedia Materials for Language and Literacy Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Hallett, Terry L.

1999-01-01

Introduces educators to inexpensive, commercially-available CD-ROM software that combines speech, text, graphics, sound, video, animation, and special effects that may be incorporated into classroom activities for both normally developing and language learning disabled children. Discusses three types of multimedia CD-ROM products: (1) virtual…

Language in Education: Preservice teachers' ideas about grammar and knowledge about language

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Mette Vedsgaard; Bock, Kathrin

2012-01-01

Even though the national curriculum for mother tongue instruction in Denmark emphasizes a functional view of language (Danish Ministry of Education, 2009), we - as teacher educators - have experienced that most of our teacher students’ notions about language and grammar are deeply rooted...... in a formal and structural view of language. Hence we designed and carried out an action research project with the aim of pushing first year teacher students’ notions about language in a more functional direction. Throughout their first year in teacher training the students were involved in a series...... of radical changes to the curriculum, such as introducing SFL-based linguistics (Halliday 1994) and genre theory (Martin & Rose 2008) as the overall theoretical framework for language description. These changes were made in order to equip future teachers with a more functional view on language...

Acoustic processing of temporally modulated sounds in infants: evidence from a combined near-infrared spectroscopy and EEG study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Silke eTelkemeyer

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Speech perception requires rapid extraction of the linguistic content from the acoustic signal. The ability to efficiently process rapid changes in auditory information is important for decoding speech and thereby crucial during language acquisition. Investigating functional networks of speech perception in infancy might elucidate neuronal ensembles supporting perceptual abilities that gate language acquisition. Interhemispheric specializations for language have been demonstrated in infants. How these asymmetries are shaped by basic temporal acoustic properties is under debate. We recently provided evidence that newborns process non-linguistic sounds sharing temporal features with language in a differential and lateralized fashion. The present study used the same material while measuring brain responses of 6 and 3 month old infants using simultaneous recordings of electroencephalography (EEG and near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS. NIRS reveals that the lateralization observed in newborns remains constant over the first months of life. While fast acoustic modulations elicit bilateral neuronal activations, slow modulations lead to right-lateralized responses. Additionally, auditory evoked potentials and oscillatory EEG responses show differential responses for fast and slow modulations indicating a sensitivity for temporal acoustic variations. Oscillatory responses reveal an effect of development, that is, 6 but not 3 month old infants show stronger theta-band desynchronization for slowly modulated sounds. Whether this developmental effect is due to increasing fine-grained perception for spectrotemporal sounds in general remains speculative. Our findings support the notion that a more general specialization for acoustic properties can be considered the basis for lateralization of speech perception. The results show that concurrent assessment of vascular based imaging and electrophysiological responses have great potential in the research on language

FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT: THE CASE ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

HP

2017-07-01

Jul 1, 2017 ... The approach is historical and descriptive in nature. .... specifically human speech, the expression of ideas by the voice, sounds expressive of thought, .... Jobs in tourism, marketing, healthcare also await people with ...

THE PRINCIPLES OF PHONOLOGICAL WORD STRUCTURE COMPARISON OF RUSSIAN AND CHINESE LANGUAGES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexey N. Aleksakhin

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the phonological structure of words of Russian and Chinese languages. With phonological point of view the word as a Central significant unit of language is a sequence of consonants and vowel phonemes. A comparative study shows that the phonological structure of the Russian words prevail consonant phonemes and the phonological structure of the Chinese words prevail vowel phonemes. The phonological system of the Russian language is characterized by consonant dominant, and the phonological system of the Chinese language Mandarin is characterized by vocal dominant. In the vowel system of the Russian language there are six vowel phonemes, in the vowel system of the Chinese language Mandarin there are thirty-one vowel phonemes. The typical sound pattern of words of the Chinese language consists of vowel combinations. The strong (vowels differ in different effective modes of vocal cords vowels are implemented in the even phonological position; the weak vowels are implemented in the left and right odd phonological positions of the syllabic matrix 0123. Consonant phonemes of the Chinese language are implemented only in the zero phonological position. The Sound variety of simple one-syllable words of the Chinese language is constructed by oppositions: twenty-five consonants in the zero position, thirty-one strong vowel phonemes in the even position, as well as three weak vowels in the left odd position and five weak vowels in the right odd position . The typical distribution of consonant and vowel phonemes is shown in the following examples of words: 0123 - guai «obedient», gudi «rotate», guài «strange». The opposition of weak vowels with a derivative phonological zero is also an effective method of making words: guai «obedient» - gai «must» - gua « blow» - ga «a dark corner». Both Russian and Chinese Synharmonia variety of sound words is supported by five derivative phonological zeros that are phonetically in

The Principles Of Phonological Word Structure Comparison Of Russian And Chinese Languages

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexey N. Aleksakhin

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the phonological structure of words of Russian and Chinese languages. With phonological point of view the word as a Central significant unit of language is a sequence of consonants and vowel phonemes. A comparative study shows that the phonological structure of the Russian words prevail consonant phonemes and the phonological structure of the Chinese words prevail vowel phonemes. The phonological system of the Russian language is characterized by consonant dominant, and the phonological system of the Chinese language Mandarin is characterized by vocal dominant. In the vowel system of the Russian language there are six vowel phonemes, in the vowel system of the Chinese language Mandarin there are thirty-one vowel phonemes. The typical sound pattern of words of the Chinese language consists of vowel combinations. The strong (vowels differ in different effective modes of vocal cords vowels are implemented in the even phonological position; the weak vowels are implemented in the left and right odd phonological positions of the syllabic matrix 0123. Consonant phonemes of the Chinese language are implemented only in the zero phonological position. The Sound variety of simple one-syllable words of the Chinese language is constructed by oppositions: twenty-five consonants in the zero position, thirty-one strong vowel phonemes in the even position, as well as three weak vowels in the left odd position and five weak vowels in the right odd position . The typical distribution of consonant and vowel phonemes is shown in the following examples of words: 0123 - guai «obedient», gudi «rotate», guài «strange». The opposition of weak vowels with a derivative phonological zero is also an effective method of making words: guai «obedient» - gai «must» - gua « blow» - ga «a dark corner». Both Russian and Chinese Synharmonia variety of sound words is supported by five derivative phonological zeros that are phonetically in

Relevance of Trust Marks and CE Labels in German-Language Store Descriptions of Health Apps: Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Albrecht, Urs-Vito; Hillebrand, Uta; von Jan, Ute

2018-04-25

In addition to mandatory CE marking ("CE" representing Conformité Européenne, with the CE marking being a symbol of free marketability in the European Economic Area) for medical devices, there are various seals, initiatives, action groups, etc, in the health app context. However, whether manufacturers use them to distinguish their apps and attach relevance to them is unclear. The objective was to take a snapshot of quality seals, regulatory marks, and other orientation aids available on the German app market and to determine whether manufacturers deem such labels relevant enough to apply them to their apps, namely as reflected by mentions in app description texts in a typical app store (ie, Apple's App Store). A full survey of the metadata of 103,046 apps from Apple's German App Store in the Medicine and Health & Fitness categories was carried out. For apps with German-language store descriptions (N=8767), these were automatically searched for the occurrence of relevant keywords and validated manually (N=41). In addition, the websites of various app seal providers were checked for assigned seals. Few manufacturers referenced seals in the descriptions (5/41), although this would have been expected more often based on the seals we were able to identify from the seal providers' Web pages, and there were 34 of 41 that mentioned CE status in the descriptions. Two apps referenced an app directory curated by experts; however, this is not an alternative to CE marks and seals of approval. Currently, quality seals seem to be irrelevant for manufacturers. In line with regulatory requirements, mentions of medical device status are more frequent; however, neither characteristic is effective for identifying high-quality apps. To improve this situation, a possibly legally obligatory, standardized reporting system should be implemented. ©Urs-Vito Albrecht, Uta Hillebrand, Ute von Jan. Originally published in JMIR Mhealth and Uhealth (http://mhealth.jmir.org), 25.04.2018.

Facilitating Emergent Literacy: Efficacy of a Model that Partners Speech-Language Pathologists and Educators

Science.gov (United States)

Girolametto, Luigi; Weitzman, Elaine; Greenberg, Janice

2012-01-01

Purpose: This study examined the efficacy of a professional development program for early childhood educators that facilitated emergent literacy skills in preschoolers. The program, led by a speech-language pathologist, focused on teaching alphabet knowledge, print concepts, sound awareness, and decontextualized oral language within naturally…

The Structure of Meaning--A Linguistic Description.

Science.gov (United States)

Eisenhardt, Catheryn T.

Just as a reader must bring an experiential conceptual background to the printed page, so must he bring an ability to recognize the graphic cues that signal meaning. The graphic cues or structural meaning works as a system the description of which can be outlined in three parts as the vocabulary, the structure, and the sound. What has been…

Description langugage for the modelling and analysis of temporal change of instrumentation and control system structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goering, Markus Heinrich

2013-01-01

The utilisation of computer-based I and C, as a result of the technological advancements in the computer industry, represents an up-to-date challenge for I and C engineers in nuclear power plants throughout the world. In comparison with the time-proven, hard-wired I and C, the engineering must consider the novel characteristics of computer-based technology during the implementation, these are primarily constituted by higher performance and the utilisation of software. On one hand, this allows for implementing more complex I and C functions and integrating several I and C functions on to single components, although on the other hand, the minimisation of the CCF probability is of high priority to the engineering. Furthermore, the engineering must take the implementation of the deterministic safety concept for the I and C design into consideration. This includes engineering the redundancy, diversity, physical separation, and independence design features, and is complemented by the analysis of the I and C design with respect to the superposition of pre-defined event sequences and postulated failure combinations, so as to secure the safe operation of the nuclear power plant. The focus of this thesis is on the basic principles of engineering, i.e. description languages and methods, which the engineering relies on for a highly qualitative and efficient computer-based I and C implementation. The analysis of the deterministic safety concept and computer-based I and C characteristics yields the relevant technical requirements for the engineering, these are combined with the general structuring principles of standard IEC 81346 and the extended description language evaluation criteria, which are based on the guideline VDI/VDE-3681, resulting in target criteria for evaluating description languages. The analysis and comparison of existing description languages reveals that no description language satisfactorily fulfils all target criteria, which is constituted in the

Description langugage for the modelling and analysis of temporal change of instrumentation and control system structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goering, Markus Heinrich

2013-10-25

The utilisation of computer-based I and C, as a result of the technological advancements in the computer industry, represents an up-to-date challenge for I and C engineers in nuclear power plants throughout the world. In comparison with the time-proven, hard-wired I and C, the engineering must consider the novel characteristics of computer-based technology during the implementation, these are primarily constituted by higher performance and the utilisation of software. On one hand, this allows for implementing more complex I and C functions and integrating several I and C functions on to single components, although on the other hand, the minimisation of the CCF probability is of high priority to the engineering. Furthermore, the engineering must take the implementation of the deterministic safety concept for the I and C design into consideration. This includes engineering the redundancy, diversity, physical separation, and independence design features, and is complemented by the analysis of the I and C design with respect to the superposition of pre-defined event sequences and postulated failure combinations, so as to secure the safe operation of the nuclear power plant. The focus of this thesis is on the basic principles of engineering, i.e. description languages and methods, which the engineering relies on for a highly qualitative and efficient computer-based I and C implementation. The analysis of the deterministic safety concept and computer-based I and C characteristics yields the relevant technical requirements for the engineering, these are combined with the general structuring principles of standard IEC 81346 and the extended description language evaluation criteria, which are based on the guideline VDI/VDE-3681, resulting in target criteria for evaluating description languages. The analysis and comparison of existing description languages reveals that no description language satisfactorily fulfils all target criteria, which is constituted in the

The Linguistic Interpretation for Language Union – Language Family

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E.A. Balalykina

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The paper is dedicated to the problem of determination of the essence of language union and language family in modern linguistics, which is considered important, because these terms are often used as absolute synonyms. The research is relevant due to the need to distinguish the features of languages that are inherited during their functioning within either language union or language family when these languages are compared. The research has been carried out in order to present the historical background of the problem and to justify the need for differentiation of language facts that allow relating languages to particular language union or language family. In order to fulfill the goal of this work, descriptive, comparative, and historical methods have been used. A range of examples has been provided to prove that some languages, mainly Slavonic and Baltic languages, form a language family rather than a language union, because a whole number of features in their systems are the heritage of their common Indo-European past. Firstly, it is necessary to take into account changes having either common or different nature in the system of particular languages; secondly, one must have a precise idea of what features in the phonetic and morphological systems of compared languages allow to relate them to language union or language family; thirdly, it must be determined whether the changes in compared languages are regular or of any other type. On the basis of the obtained results, the following conclusions have been drawn: language union and language family are two different types of relations between modern languages; they allow identifying both degree of similarity of these languages and causes of differences between them. It is most important that one should distinguish and describe the specific features of two basic groups of languages forming language family or language union. The results obtained during the analysis are very important for linguistics

The influence of affordances on user preferences for multimedia language learning applications

OpenAIRE

Uther, M; Banks, AP

2016-01-01

This study investigates the influence of sensory and cognitive affordances on the user experience of mobile devices for multimedia language learning applications. A primarily audio-based language learning application – ‘Vowel Trainer’, was chosen against a comparison, text and picture-based language learning application – ‘Learn English for Taxi Drivers’. Impressions of the two applications were assessed on two different devices that have virtually the same interface and identical sound outpu...

Description of the Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills Revisited (ABLLS-R

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Semenovich M.L.

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Diagnostics and assessment of the functional skills of children with disabilities and autism spectrum disorders are to be conducted to develop comprehensive remedial educational programmes. The described Methodology of the Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills — Revisited (ABLLS-R allows to simplify and make the diagnostics more efficient, to conduct a comprehensive examination of the child in different areas of development, detect the formed and deficit skills. The second and final part of the description of the methodology offers recommendations on the filling of the Table of the Results of Initial and Repeated Testing and on the choice of goals of correctional work with a child on the basis of performance of individual test scales. The pattern of the table filled after the initial and repeated testing is given. In drawing up of the programme of individual development the willingness of the child to the development of that skill should be considered. Regular practice of selected skills in various situations and the preventive measures against the regression of skills are also important. Conclusive part. Beginning in № 3 (48, 2015

Letter-speech sound learning in children with dyslexia : From behavioral research to clinical practice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Aravena, S.

2017-01-01

In alphabetic languages, learning to associate speech-sounds with unfamiliar characters is a critical step in becoming a proficient reader. This dissertation aimed at expanding our knowledge of this learning process and its relation to dyslexia, with an emphasis on bridging the gap between

Speech-language pathologists' practices regarding assessment, analysis, target selection, intervention, and service delivery for children with speech sound disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Mcleod, Sharynne; Baker, Elise

2014-01-01

A survey of 231 Australian speech-language pathologists (SLPs) was undertaken to describe practices regarding assessment, analysis, target selection, intervention, and service delivery for children with speech sound disorders (SSD). The participants typically worked in private practice, education, or community health settings and 67.6% had a waiting list for services. For each child, most of the SLPs spent 10-40 min in pre-assessment activities, 30-60 min undertaking face-to-face assessments, and 30-60 min completing paperwork after assessments. During an assessment SLPs typically conducted a parent interview, single-word speech sampling, collected a connected speech sample, and used informal tests. They also determined children's stimulability and estimated intelligibility. With multilingual children, informal assessment procedures and English-only tests were commonly used and SLPs relied on family members or interpreters to assist. Common analysis techniques included determination of phonological processes, substitutions-omissions-distortions-additions (SODA), and phonetic inventory. Participants placed high priority on selecting target sounds that were stimulable, early developing, and in error across all word positions and 60.3% felt very confident or confident selecting an appropriate intervention approach. Eight intervention approaches were frequently used: auditory discrimination, minimal pairs, cued articulation, phonological awareness, traditional articulation therapy, auditory bombardment, Nuffield Centre Dyspraxia Programme, and core vocabulary. Children typically received individual therapy with an SLP in a clinic setting. Parents often observed and participated in sessions and SLPs typically included siblings and grandparents in intervention sessions. Parent training and home programs were more frequently used than the group therapy. Two-thirds kept up-to-date by reading journal articles monthly or every 6 months. There were many similarities with

Spoken language achieves robustness and evolvability by exploiting degeneracy and neutrality.

Science.gov (United States)

Winter, Bodo

2014-10-01

As with biological systems, spoken languages are strikingly robust against perturbations. This paper shows that languages achieve robustness in a way that is highly similar to many biological systems. For example, speech sounds are encoded via multiple acoustically diverse, temporally distributed and functionally redundant cues, characteristics that bear similarities to what biologists call "degeneracy". Speech is furthermore adequately characterized by neutrality, with many different tongue configurations leading to similar acoustic outputs, and different acoustic variants understood as the same by recipients. This highlights the presence of a large neutral network of acoustic neighbors for every speech sound. Such neutrality ensures that a steady backdrop of variation can be maintained without impeding communication, assuring that there is "fodder" for subsequent evolution. Thus, studying linguistic robustness is not only important for understanding how linguistic systems maintain their functioning upon the background of noise, but also for understanding the preconditions for language evolution. © 2014 WILEY Periodicals, Inc.

Effect of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety on Turkish University Students' Academic Achievement in Foreign Language Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Tuncer, Murat; Dogan, Yunus

2015-01-01

This study was carried out in order to identify to what extent the Turkish students' English classroom anxiety affects their academic achievement in English language. In this quantitative descriptive study, a correlational survey model was employed, and the convenience sampling was done. In order to collect data, the Foreign Language Classroom…

Sources, Developments and Directions of Task-Based Language Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Bygate, Martin

2016-01-01

This paper provides an outline of the origins, the current shape and the potential directions of task-based language teaching (TBLT) as an approach to language pedagogy. It first offers a brief description of TBLT and considers its origins within language teaching methodology and second language acquisition. It then summarises the current position…

Metric approach for sound propagation in nematic liquid crystals

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, E.; Fumeron, S.; Moraes, F.

2013-02-01

In the eikonal approach, we describe sound propagation near topological defects of nematic liquid crystals as geodesics of a non-Euclidian manifold endowed with an effective metric tensor. The relation between the acoustics of the medium and this geometrical description is given by Fermat's principle. We calculate the ray trajectories and propose a diffraction experiment to retrieve information about the elastic constants.

How to sound really clever 600 words you need to know

CERN Document Server

van den Bergh, Hubert

2013-01-01

How to Sound Really Clever explains and illustrates over 600 words that can outfox us, such as 'condign', 'Zelig-like' and 'agitprop'. This is the sequel to the successful How to Sound Clever (2010) which taught you 600 words you really ought to know but haven't had the time to look up in the dictionary. Each entry features an etymological description as well as useful example phrases so that readers can quickly see the correct context for each word. Anecdotes and witty illustrations appear throughout to make this an entertaining book that will help readers to boost their vocabulary.

Language meddles with infants’ processing of observed actions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alessandra Sciutti

2016-08-01

Full Text Available When learning from actions, language can be a crucial source to specify the learning content. Understanding its interactions with action processing is therefore fundamental when attempting to model the development of human learning to replicate it in artificial agents. From early childhood two different processes participate in shaping infants’ understanding of the events occurring around them: Infants’ motor system influences their action perception, driving their attention to the action goal; additionally, parental language influences the way children parse what they observe into relevant units. To date, however, it has barely been investigated whether these two cognitive processes – action understanding and language – are separate and independent or whether language might interfere with the former. To address this question we evaluated whether a verbal narrative concurrent with action observation could avert 14-month-old infants’ attention from an agent’s action goal, which is otherwise naturally selected when the action is performed by an agent. The infants observed movies of an actor reaching and transporting balls into a box. In three between-subject conditions, the reaching movement was accompanied either with no audio (Base condition, a sine-wave sound (Sound condition, or a speech sample (Speech condition. The results show that the presence of a speech sample underlining the movement phase reduced significantly the number of predictive gaze shifts to the goal compared to the other conditions. Our findings thus indicate that any modelling of the interaction between language and action processing will have to consider a potential top-down effect of the former, as language can be a meddler in the predictive behavior typical of the observation of goal oriented actions.

Ultracold Fermi and Bose gases and Spinless Bose Charged Sound Particles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Minasyan V.

2011-10-01

Full Text Available We propose a novel approach for investigation of the motion of Bose or Fermi liquid (or gas which consists of decoupled electrons and ions in the uppermost hyperfine state. Hence, we use such a concept as the fluctuation motion of “charged fluid particles” or “charged fluid points” representing a charged longitudinal elastic wave. In turn, this elastic wave is quantized by spinless longitudinal Bose charged sound particles with the rest mass m and charge e 0 . The existence of spinless Bose charged sound particles allows us to present a new model for description of Bose or Fermi liquid via a non-ideal Bose gas of charged sound particles . In this respect, we introduce a new postulation for the superfluid component of Bose or Fermi liquid determined by means of charged sound particles in the condensate, which may explain the results of experiments connected with ultra-cold Fermi gases of spin-polarized hydrogen, 6 Li and 40 K, and such a Bose gas as 87 Rb in the uppermost hyperfine state, where the Bose- Einstein condensation of charged sound particles is realized by tuning the magnetic field.

The Sociolinguistic Model in Speech and Language Pathology.

Science.gov (United States)

Wolfram, Walt

A discussion of the role of sociolinguistics in the treatment of communication disorders focuses on issues related to dialect and language variation. It begins with an examination of linguistic diversity and dynamic description of language, reporting on a study of speech and language pathologists' judgments of sentences in African American…

Language Pathology.

Science.gov (United States)

Fletcher, Paul

1989-01-01

Discusses the role of linguistics in the investigation of language disorders, focusing on the application of phonetics, descriptive grammatic frameworks, grammatical theory, and concepts from semantics and pragmatics to a variety of disorders and their remediation. Some trends and examples from the field of clinical linguistics are discussed. (GLR)

Sons fricativos surdos Voiceless fricatives sounds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carla Aparecida Cielo

2008-01-01

Full Text Available TEMA: características dos sons fricativos surdos. OBJETIVO: propor uma revisão da literatura pertinente às características acústicas, fonéticas e fonológicas dos fonemas fricativos surdos que integram o sistema fonológico do Português. Além disso, são descritas suas aplicações na terapia vocal. CONCLUSÕES: os fricativos são fonemas agudos, abrangendo de 2500 a 8000Hz; são plenamente adquiridos até os 3:7 anos de idade; o /s/ que também é o mais afetado em casos de frênulo lingual curto; a omissão do /s/ é uma das ocorrências mais freqüentes na alfabetização; sendo que, no desvio fonológico e na fissura lábio-palatina, freqüentemente ocorre comprometimento de toda a classe de fricativos. Na avaliação de voz, os fricativos são mencionados com as medidas de TMF e relação s/z, bem como seu uso como sons de apoio na fonoterapia.BACKGROUND: characteristics of voiceless fricative sounds PURPOSE: to review the literature related to acoustic, phonetics and phonological characteristics of voiceless fricative sounds that are part of the phonological system of the Portuguese Language. Furthermore, it describes the use of these sounds in voice therapy. CONCLUSIONS: fricatives are acute phonemes comprised between 2500 and 8000 Hz; they are fully acquired up to the age of 3:7 years; the /s/, which is the most affected in cases of short lingual frenum; omission of the /s/ is one of the most frequent occurrences during literacy education; and in the phonological deviation and labial-palatine fissure the entire class of fricatives is frequently affected. In voice assessment, fricative sounds are mentioned as TMF measurements and s/z relationship, and their use as support sounds in speech therapy.

Auditory-cognitive training improves language performance in prelingually deafened cochlear implant recipients.

Science.gov (United States)

Ingvalson, Erin M; Young, Nancy M; Wong, Patrick C M

2014-10-01

Phonological and working memory skills have been shown to be important for the development of spoken language. Children who use a cochlear implant (CI) show performance deficits relative to normal hearing (NH) children on all constructs: phonological skills, working memory, and spoken language. Given that phonological skills and working memory have been shown to be important for spoken language development in NH children, we hypothesized that training these foundational skills would result in improved spoken language performance in CI-using children. Nineteen prelingually deafened CI-using children aged 4- to 7-years-old participated. All children had been using their implants for at least one year and were matched on pre-implant hearing thresholds, hearing thresholds at study enrollment, and non-verbal IQ. Children were assessed on expressive vocabulary, listening language, spoken language, and composite language. Ten children received four weeks of training on phonological skills including rhyme, sound blending, and sound discrimination and auditory working memory. The remaining nine children continued with their normal classroom activities for four weeks. Language assessments were repeated following the training/control period. Children who received combined phonological-working memory training showed significant gains on expressive and composite language scores. Children who did not receive training showed no significant improvements at post-test. On average, trained children had gain scores of 6.35 points on expressive language and gain scores of 6.15 points whereas the untrained children had test-retest gain scores of 2.89 points for expressive language and 2.56 for composite language. Our results suggest that training to improve the phonological and working memory skills in CI-using children may lead to improved language performance. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Estimating valence from the sound of a word : Computational, experimental, and cross-linguistic evidence

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Louwerse, Max; Qu, Zhan

2017-01-01

It is assumed linguistic symbols must be grounded in perceptual information to attain meaning, because the sound of a word in a language has an arbitrary relation with its referent. This paper demonstrates that a strong arbitrariness claim should be reconsidered. In a computational study, we showed

Reading Skills of Students with Speech Sound Disorders at Three Stages of Literacy Development

Science.gov (United States)

Skebo, Crysten M.; Lewis, Barbara A.; Freebairn, Lisa A.; Tag, Jessica; Ciesla, Allison Avrich; Stein, Catherine M.

2013-01-01

Purpose: The relationship between phonological awareness, overall language, vocabulary, and nonlinguistic cognitive skills to decoding and reading comprehension was examined for students at 3 stages of literacy development (i.e., early elementary school, middle school, and high school). Students with histories of speech sound disorders (SSD) with…

Aware Computing in Spatial Language Understanding Guided by Cognitively Inspired Knowledge Representation

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Masao Yokota

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Mental image directed semantic theory (MIDST has proposed an omnisensory mental image model and its description language Lmd. This language is designed to represent and compute human intuitive knowledge of space and can provide multimedia expressions with intermediate semantic descriptions in predicate logic. It is hypothesized that such knowledge and semantic descriptions are controlled by human attention toward the world and therefore subjective to each human individual. This paper describes Lmd expression of human subjective knowledge of space and its application to aware computing in cross-media operation between linguistic and pictorial expressions as spatial language understanding.

Balancing Linguistic and Social Needs: Evaluating Texts Using a Critical Language Awareness Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Case, Rod E.; Ndura, Elavie; Righettini, Marielena

2005-01-01

English as a second language (ESL) content-based texts are often evaluated for their presentation of sound second-language teaching practices. While such reviews are important and valuable, they ignore an examination of the race, class, and gender issues introduced in the texts. A critical perspective on textbook evaluation organized around the…

Viewpoints, Formalisms, Languages, and Tools for Cyber-Physical Systems

Science.gov (United States)

2014-05-16

ACM, Inc., fax +1 (212) 869-0481. Formalisms Languages and ToolsViewpoints supported by implemented by based on Figure 1: Framework for Viewpoints...Description Languages Examples: VHDL , Verilog, and AMS extensions Reactive languages Examples: SCADE/Lustre and Giotto Model Checkers Examples: Spin, NuSMV...syntax and a formal semantics. Languages are con- crete implementations of formalisms. A language has a con- crete syntax, may deviate slightly from

Effects of Dual Coded Multimedia Instruction Employing Image Morphing on Learning a Logographic Language

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ling; Blackwell, Aleka Akoyunoglou

2015-01-01

Native speakers of alphabetic languages, which use letters governed by grapheme-phoneme correspondence rules, often find it particularly challenging to learn a logographic language whose writing system employs symbols with no direct sound-to-spelling connection but links to the visual and semantic information. The visuospatial properties of…

Problems in nonlinear acoustics: Scattering of sound by sound, parametric receiving arrays, nonlinear effects in asymmetric sound beams and pulsed finite amplitude sound beams

Science.gov (United States)

Hamilton, Mark F.

1989-08-01

Four projects are discussed in this annual summary report, all of which involve basic research in nonlinear acoustics: Scattering of Sound by Sound, a theoretical study of two nonconlinear Gaussian beams which interact to produce sum and difference frequency sound; Parametric Receiving Arrays, a theoretical study of parametric reception in a reverberant environment; Nonlinear Effects in Asymmetric Sound Beams, a numerical study of two dimensional finite amplitude sound fields; and Pulsed Finite Amplitude Sound Beams, a numerical time domain solution of the KZK equation.

Foreign Language Training in the United States Peace Corps.

Science.gov (United States)

Kulakow, Allan

This document reports on the foreign language training offered in the Peace Corps. Following a brief introductory statement, a list of languages taught by the Peace Corps in the years 1961-67 is provided, as well as a brief description of Peace Corps language training methods. Guidelines for language coordinators are outlined, and the approach to…

12 CFR 570.3 - Filing of safety and soundness compliance plan.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... compliance plan shall include a description of the steps the savings association will take to correct the deficiency and the time within which those steps will be taken. (c) Review of safety and soundness compliance... plan. (a) Schedule for filing compliance plan—(1) In general. A savings association shall file a...

Design and qualification of an UHV system for operation on sounding rockets

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grosse, Jens, E-mail: jens.grosse@dlr.de; Braxmaier, Claus [Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity (ZARM), University of Bremen, Bremen, 28359, Germany and German Aerospace Center (DLR) Bremen, Bremen, 28359 (Germany); Seidel, Stephan Tobias; Becker, Dennis; Lachmann, Maike Diana [Institute of Quantum Optics, Leibniz University Hanover, Hanover, 30167 (Germany); Scharringhausen, Marco [German Aerospace Center (DLR) Bremen, Bremen, 28359 (Germany); Rasel, Ernst Maria [Institute of Quantum Optics, Leibniz University Hanover, Hanover, 30167, Bremen (Germany)

2016-05-15

The sounding rocket mission MAIUS-1 has the objective to create the first Bose–Einstein condensate in space; therefore, its scientific payload is a complete cold atom experiment built to be launched on a VSB-30 sounding rocket. An essential part of the setup is an ultrahigh vacuum system needed in order to sufficiently suppress interactions of the cooled atoms with the residual background gas. Contrary to vacuum systems on missions aboard satellites or the international space station, the required vacuum environment has to be reached within 47 s after motor burn-out. This paper contains a detailed description of the MAIUS-1 vacuum system, as well as a description of its qualification process for the operation under vibrational loads of up to 8.1 g{sub RMS} (where RMS is root mean square). Even though a pressure rise dependent on the level of vibration was observed, the design presented herein is capable of regaining a pressure of below 5 × 10{sup −10} mbar in less than 40 s when tested at 5.4 g{sub RMS}. To the authors' best knowledge, it is the first UHV system qualified for operation on a sounding rocket.

PREFACE: Aerodynamic sound Aerodynamic sound

Science.gov (United States)

Akishita, Sadao

2010-02-01

The modern theory of aerodynamic sound originates from Lighthill's two papers in 1952 and 1954, as is well known. I have heard that Lighthill was motivated in writing the papers by the jet-noise emitted by the newly commercialized jet-engined airplanes at that time. The technology of aerodynamic sound is destined for environmental problems. Therefore the theory should always be applied to newly emerged public nuisances. This issue of Fluid Dynamics Research (FDR) reflects problems of environmental sound in present Japanese technology. The Japanese community studying aerodynamic sound has held an annual symposium since 29 years ago when the late Professor S Kotake and Professor S Kaji of Teikyo University organized the symposium. Most of the Japanese authors in this issue are members of the annual symposium. I should note the contribution of the two professors cited above in establishing the Japanese community of aerodynamic sound research. It is my pleasure to present the publication in this issue of ten papers discussed at the annual symposium. I would like to express many thanks to the Editorial Board of FDR for giving us the chance to contribute these papers. We have a review paper by T Suzuki on the study of jet noise, which continues to be important nowadays, and is expected to reform the theoretical model of generating mechanisms. Professor M S Howe and R S McGowan contribute an analytical paper, a valuable study in today's fluid dynamics research. They apply hydrodynamics to solve the compressible flow generated in the vocal cords of the human body. Experimental study continues to be the main methodology in aerodynamic sound, and it is expected to explore new horizons. H Fujita's study on the Aeolian tone provides a new viewpoint on major, longstanding sound problems. The paper by M Nishimura and T Goto on textile fabrics describes new technology for the effective reduction of bluff-body noise. The paper by T Sueki et al also reports new technology for the

Benjamin's conception of language and Adorno's aesthetic theory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo Duarte

Full Text Available According to the theory of language of the young Benjamin, the primary task of language isn't the communication of contents, but to express itself as a "spiritual essence" in which also men take part. That conception according to which language would be a medium to signification of something outside it leads to a necessary decrease of its original strength and is thus denominated by Benjamin bürgerlich. The names of human language are remainders of an archaic state, in which things weren't yet mute and had their own language. Benjamin suggests also that all the arts remind the original language of things, as they make objects "speak" in form of sounds, colors, shapes etc. That relationship between arts as reminders of the "language of things" and the possible reconciliation of mankind with itself and with nature has been developed by Theodor Adorno in several of his writings, specially in the Aesthetic Theory, where the artwork is ultimately conceived as a construct pervaded by "language" in the widest meaning - not in the "bourgeois" sense.

Differences in the Association between Segment and Language: Early Bilinguals Pattern with Monolinguals and Are Less Accurate than Late Bilinguals

Science.gov (United States)

Blanco, Cynthia P.; Bannard, Colin; Smiljanic, Rajka

2016-01-01

Early bilinguals often show as much sensitivity to L2-specific contrasts as monolingual speakers of the L2, but most work on cross-language speech perception has focused on isolated segments, and typically only on neighboring vowels or stop contrasts. In tasks that include sounds in context, listeners’ success is more variable, so segment discrimination in isolation may not adequately represent the phonetic detail in stored representations. The current study explores the relationship between language experience and sensitivity to segmental cues in context by comparing the categorization patterns of monolingual English listeners and early and late Spanish–English bilinguals. Participants categorized nonce words containing different classes of English- and Spanish-specific sounds as being more English-like or more Spanish-like; target segments included phonemic cues, cues for which there is no analogous sound in the other language, or phonetic cues, cues for which English and Spanish share the category but for which each language varies in its phonetic implementation. Listeners’ language categorization accuracy and reaction times were analyzed. Our results reveal a largely uniform categorization pattern across listener groups: Spanish cues were categorized more accurately than English cues, and phonemic cues were easier for listeners to categorize than phonetic cues. There were no differences in the sensitivity of monolinguals and early bilinguals to language-specific cues, suggesting that the early bilinguals’ exposure to Spanish did not fundamentally change their representations of English phonology. However, neither did the early bilinguals show more sensitivity than the monolinguals to Spanish sounds. The late bilinguals however, were significantly more accurate than either of the other groups. These findings indicate that listeners with varying exposure to English and Spanish are able to use language-specific cues in a nonce-word language categorization

An open access database for the evaluation of heart sound algorithms.

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Liu, Chengyu; Springer, David; Li, Qiao; Moody, Benjamin; Juan, Ricardo Abad; Chorro, Francisco J; Castells, Francisco; Roig, José Millet; Silva, Ikaro; Johnson, Alistair E W; Syed, Zeeshan; Schmidt, Samuel E; Papadaniil, Chrysa D; Hadjileontiadis, Leontios; Naseri, Hosein; Moukadem, Ali; Dieterlen, Alain; Brandt, Christian; Tang, Hong; Samieinasab, Maryam; Samieinasab, Mohammad Reza; Sameni, Reza; Mark, Roger G; Clifford, Gari D

2016-12-01

In the past few decades, analysis of heart sound signals (i.e. the phonocardiogram or PCG), especially for automated heart sound segmentation and classification, has been widely studied and has been reported to have the potential value to detect pathology accurately in clinical applications. However, comparative analyses of algorithms in the literature have been hindered by the lack of high-quality, rigorously validated, and standardized open databases of heart sound recordings. This paper describes a public heart sound database, assembled for an international competition, the PhysioNet/Computing in Cardiology (CinC) Challenge 2016. The archive comprises nine different heart sound databases sourced from multiple research groups around the world. It includes 2435 heart sound recordings in total collected from 1297 healthy subjects and patients with a variety of conditions, including heart valve disease and coronary artery disease. The recordings were collected from a variety of clinical or nonclinical (such as in-home visits) environments and equipment. The length of recording varied from several seconds to several minutes. This article reports detailed information about the subjects/patients including demographics (number, age, gender), recordings (number, location, state and time length), associated synchronously recorded signals, sampling frequency and sensor type used. We also provide a brief summary of the commonly used heart sound segmentation and classification methods, including open source code provided concurrently for the Challenge. A description of the PhysioNet/CinC Challenge 2016, including the main aims, the training and test sets, the hand corrected annotations for different heart sound states, the scoring mechanism, and associated open source code are provided. In addition, several potential benefits from the public heart sound database are discussed.

Summer sound-level characterization of the Deaf Smith County and Swisher County locations in the Palo Duro Basin, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-03-01

A description of sound levels and sound sources in the Deaf Smith County and Swisher County locations in the Palo Duro Basin during a period representative of the summer season is presented. Included are data collected during the period August 4 through 8, 1982, for both locations. 3 references, 2 figures, 3 tables

Dyslexia and Learning a Foreign Language: A Personal Experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Simon, Charlann S.

2000-01-01

This participant observer report reviews research on how dyslexia complicates learning a second language, a description of how dyslexia has affected educational experiences, personal experiences learning a foreign language, and recommendations to individuals with dyslexia who are faced with fulfilling a foreign language requirement and their…

Vocabulary and Writing in a First and Second Language

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Albrechtsen, Dorte; Haastrup, Kirsten; Henriksen, Birgit

Book description: Vocabulary and Writing in a First and Second Language is based on a large-scale empirical study. The innovative feature of the research was that the same students were asked to do the same tasks in both languages while reporting their thinking as they went along. Furthermore , t......-depth approach useful in understanding the processes of both first and second language performance......Book description: Vocabulary and Writing in a First and Second Language is based on a large-scale empirical study. The innovative feature of the research was that the same students were asked to do the same tasks in both languages while reporting their thinking as they went along. Furthermore...... the relationship between the skills and describe the level of development for individual learners within the three areas. In all cases, statistical and qualitative analyses are offered, the latter being based on the learners' own 'think-aloud' reports. Both researchers and teachers of language will find this in...

Profile of Australian Preschool Children with Speech Sound Disorders at Risk for Literacy Difficulties

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McLeod, Sharynne; Crowe, Kathryn; Masso, Sarah; Baker, Elise; McCormack, Jane; Wren, Yvonne; Roulstone, Susan; Howland, Charlotte

2017-01-01

Speech sound disorders are a common communication difficulty in preschool children. Teachers indicate difficulty identifying and supporting these children. The aim of this research was to describe speech and language characteristics of children identified by their parents and/or teachers as having possible communication concerns. 275 Australian 4-…

Dynamic mapping of EDDL device descriptions to OPC UA

Science.gov (United States)

Atta Nsiah, Kofi; Schappacher, Manuel; Sikora, Axel

2017-07-01

OPC UA (Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture) is already a well-known concept used widely in the automation industry. In the area of factory automation, OPC UA models the underlying field devices such as sensors and actuators in an OPC UA server to allow connecting OPC UA clients to access device-specific information via a standardized information model. One of the requirements of the OPC UA server to represent field device data using its information model is to have advanced knowledge about the properties of the field devices in the form of device descriptions. The international standard IEC 61804 specifies EDDL (Electronic Device Description Language) as a generic language for describing the properties of field devices. In this paper, the authors describe a possibility to dynamically map and integrate field device descriptions based on EDDL into OPCUA.

Phonology in English language teaching an international approach

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Pennington, Martha C

2014-01-01

Phonology in English Language Teaching is an introductory text, specifically directed at the needs of language teachers internationally. Combining an overview of English phonology with structured practical guidance, this text shows how phonology can be applied in the classroom.An introductory chapter provides the philosophical framework, followed by separate chapters on the phonology of consonants, vowels and prosody. As well as presenting core material on English phonology, the book explores the relationship of orthography to the English sound system from a historical and a pre

A phenomenological view of language shift.

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Tsitsipis, Lukas D

2004-01-01

Sociolinguistic studies of language shift have in their majority framed their research object in a horizon of theoretically received variables such as class, ethnicity, locality, attitudes etc. In spite of a limited usefulness of such conceptual variables, and of a recently emerging focus on agency, negotiation, and praxis the best results we obtain have not questioned in a coherent and theoretically sound manner the continuing hegemony of mechanistic-metaphorical models (language death, language suicide). In this paper I propose to examine language shift as a multifaceted phenomenon, joining in this respect work by other linguistic anthropologists researching similar areas. I specifically argue that by replacing vertical concepts such as age and generation, and dichotomous logics such as center and periphery with phenomenologically inspired concepts such as typifications, consociateship, contemporariness, and stream of consciousness we are in a better position to generalize about language shift dynamics. Data for this work is derived primarily from the Albanian speech communities of modern Greece, but also from other communities for comparative purposes.

Isogeometric analysis of sound propagation through laminar flow in 2-dimensional ducts

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nørtoft, Peter; Gravesen, Jens; Willatzen, Morten

2015-01-01

We consider the propagation of sound through a slowly moving fluid in a 2-dimensional duct. A detailed description of a flow-acoustic model of the problem using B-spline based isogeometric analysis is given. The model couples the non-linear, steady-state, incompressible Navier-Stokes equation in ...

A random matrix approach to language acquisition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nicolaidis, A; Kosmidis, Kosmas; Argyrakis, Panos

2009-01-01

Since language is tied to cognition, we expect the linguistic structures to reflect patterns that we encounter in nature and are analyzed by physics. Within this realm we investigate the process of lexicon acquisition, using analytical and tractable methods developed within physics. A lexicon is a mapping between sounds and referents of the perceived world. This mapping is represented by a matrix and the linguistic interaction among individuals is described by a random matrix model. There are two essential parameters in our approach. The strength of the linguistic interaction β, which is considered as a genetically determined ability, and the number N of sounds employed (the lexicon size). Our model of linguistic interaction is analytically studied using methods of statistical physics and simulated by Monte Carlo techniques. The analysis reveals an intricate relationship between the innate propensity for language acquisition β and the lexicon size N, N∼exp(β). Thus a small increase of the genetically determined β may lead to an incredible lexical explosion. Our approximate scheme offers an explanation for the biological affinity of different species and their simultaneous linguistic disparity

A random matrix approach to language acquisition

Science.gov (United States)

Nicolaidis, A.; Kosmidis, Kosmas; Argyrakis, Panos

2009-12-01

Since language is tied to cognition, we expect the linguistic structures to reflect patterns that we encounter in nature and are analyzed by physics. Within this realm we investigate the process of lexicon acquisition, using analytical and tractable methods developed within physics. A lexicon is a mapping between sounds and referents of the perceived world. This mapping is represented by a matrix and the linguistic interaction among individuals is described by a random matrix model. There are two essential parameters in our approach. The strength of the linguistic interaction β, which is considered as a genetically determined ability, and the number N of sounds employed (the lexicon size). Our model of linguistic interaction is analytically studied using methods of statistical physics and simulated by Monte Carlo techniques. The analysis reveals an intricate relationship between the innate propensity for language acquisition β and the lexicon size N, N~exp(β). Thus a small increase of the genetically determined β may lead to an incredible lexical explosion. Our approximate scheme offers an explanation for the biological affinity of different species and their simultaneous linguistic disparity.

COMPETENCIES OF GERMAN LANGUAGE TEACHERS IN INDONESIA AND VIETNAM BASED ON COMMON EUROPEAN FRAMEWORK OF REFERENCE FOR LANGUAGES (CEFR)

OpenAIRE

Pratomo Widodo; Akbar K Setiawan; Le Hoai An

2016-01-01

This study aims to (1) identify and compare the language competencies of German language teachers in Indonesia and Vietnam, and (2) identify the factors attributable to their competency levels. This was a qualitative descriptive study. The data were collected by means of questionnaires. The study shows that, based on the CEFR, the competencies of German language teachers in Vietnam are in the B2 level, while those of German language teachers in Indonesia are in the B1 level. T...

Toward a Model of Pediatric Speech Sound Disorders (SSD) for Differential Diagnosis and Therapy Planning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Terband, Hayo; Maassen, Bernardus; Maas, Edwin; van Lieshout, Pascal; Maassen, Ben; Terband, Hayo

2016-01-01

The classification and differentiation of pediatric speech sound disorders (SSD) is one of the main questions in the field of speech- and language pathology. Terms for classifying childhood and SSD and motor speech disorders (MSD) refer to speech production processes, and a variety of methods of

Imagining Sound

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grimshaw, Mark; Garner, Tom Alexander

2014-01-01

We make the case in this essay that sound that is imagined is both a perception and as much a sound as that perceived through external stimulation. To argue this, we look at the evidence from auditory science, neuroscience, and philosophy, briefly present some new conceptual thinking on sound...... that accounts for this view, and then use this to look at what the future might hold in the context of imagining sound and developing technology....

Does a Picture Say More than 7000 Words? Windows of Opportunity to Learn Languages--An Attempt at a Creative Reflective Poster

Science.gov (United States)

Schaller-Schwaner, Iris

2015-01-01

This article originated in a creative attempt to engage audiences visually, on a poster, with ideas about language(s), teaching and learning which have been informing language education at university language centres. It was originally locally grounded and devised to take soundings with colleagues and with participants at the CercleS 2014…

Applications of Quality Management in Language Education

Science.gov (United States)

Heyworth, Frank

2013-01-01

This review examines applications of quality management (QM) in language education. QM approaches have been adapted from methodologies developed in industrial and commercial settings, and these are briefly described. Key aspects of QM in language education are the definition of purpose, descriptions of principles and practice, including various…

Classroom Management in Foreign Language Education: An Exploratory Review

Science.gov (United States)

Macías, Diego Fernando

2018-01-01

This review examines studies in the area of classroom management in foreign language education. It is organized into three large areas: The first area focuses on the distinctive characteristics of foreign language instruction that are more likely to impact classroom management in foreign language classes. The second area provides a description of…

A functional language for describing reversible logic

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thomsen, Michael Kirkedal

2012-01-01

Reversible logic is a computational model where all gates are logically reversible and combined in circuits such that no values are lost or duplicated. This paper presents a novel functional language that is designed to describe only reversible logic circuits. The language includes high....... Reversibility of descriptions is guaranteed with a type system based on linear types. The language is applied to three examples of reversible computations (ALU, linear cosine transformation, and binary adder). The paper also outlines a design flow that ensures garbage- free translation to reversible logic...... circuits. The flow relies on a reversible combinator language as an intermediate language....

THE CONCEPT OF LANGUAGE LEARNING IN BEHAVIORISM PERSPECTIVE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Khoiru Rakhman Abidin

2016-07-01

Full Text Available The aims of the study are (1 the concepts of language learning in behaviorism perspective, (2 the relation between language and learning in behaviorism perspective, (3 the influence of behaviorism in language learning. This is a descriptive qualitative study. The results showed that (1 behaviorism theories of languages also give good contribution in language learning process that describes a child can learn language from their environments, (2 behaviorism perspective defines as change of behavior through experience, it means human learn something from their environments, (3 human uses language for communication in the world and he also spreads his culture with his language so  human gets  knowledge of language through learning.

An Application for Descriptive Nearness: Iris Recognition

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Polat Kadirhan

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Near Set Theory has various applications in the literature. In this paper, using the concept descriptive nearness, we show how to perform iris recognition. This process has a few algorithms given via Mathematica Script Language.

Information Retrieval and the Philosophy of Language.

Science.gov (United States)

Blair, David C.

2003-01-01

Provides an overview of some of the main ideas in the philosophy of language that have relevance to the issues of information retrieval, focusing on the description of the intellectual content. Highlights include retrieval problems; recall and precision; words and meanings; context; externalism and the philosophy of language; and scaffolding and…

Sound radiation contrast in MR phase images. Method for the representation of elasticity, sound damping, and sound impedance changes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radicke, Marcus

2009-01-01

The method presented in this thesis combines ultrasound techniques with the magnetic-resonance tomography (MRT). An ultrasonic wave generates in absorbing media a static force in sound-propagation direction. The force leads at sound intensities of some W/cm 2 and a sound frequency in the lower MHz range to a tissue shift in the micrometer range. This tissue shift depends on the sound power, the sound frequency, the sound absorption, and the elastic properties of the tissue. A MRT sequence of the Siemens Healthcare AG was modified so that it measures (indirectly) the tissue shift, codes as grey values, and presents as 2D picture. By means of the grey values the sound-beam slope in the tissue can be visualized, and so additionally sound obstacles (changes of the sound impedance) can be detected. By the MRT images token up spatial changes of the tissue parameters sound absorption and elasticity can be detected. In this thesis measurements are presented, which show the feasibility and future chances of this method especially for the mammary-cancer diagnostics. [de

An amodal shared resource model of language-mediated visual attention

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alastair Charles Smith

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Language-mediated visual attention describes the interaction of two fundamental components of the human cognitive system, language and vision. Within this paper we present an amodal shared resource model of language-mediated visual attention that offers a description of the information and processes involved in this complex multimodal behaviour and a potential explanation for how this ability is acquired. We demonstrate that the model is not only sufficient to account for the experimental effects of Visual World Paradigm studies but also that these effects are emergent properties of the architecture of the model itself, rather than requiring separate information processing channels or modular processing systems. The model provides an explicit description of the connection between the modality-specific input from language and vision and the distribution of eye gaze in language mediated visual attention. The paper concludes by discussing future applications for the model, specifically its potential for investigating the factors driving observed individual differences in language mediated eye gaze.

Musical aptitude and second language pronunciation skills in school-aged children: neural and behavioral evidence.

Science.gov (United States)

Milovanov, Riia; Huotilainen, Minna; Välimäki, Vesa; Esquef, Paulo A A; Tervaniemi, Mari

2008-02-15

The main focus of this study was to examine the relationship between musical aptitude and second language pronunciation skills. We investigated whether children with superior performance in foreign language production represent musical sound features more readily in the preattentive level of neural processing compared with children with less-advanced production skills. Sound processing accuracy was examined in elementary school children by means of event-related potential (ERP) recordings and behavioral measures. Children with good linguistic skills had better musical skills as measured by the Seashore musicality test than children with less accurate linguistic skills. The ERP data accompany the results of the behavioral tests: children with good linguistic skills showed more pronounced sound-change evoked activation with the music stimuli than children with less accurate linguistic skills. Taken together, the results imply that musical and linguistic skills could partly be based on shared neural mechanisms.

Evaluating Pragmatic Competence in Nigerian Undergraduates' Language Errors within Descriptive ESL Writing

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Muhammad, Anas Sa'idu; Nair, Subadrah Madhawa

2017-01-01

This study investigates the level of pragmatic competence for ESL writing skills among Nigerian undergraduates. Methodologically, it adopts descriptive research design within the explanatory framework of the QUAN-Qual model. The instruments used are descriptive essay text and focus group interview questions. In writing the descriptive essays, a…

A longitudinal study of adult foreign language learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Andreas Højlund; Horn, Nynne Thorup; Sørensen, Stine Derdau

Models of speech learning suggest that adaptations to foreign language sound categories should happen early in the acquisition process. Results from laboratory language training show effects on non-native perception within one to three weeks of training. Results from linguistic immersion studies...... show differences in adaptations when contrasting averages of 1-2 yrs of experience with 6-7 yrs of experience. We investigated this apparent discrepancy in a longitudinal study on Danish language officer cadets learning either Arabic (MSA and Egyptian dialect) or Dari (Afghan Farsi) through intensive...... (emphatic frication) and a phonemic Dari contrast (fricative voicing) as stimuli for both groups. We saw an effect of learning on the Dari learners’ identification of the Dari stimuli already after three weeks of language training, which was sustained, but not improved, after six and 20 months. The extents...

Hemispheric lateralization in an analysis of speech sounds. Left hemisphere dominance replicated in Japanese subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Koyama, S; Gunji, A; Yabe, H; Oiwa, S; Akahane-Yamada, R; Kakigi, R; Näätänen, R

2000-09-01

Evoked magnetic responses to speech sounds [R. Näätänen, A. Lehtokoski, M. Lennes, M. Cheour, M. Huotilainen, A. Iivonen, M. Vainio, P. Alku, R.J. Ilmoniemi, A. Luuk, J. Allik, J. Sinkkonen and K. Alho, Language-specific phoneme representations revealed by electric and magnetic brain responses. Nature, 385 (1997) 432-434.] were recorded from 13 Japanese subjects (right-handed). Infrequently presented vowels ([o]) among repetitive vowels ([e]) elicited the magnetic counterpart of mismatch negativity, MMNm (Bilateral, nine subjects; Left hemisphere alone, three subjects; Right hemisphere alone, one subject). The estimated source of the MMNm was stronger in the left than in the right auditory cortex. The sources were located posteriorly in the left than in the right auditory cortex. These findings are consistent with the results obtained in Finnish [R. Näätänen, A. Lehtokoski, M. Lennes, M. Cheour, M. Huotilainen, A. Iivonen, M.Vainio, P.Alku, R.J. Ilmoniemi, A. Luuk, J. Allik, J. Sinkkonen and K. Alho, Language-specific phoneme representations revealed by electric and magnetic brain responses. Nature, 385 (1997) 432-434.][T. Rinne, K. Alho, P. Alku, M. Holi, J. Sinkkonen, J. Virtanen, O. Bertrand and R. Näätänen, Analysis of speech sounds is left-hemisphere predominant at 100-150 ms after sound onset. Neuroreport, 10 (1999) 1113-1117.] and English [K. Alho, J.F. Connolly, M. Cheour, A. Lehtokoski, M. Huotilainen, J. Virtanen, R. Aulanko and R.J. Ilmoniemi, Hemispheric lateralization in preattentive processing of speech sounds. Neurosci. Lett., 258 (1998) 9-12.] subjects. Instead of the P1m observed in Finnish [M. Tervaniemi, A. Kujala, K. Alho, J. Virtanen, R.J. Ilmoniemi and R. Näätänen, Functional specialization of the human auditory cortex in processing phonetic and musical sounds: A magnetoencephalographic (MEG) study. Neuroimage, 9 (1999) 330-336.] and English [K. Alho, J. F. Connolly, M. Cheour, A. Lehtokoski, M. Huotilainen, J. Virtanen, R. Aulanko

Examination of Sign Language Education According to the Opinions of Members from a Basic Sign Language Certification Program

Science.gov (United States)

Akmese, Pelin Pistav

2016-01-01

Being hearing impaired limits one's ability to communicate in that it affects all areas of development, particularly speech. One of the methods the hearing impaired use to communicate is sign language. This study, a descriptive study, intends to examine the opinions of individuals who had enrolled in a sign language certification program by using…

A Context-Aware Solution in Mobile Language Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Fatahipour, Majid; Ghaseminajm, Mahnaz

2014-01-01

Despite obvious benefits, some challenges exist in the way of sustainable utilization of mobile phone technology for language learning tasks. This paper shows how these challenges can be better addressed in the light of recent advancements in mobile phone technology, like context aware mobile learning, informed with a sound pedagogical basis for…

LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD--INDO-PACIFIC FASCICLE FOUR.

Science.gov (United States)

VOEGELIN, C. F.; VOEGELIN, FLORENCE M.

THIS REPORT CONTAINS A LIST AND DESCRIPTIONS OF THE AUSTRONESIAN FAMILY OF LANGUAGES WHICH INCLUDE THE LANGUAGES OF INDONESIA, FORMOSA, MADAGASCAR, THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, AND PART OF SOUTHEAST ASIA. (THE REPORT IS PART OF A SERIES, ED 010 350 TO ED 010 367.) (JK)

A Magic Book Out of Magic Language

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

宋媛

2007-01-01

Harry Potter books are great successes, enjoyed by readers' all over the world. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is the debut of the sequel books,which is about magic and the magical life a little boy- Harry Potter, a born wizard.People are always curious and eager to discover the secrets of magic, to meet the end of the heroes' fates, but not many of them pay attention to the book's language. Actually, I think it is the skillful use and application of language that make the book outstanding. Therefore, this paper mainly discusses the language features of Harry Potter and Philosopher's Stone from these four aspects: speech sounds, choice of vocabulary, sentence structures and figures of speech, aiming at exploring and revealing the charms of the magic book.

Development of Prediction Tool for Sound Absorption and Sound Insulation for Sound Proof Properties

OpenAIRE

Yoshio Kurosawa; Takao Yamaguchi

2015-01-01

High frequency automotive interior noise above 500 Hz considerably affects automotive passenger comfort. To reduce this noise, sound insulation material is often laminated on body panels or interior trim panels. For a more effective noise reduction, the sound reduction properties of this laminated structure need to be estimated. We have developed a new calculate tool that can roughly calculate the sound absorption and insulation properties of laminate structure and handy ...

Recursive macro generator for the TAS-86 language. First part: the macro generator language. Second part: system internal logics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zraick, Samir

1970-01-01

A macro-generator is a translator which is able to interpret and translate a programme written in a macro-language. After a first part presenting the main notions and proposing a brief description of the TAS-86 language, the second part of this research thesis reports the development of the macro-generator language, and notably presents the additional functionalities provided by the macro generator. The development is illustrated by logical flowcharts and programming listings

Parameterizing Sound: Design Considerations for an Environmental Sound Database

Science.gov (United States)

2015-04-01

associated with, or produced by, a physical event or human activity and 2) sound sources that are common in the environment. Reproductions or sound...Rogers S. Confrontation naming of environmental sounds. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology . 2000;22(6):830–864. 14 VanDerveer NJ

Towards a Pattern Language Approach to Document Description

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert Waller

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Pattern libraries, originating in architecture, are a common way to share design solutions in interaction design and software engineering. Our aim in this paper is to consider patterns as a way of describing commonly-occurring document design solutions to particular problems, from two points of view. First, we are interested in their use as exemplars for designers to follow, and second, we suggest them as a means of understanding linguistic and graphical data for their organization into corpora that will facilitate descriptive work. We discuss the use of patterns across a range of disciplines before suggesting the need to place patterns in the context of genres, with each potentially belonging to a “home genre” in which it originates and to which it makes an implicit intertextual reference intended to produce a particular reader response in the form of a reading strategy or interpretative stance. We consider some conceptual and technical issues involved in the descriptive study of patterns in naturally-occurring documents, including the challenges involved in building a document corpus.

The meaning of city noises: Investigating sound quality in Paris (France)

Science.gov (United States)

Dubois, Daniele; Guastavino, Catherine; Maffiolo, Valerie; Guastavino, Catherine; Maffiolo, Valerie

2004-05-01

The sound quality of Paris (France) was investigated by using field inquiries in actual environments (open questionnaires) and using recordings under laboratory conditions (free-sorting tasks). Cognitive categories of soundscapes were inferred by means of psycholinguistic analyses of verbal data and of mathematical analyses of similarity judgments. Results show that auditory judgments mainly rely on source identification. The appraisal of urban noise therefore depends on the qualitative evaluation of noise sources. The salience of human sounds in public spaces has been demonstrated, in relation to pleasantness judgments: soundscapes with human presence tend to be perceived as more pleasant than soundscapes consisting solely of mechanical sounds. Furthermore, human sounds are qualitatively processed as indicators of human outdoor activities, such as open markets, pedestrian areas, and sidewalk cafe districts that reflect city life. In contrast, mechanical noises (mainly traffic noise) are commonly described in terms of physical properties (temporal structure, intensity) of a permanent background noise that also characterizes urban areas. This connotes considering both quantitative and qualitative descriptions to account for the diversity of cognitive interpretations of urban soundscapes, since subjective evaluations depend both on the meaning attributed to noise sources and on inherent properties of the acoustic signal.

Programming the BBC micro

CERN Document Server

Ferguson, John D; Macari, Louie; Williams, Peter H

1983-01-01

Programming the BBC Micro is a 12-chapter book that begins with a description of the BBC microcomputer, its peripheral, and faults. Subsequent chapters focus on practice in programming, program development, graphics, words, numbers, sound, bits, bytes, and assembly language. The interfacing, file handling, and detailed description of BBC microcomputer are also shown.

The Experience of Teaching of Descriptive Geometry and Engineering Graphics in Russian Language as a Foreign Language

Science.gov (United States)

Voronina, Marianna V.; Tretyakova, Zlata O.

2017-01-01

The article considers the peculiarities of training foreign students subject "Descriptive geometry and Engineering Graphics" in a modern engineering university of Russia. The relevance of the problem conditioned by the fact that virtually there are no special studies of teaching Descriptive Geometry and Engineering Graphics in Russian…

Making fictions sound real - On film sound, perceptual realism and genre

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Birger Langkjær

2010-05-01

Full Text Available This article examines the role that sound plays in making fictions perceptually real to film audiences, whether these fictions are realist or non-realist in content and narrative form. I will argue that some aspects of film sound practices and the kind of experiences they trigger are related to basic rules of human perception, whereas others are more properly explained in relation to how aesthetic devices, including sound, are used to characterise the fiction and thereby make it perceptually real to its audience. Finally, I will argue that not all genres can be defined by a simple taxonomy of sounds. Apart from an account of the kinds of sounds that typically appear in a specific genre, a genre analysis of sound may also benefit from a functionalist approach that focuses on how sounds can make both realist and non-realist aspects of genres sound real to audiences.

Making fictions sound real - On film sound, perceptual realism and genre

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Birger Langkjær

2009-09-01

Full Text Available This article examines the role that sound plays in making fictions perceptually real to film audiences, whether these fictions are realist or non-realist in content and narrative form. I will argue that some aspects of film sound practices and the kind of experiences they trigger are related to basic rules of human perception, whereas others are more properly explained in relation to how aesthetic devices, including sound, are used to characterise the fiction and thereby make it perceptually real to its audience. Finally, I will argue that not all genres can be defined by a simple taxonomy of sounds. Apart from an account of the kinds of sounds that typically appear in a specific genre, a genre analysis of sound may also benefit from a functionalist approach that focuses on how sounds can make both realist and non-realist aspects of genres sound real to audiences.

33 CFR 167.1703 - In Prince William Sound: Valdez Arm Traffic Separation Scheme.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false In Prince William Sound: Valdez Arm Traffic Separation Scheme. 167.1703 Section 167.1703 Navigation and Navigable Waters COAST GUARD... Description of Traffic Separation Schemes and Precautionary Areas Pacific West Coast § 167.1703 In Prince...

BILINGUALISM AMONG STUDENTS OF THE FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE, SALATIGA, INDONESIA: A DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anne Indrayanti Timotius

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Although bilingualism is an interesting phenomenon these days, not many researchers explore bilingualism in Asia. Most research in a similar field, like that done by Yip and Matthews (2007, and Harding-Esch and Riley (2003, show that children become bilingual because their parents are from countries with different mother tongues. This is not necessarily true in Asian countries like Indonesia. In Indonesia, most of its citizens are bilingual, even though both parents are Indonesian. This happens because children are not only exposed to and taught one language from a young age. Many of them are exposed to at least two languages, which are Indonesian (the national language and lingua franca of Indonesia and their local language – which is different depending on which area of Indonesia they were born or grew up. In addition, it is highly possible that exposure to other languages, such as English, may add to their capability to speak more than just two languages and thus, they become multilingual. This phenomenon has piqued the interest of the writers to conduct a study on bilingualism in Indonesia. The aim of the study is to describe bilingualism/multilingualism among a group of students in Indonesia. The data is collected by distributing questionnaires to 240 participants who are students in the Faculty of Language and Literature (FLL, Satya Wacana Christian University, Salatiga. The study reveals that there are three languages mostly spoken or used by the participants. They are Indonesian, English, and a regional language (mostly Javanese. Also, most of the students‘ first language is Indonesian. As for the second language, it is quite varied, including regional languages and English.

The language phenomenon human communication from milliseconds to millennia

CERN Document Server

Smith, K

2013-01-01

This volume contains a contemporary, integrated description of the processes of language. These range from fast scales (fractions of a second) to slow ones (over a million years). The contributors, all experts in their fields, address language in the brain, production of sentences and dialogues, language learning, transmission and evolutionary processes that happen over centuries or millenia, the relation between language and genes, the origins of language, self-organization, and language competition and death. The book as a whole will help to show how processes at different scales affect each other, thus presenting language as a dynamic, complex and profoundly human phenomenon.

Denials of Racism in Canadian English Language Textbooks

Science.gov (United States)

Gulliver, Trevor; Thurrell, Kristy

2016-01-01

This critical discourse analysis examines denials of racism in descriptions of Canada and Canadians from English language textbooks. Denials of racism often accompany racist and nationalist discourse, preempting observations of racism. The study finds that in representations of Canada or Canadians, English language texts minimize and downplay…

Audio Description as a Pedagogical Tool

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Georgina Kleege

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Audio description is the process of translating visual information into words for people who are blind or have low vision. Typically such description has focused on films, museum exhibitions, images and video on the internet, and live theater. Because it allows people with visual impairments to experience a variety of cultural and educational texts that would otherwise be inaccessible, audio description is a mandated aspect of disability inclusion, although it remains markedly underdeveloped and underutilized in our classrooms and in society in general. Along with increasing awareness of disability, audio description pushes students to practice close reading of visual material, deepen their analysis, and engage in critical discussions around the methodology, standards and values, language, and role of interpretation in a variety of academic disciplines. We outline a few pedagogical interventions that can be customized to different contexts to develop students' writing and critical thinking skills through guided description of visual material.

The Metaphorical Language of Branding Philosophy

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Mirna Hocenski Dreiseidl

2010-12-01

Full Text Available The paper deals with the analysis of the language of branding philosophy used in the famous book «Lovemarks – The Future Beyond Brands» written by the international branding guru Kevin Roberts, CEO Worldwide of Ideas Company Saatchi & Saatchi. His new branding approach shows how by using the universal, fundamental, timeless emotion LOVE expressed in universally (anywhere and timelessly (anytime comprehensible metaphors a new idea of a «lovemark» embodies mystery (great stories, past, present and future, taps into dreams, myths and icons, inspiration, sensuality (sound, sight, smell, touch, taste, and intimacy (commitment, empathy, passion. Lovemark that, according to Roberts, «…reaches one's heart, as well as one's mind, and creates emotional connection to the consumer…» has been created and accepted in the business culture worldwide. In view of this, the paper points out the significance of metaphorical way of expressing in the language of branding as well as the irreplaceable role of language as the main factor in branding philosophy. The language analysis focuses on the metaphors of love influencing the shift of language of branding from material (brand to intangible (lovemark. It also highlights the fact that new ideas as incentives to language enrichment generate new lexemes like trustmark and lovemark.

Spatial Language, Visual Attention, and Perceptual Simulation

Science.gov (United States)

Coventry, Kenny R.; Lynott, Dermot; Cangelosi, Angelo; Monrouxe, Lynn; Joyce, Dan; Richardson, Daniel C.

2010-01-01

Spatial language descriptions, such as "The bottle is over the glass", direct the attention of the hearer to particular aspects of the visual world. This paper asks how they do so, and what brain mechanisms underlie this process. In two experiments employing behavioural and eye tracking methodologies we examined the effects of spatial language on…

Adapting comics to storyboard language

OpenAIRE

Manhães Ricardo; Milton Luiz Horn Vieira; Carolina Cesar Coral

2017-01-01

This article analyzes the practical differences between the language of comics and the storyboard, in adapting a format to the other. The result of this adjustment will be applied in an animation. Graphics solutions used in each of these languages, the expression of their contents, were compared descriptively. Features such as the horizontal format, the vignette, audio, kinetic figures, visual metaphors and subtitles, when placed side by side, highlight the differences and similarities betwee...

DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF HONORIFIC USE IN KOREAN EMAIL DISCOURSE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaegu Kim

2016-07-01

Full Text Available It is a relatively new field that examines how Korean culture affects Korean language use in terms of age difference in a corpus of computer mediated email discourse. The purpose of this descriptive study and experiment is to prove the close relationship between Korean language and culture. This paper shows the descriptive study of Korean culture in relation to language use. Korean culture acknowledges an inherent hierarchy with regard to age, and considers [+age] as relating socially to [+power]. When younger Koreans converse with older ones, they express different morpho-syntactic patterns, which is an age complex. The main task of the experiment was to examine the way through which the age complex is reflected by Korean honorific linguistic system in email discourse. I asked 15 Korean native speakers between the ages of 20 to 25 to write emails expressing an impositive request to [+age (46-50 years old], [-age (below 25 years old] and [=age] recipients. The results show significant differences in the use of grammatical features in emails written to [+age] recipients, as compared to emails written to [-age] and [=age] recipients. The implication of the findings is that the cultural values that are attached to age and aging in the Korean society affects Koreans’ language use, which means Korean language and culture are closely intermingled.

Discrimination and identification of long vowels in children with typical language development and specific language impairment

Science.gov (United States)

Datta, Hia; Shafer, Valerie; Kurtzberg, Diane

2004-05-01

Researchers have claimed that children with specific language impairment (SLI) have particular difficulties in discriminating and identifying phonetically similar and brief speech sounds (Stark and Heinz, 1966; Studdert-Kennedy and Bradley, 1997; Sussman, 1993). In a recent study (Shafer et al., 2004), children with SLI were reported to have difficulty in processing brief (50 ms), phonetically similar vowels (/I-E/). The current study investigated perception of long (250 ms), phonetically similar vowels (/I-E/) in 8- to 10-year-old children with SLI and typical language development (TLD). The purpose was to examine whether phonetic similarity in vowels leads to poorer speech-perception in the SLI group. Behavioral and electrophysiological methods were employed to examine discrimination and identification of a nine-step vowel continuum from /I/ to /E/. Similar performances in discrimination were found for both groups, indicating that lengthening vowel duration indeed improves discrimination of phonetically similar vowels. However, these children with SLI showed poor behavioral identification, demonstrating that phonetic similarity of speech sounds, irrespective of their duration, contribute to the speech perception difficulty observed in SLI population. These findings suggest that the deficit in these children with SLI is at the level of working memory or long term memory representation of speech.

Sound Environments Surrounding Preterm Infants Within an Occupied Closed Incubator.

Science.gov (United States)

Shimizu, Aya; Matsuo, Hiroya

2016-01-01

Preterm infants often exhibit functional disorders due to the stressful environment in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The sound pressure level (SPL) in the NICU is often much higher than the levels recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Our study aims to describe the SPL and sound frequency levels surrounding preterm infants within closed incubators that utilize high frequency oscillation (HFO) or nasal directional positive airway pressure (nasal-DPAP) respiratory settings. This is a descriptive research study of eight preterm infants (corrected agenoise levels were observed and the results were compared to the recommendations made by neonatal experts. Increased noise levels, which have reported to affect neonates' ability to self-regulate, could increase the risk of developing attention deficit disorder, and may result in tachycardia, bradycardia, increased intracranial pressure, and hypoxia. The care provider should closely assess for adverse effects of higher sound levels generated by different modes of respiratory support and take measures to ensure that preterm infants are protected from exposure to noise exceeding the optimal safe levels. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sound Absorbers

Science.gov (United States)

Fuchs, H. V.; Möser, M.

Sound absorption indicates the transformation of sound energy into heat. It is, for instance, employed to design the acoustics in rooms. The noise emitted by machinery and plants shall be reduced before arriving at a workplace; auditoria such as lecture rooms or concert halls require a certain reverberation time. Such design goals are realised by installing absorbing components at the walls with well-defined absorption characteristics, which are adjusted for corresponding demands. Sound absorbers also play an important role in acoustic capsules, ducts and screens to avoid sound immission from noise intensive environments into the neighbourhood.

Malamih al-Ashwat al-'Arabiyyah wa Makharijaha

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Amrah Muhammad Kasim

2015-12-01

Full Text Available This writing discusses on al-ashwat al-‘arabiyyah that is known with “phonetic” term. It talks and interprets makharij al-huruf or place for producing sounds and also processing production of sounds by parts of mouth in Arabic language. The problems of sounds and its systems in Arabic language have been conducted by the scholars of al-ashwat al-‘arabiyyah attractively, neatly, and detail and gotten ahead the phonetic western scholars. Part of their analysis results formulate the study about al-ashwat al-sakinah (al-Shamit is known with vocal and consonant sounds in research questions shawait – shawamit. Ibnu Jinni has formulated “harakat”(wowel in Arabic language and dimension of letter  mad and liyn on alif  letter - waw - ya’ (ا و ي, from these letters create  harakat fathah, dammah, and kasrah. Moreover, in this writing also exist the description of hija’i letters and its makhraj that are correct from parts of mouth and the unity of coordinative sounds that produce sounds in morphemes arrangement, in one word that produces meaning. The result of phonological study has divided al-ashwat to be kinds of sound like the pronounced sounds, produced sounds from mouth, and heard sound.

The Varieties of Programming Language Semantics (and Their Uses)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mosses, Peter David

2001-01-01

; and regular expressions are extensively used for searching and transforming text. In contrast, formal semantic descriptions are widely regarded as being of interest only to theoreticians. This paper surveys the main frameworks available for describing the dynamic semantics of programming languages......Formal descriptions of syntax are quite popular: regular and context-free grammars have become accepted as useful for documenting the syntax of programming languages, as well as for generating efficient parsers; attribute grammars allow parsing to be linked with typechecking and code generation...

An Acceptable Alternative Articulation to Remediate Mispronunciation of the English /l/ Sound: Can Production Precede Perception?

Science.gov (United States)

Raver-Lampman, Greg; Wilson, Corinne

2018-01-01

This article explores the teaching of an acceptable alternative articulation to correct the mispronunciation of the English /l/ sound by speakers of some Asian languages and dialects who struggle to differentiate the English liquids /r/ and /l/. Although teaching pronunciation, and especially segmentals, has generated controversy over whether…

Historical Development of Hong Kong Sign Language

Science.gov (United States)

Sze, Felix; Lo, Connie; Lo, Lisa; Chu, Kenny

2013-01-01

This article traces the origins of Hong Kong Sign Language (hereafter HKSL) and its subsequent development in relation to the establishment of Deaf education in Hong Kong after World War II. We begin with a detailed description of the history of Deaf education with a particular focus on the role of sign language in such development. We then…

Making Sound Connections

Science.gov (United States)

Deal, Walter F., III

2007-01-01

Sound provides and offers amazing insights into the world. Sound waves may be defined as mechanical energy that moves through air or other medium as a longitudinal wave and consists of pressure fluctuations. Humans and animals alike use sound as a means of communication and a tool for survival. Mammals, such as bats, use ultrasonic sound waves to…

Extending a Petri-net based workflow description language for e-business atomicity support

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Norta, A.H.; Artishchev, S.

2004-01-01

In this paper an extension of XRL is presented for supporting Webbased and inter-organizational e-business atomicity spheres in workflow applications. XRL (eXchangable Routing Language), is an extensible, instance-based language that is intended for inter-organizational workflow processes having an

SYNCOM: A general syntax conversion language and computer program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bindon, D.C.

1972-09-01

The problems of syntax conversion are discussed and the reasons given for the choice of the Interpretive method. A full description is given of the SYNCON language and computer program together with brief details of some programs written in the language. (author)

Sex-specific asymmetries in communication sound perception are not related to hand preference in an early primate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Scheumann Marina

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Left hemispheric dominance of language processing and handedness, previously thought to be unique to humans, is currently under debate. To gain an insight into the origin of lateralization in primates, we have studied gray mouse lemurs, suggested to represent the most ancestral primate condition. We explored potential functional asymmetries on the behavioral level by applying a combined handedness and auditory perception task. For testing handedness, we used a forced food-grasping task. For testing auditory perception, we adapted the head turn paradigm, originally established for exploring hemispheric specializations in conspecific sound processing in Old World monkeys, and exposed 38 subjects to control sounds and conspecific communication sounds of positive and negative emotional valence. Results The tested mouse lemur population did not show an asymmetry in hand preference or in orientation towards conspecific communication sounds. However, males, but not females, exhibited a significant right ear-left hemisphere bias when exposed to conspecific communication sounds of negative emotional valence. Orientation asymmetries were not related to hand preference. Conclusion Our results provide the first evidence for sex-specific asymmetries for conspecific communication sound perception in non-human primates. Furthermore, they suggest that hemispheric dominance for communication sound processing evolved before handedness and independently from each other.

Abnormal sound detection device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamada, Izumi; Matsui, Yuji.

1995-01-01

Only components synchronized with rotation of pumps are sampled from detected acoustic sounds, to judge the presence or absence of abnormality based on the magnitude of the synchronized components. A synchronized component sampling means can remove resonance sounds and other acoustic sounds generated at a synchronously with the rotation based on the knowledge that generated acoustic components in a normal state are a sort of resonance sounds and are not precisely synchronized with the number of rotation. On the other hand, abnormal sounds of a rotating body are often caused by compulsory force accompanying the rotation as a generation source, and the abnormal sounds can be detected by extracting only the rotation-synchronized components. Since components of normal acoustic sounds generated at present are discriminated from the detected sounds, reduction of the abnormal sounds due to a signal processing can be avoided and, as a result, abnormal sound detection sensitivity can be improved. Further, since it is adapted to discriminate the occurrence of the abnormal sound from the actually detected sounds, the other frequency components which are forecast but not generated actually are not removed, so that it is further effective for the improvement of detection sensitivity. (N.H.)

Gay- and Lesbian-Sounding Auditory Cues Elicit Stereotyping and Discrimination.

Science.gov (United States)

Fasoli, Fabio; Maass, Anne; Paladino, Maria Paola; Sulpizio, Simone

2017-07-01

The growing body of literature on the recognition of sexual orientation from voice ("auditory gaydar") is silent on the cognitive and social consequences of having a gay-/lesbian- versus heterosexual-sounding voice. We investigated this issue in four studies (overall N = 276), conducted in Italian language, in which heterosexual listeners were exposed to single-sentence voice samples of gay/lesbian and heterosexual speakers. In all four studies, listeners were found to make gender-typical inferences about traits and preferences of heterosexual speakers, but gender-atypical inferences about those of gay or lesbian speakers. Behavioral intention measures showed that listeners considered lesbian and gay speakers as less suitable for a leadership position, and male (but not female) listeners took distance from gay speakers. Together, this research demonstrates that having a gay/lesbian rather than heterosexual-sounding voice has tangible consequences for stereotyping and discrimination.

Puget Sound Reinforcement Project : Planning for Peak Power Needs : Scoping Report, Part A, Summary of Public Comments.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

United States. Bonneville Power Administration.

1990-07-01

This report summarizes public participation in the environmental scoping process for the Puget Sound Reinforcement Project, a Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and Puget Sound area utilities study of voltage stability in northwestern Washington state. The environmental scoping phase of the Puget Sound project consisted of a series of public meetings and a public comment period. The content of these meetings is summarized in 2.0, Public Involvement. In 3.0, Comment Summary, the report summarizes comments received via meetings, mail and phone. The report ends with a description of the next steps in the project. Chapter 4.0, describes the decision process to be used by BPA and area utilities. Chapter 5.0 describes opportunities for public participation in decisions to be made about the future reliability of Puget Sound's electricity supply.

Descriptive Metaphysics, Natural Language Metaphysics, Sapir-Whorf, and All That Stuff: Evidence from the Mass-Count Distinction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francis Jeffry Pelletier

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Strawson (1959 described ‘descriptive metaphysics’, Bach (1986a described ‘natural language metaphysics’, Sapir (1929 and Whorf (1940a,b, 1941 describe, well, Sapir-Whorfianism. And there are other views concerning the relation between correct semantic analysis of linguistic phenomena and the “reality” that is supposed to be thereby described. I think some considerations from the analyses of the mass-count distinction can shed some light on that very dark topic.ReferencesBach, Emmon. 1986a. ‘Natural Language Metaphysics’. In Ruth Barcan Marcus, G.J.W. Dorn & Paul Weingartner (eds. ‘Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science, VII’, 573–595. Amsterdam: North Holland.Bach, Emmon. 1986b. ‘The Algebra of Events’. Linguistics and Philosophy 9: 5–16.Berger, Peter & Luckmann, Thomas. 1966. The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge. New York: Doubleday.Boroditsky, Lera, Schmidt, Lauren & Phillips, Webb. 2003. ‘Sex, Syntax, and Semantics’. In Dedre Gentner & Susan Goldin-Meadow (eds. ‘Language in Mind: Advances in the Study of Language and Cognition’, 59–80. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Cheng, L. & Sybesma, R. 1999. ‘Bare and Not-So-Bare Nouns and the structure of NP’. Linguistic Inquiry 30: 509–542.http://dx.doi.org/10.1162/002438999554192Chierchia, Gennaro. 1998a. ‘Reference to Kinds across Languages’. Natural Language Semantics 6: 339–405.http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A:1008324218506Chierchia, Gennaro. 1998b. ‘Plurality of Mass Nouns and the Notion of ‘Semantic Parameter’ ’. In S. Rothstein (ed. ‘Events and Grammar’, 53–103. Dordrecht: Kluwer.Chierchia, Gennaro. 2010. ‘Mass Nouns, Vagueness and Semantic Variation’. Synthèse 174: 99–149.http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11229-009-9686-6Doetjes, Jenny. 1997. Quantifiers and Selection: On the Distribution of Quantifying Expressions in French, Dutch and English. Ph.D. thesis, University of Leiden, Holland

Sound Search Engine Concept

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2006-01-01

Sound search is provided by the major search engines, however, indexing is text based, not sound based. We will establish a dedicated sound search services with based on sound feature indexing. The current demo shows the concept of the sound search engine. The first engine will be realased June...

Vocal Fry Use in Adult Female Speakers Exposed to Two Languages.

Science.gov (United States)

Gibson, Todd A; Summers, Connie; Walls, Sydney

2017-07-01

Several studies have identified the widespread use of vocal fry among American women. Popular explanations for this phenomenon appeal to sociolinguistic purposes that likely take significant time for second language users to learn. The objective of this study was to determine if mere exposure to this vocal register, as opposed to nuanced sociolinguistic motivations, might explain its widespread use. This study used multigroup within- and between-subjects design. Fifty-eight women from one of three language background groups (functionally monolingual in English, functionally monolingual in Spanish, and Spanish-English bilinguals) living in El Paso, Texas, repeated a list of nonwords conforming to the sound rules of English and another list of nonwords conforming to the sound rules of Spanish. Perceptual analysis identified each episode of vocal fry. There were no statistically significant differences between groups in their frequency of vocal fry use despite large differences in their amount of English-language exposure. All groups produced more vocal fry when repeating English than when repeating Spanish nonwords. Because the human perceptual system encodes for vocal qualities even after minimal language experience, the widespread use of vocal fry among female residents in the United States likely is owing to mere exposure to English rather than nuanced sociolinguistic motivations. Copyright © 2017 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The sound manifesto

Science.gov (United States)

O'Donnell, Michael J.; Bisnovatyi, Ilia

2000-11-01

Computing practice today depends on visual output to drive almost all user interaction. Other senses, such as audition, may be totally neglected, or used tangentially, or used in highly restricted specialized ways. We have excellent audio rendering through D-A conversion, but we lack rich general facilities for modeling and manipulating sound comparable in quality and flexibility to graphics. We need coordinated research in several disciplines to improve the use of sound as an interactive information channel. Incremental and separate improvements in synthesis, analysis, speech processing, audiology, acoustics, music, etc. will not alone produce the radical progress that we seek in sonic practice. We also need to create a new central topic of study in digital audio research. The new topic will assimilate the contributions of different disciplines on a common foundation. The key central concept that we lack is sound as a general-purpose information channel. We must investigate the structure of this information channel, which is driven by the cooperative development of auditory perception and physical sound production. Particular audible encodings, such as speech and music, illuminate sonic information by example, but they are no more sufficient for a characterization than typography is sufficient for characterization of visual information. To develop this new conceptual topic of sonic information structure, we need to integrate insights from a number of different disciplines that deal with sound. In particular, we need to coordinate central and foundational studies of the representational models of sound with specific applications that illuminate the good and bad qualities of these models. Each natural or artificial process that generates informative sound, and each perceptual mechanism that derives information from sound, will teach us something about the right structure to attribute to the sound itself. The new Sound topic will combine the work of computer

The Sounds of Silence: Language, Cognition, and Anxiety in Selective Mutism

Science.gov (United States)

Manassis, Katharina; Tannock, Rosemary; Garland, E. Jane; Minde, Klaus; McInnes, Alison; Clark, Sandra

2007-01-01

Objectives: To determine whether oral language, working memory, and social anxiety differentiate children with selective mutism (SM), children with anxiety disorders (ANX), and normal controls (NCs) and explore predictors of mutism severity. Method: Children ages 6 to 10 years with SM (n = 44) were compared with children with ANX (n = 28) and NCs…

Pronunciation for English as an international language from research to practice

CERN Document Server

Low, Ee-Ling

2014-01-01

Pronunciation plays a crucial role in learning English as an international language, yet often remains marginalised by educators due to a lack of required phonetic and phonological knowledge. Pronunciation for English as an International Language bridges the gap between phonetics, phonology and pronunciation and provides the reader with a research based guide on how best to teach the English language. The book follows an easy to follow format which ensures the reader will have a comprehensive grasp of each given topic by the end of the chapter. Key ideas explored include: Articulation of English speech sounds and basic transcription Connected speech processes Current issues in English language pronunciation teaching Multimedia in English language pronunciation practice Using speech analysis to investigate pronunciation features Using the latest research, Pronunciation for English as an International Language will facilitate effective teaching and learning for any individual involved in teaching English a...

Unsound Sound

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Knakkergaard, Martin

2016-01-01

This article discusses the change in premise that digitally produced sound brings about and how digital technologies more generally have changed our relationship to the musical artifact, not simply in degree but in kind. It demonstrates how our acoustical conceptions are thoroughly challenged...... by the digital production of sound and, by questioning the ontological basis for digital sound, turns our understanding of the core term substance upside down....

Cross-Sensory Correspondences and Symbolism in Spoken and Written Language

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Peter

2016-01-01

Lexical sound symbolism in language appears to exploit the feature associations embedded in cross-sensory correspondences. For example, words incorporating relatively high acoustic frequencies (i.e., front/close rather than back/open vowels) are deemed more appropriate as names for concepts associated with brightness, lightness in weight,…

Longitudinal Comparison of the Speech and Language Performance of United States-Born and Internationally Adopted Toddlers with Cleft Lip and Palate: A Pilot Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Scherer, Nancy J; Baker, Shauna; Kaiser, Ann; Frey, Jennifer R

2018-01-01

Objective This study compares the early speech and language development of children with cleft palate with or without cleft lip who were adopted internationally with children born in the United States. Design Prospective longitudinal description of early speech and language development between 18 and 36 months of age. Participants This study compares four children (age range = 19 to 38 months) with cleft palate with or without cleft lip who were adopted internationally with four children (age range = 19 to 38 months) with cleft palate with or without cleft lip who were born in the United States, matched for age, gender, and cleft type across three time points over 10 to 12 months. Main Outcome Measures Children's speech-language skills were analyzed using standardized tests, parent surveys, language samples, and single-word phonological assessments to determine differences between the groups. Results The mean scores for the children in the internationally adopted group were lower than the group born in the United States at all three time points for expressive language and speech sound production measures. Examination of matched pairs demonstrated observable differences for two of the four pairs. No differences were observed in cognitive performance and receptive language measures. Conclusions The results suggest a cumulative effect of later palate repair and/or a variety of health and environmental factors associated with their early circumstances that persist to age 3 years. Early intervention to address the trajectory of speech and language is warranted. Given the findings from this small pilot study, a larger study of the long-term speech and language development of children who are internationally adopted and have cleft palate with or without cleft lip is recommended.

The language of violence in mental health: shifting the paradigm to the language of peace.

Science.gov (United States)

Alex, Marion; Whitty-Rogers, Joanne; Panagopoulos, Wendy

2013-01-01

Language used in health care, particularly with vulnerable populations such as those with mental illness, is often violent, rising from historical prejudices and politics of power over others. This creates disharmony and distrust between health care providers and patients and families. Peace involves relationships that nurture ongoing harmony, trust, and constructive solutions. In this descriptive philosophical article, we discuss connections between and among the concepts of peace, health, relational ethics, in relation to nurses' responsibilities, current health care realities, and the language of nursing. We propose a shift in discourse within nurse-patient relationships from oppressive and stigmatizing language to the discourse of peace.

Recognizing the Effects of Comprehension Language Barriers and Adaptability Cultural Barriers on Selected First-Generation Undergraduate Vietnamese Students

Science.gov (United States)

Phan, Christian Phuoc-Lanh

2009-01-01

This investigation is about recognizing the effects of comprehension language barriers and adaptability cultural barriers on selected first-generation Vietnamese undergraduate students in the Puget Sound region of Washington State. Most Vietnamese students know little or no English before immigrating to the United States; as such, language and…

Developmental language and speech disability.

Science.gov (United States)

Spiel, G; Brunner, E; Allmayer, B; Pletz, A

2001-09-01

Speech disabilities (articulation deficits) and language disorders--expressive (vocabulary) receptive (language comprehension) are not uncommon in children. An overview of these along with a global description of the impairment of communication as well as clinical characteristics of language developmental disorders are presented in this article. The diagnostic tables, which are applied in the European and Anglo-American speech areas, ICD-10 and DSM-IV, have been explained and compared. Because of their strengths and weaknesses an alternative classification of language and speech developmental disorders is proposed, which allows a differentiation between expressive and receptive language capabilities with regard to the semantic and the morphological/syntax domains. Prevalence and comorbidity rates, psychosocial influences, biological factors and the biological social interaction have been discussed. The necessity of the use of standardized examinations is emphasised. General logopaedic treatment paradigms, specific therapy concepts and an overview of prognosis have been described.

The Meta-Language of Advertising in a Synergetic Vision of the World (in English Language

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aila E. Zhumabekova

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The relevance of this article is determined by necessity of consideration of the metalanguage, which is considered a language that expresses the hidden meaning of advertising through natural language, from the point of view of linguistic analysis in the synergy aspect as a main tool used by the metalanguage in the process of representation created in the framework of this direction terminology. The article creates a lexical reservoir used on the respective orientation, which detects the connection with the language phenomena and the facts in our case in advertising. Formed the language of "second order", which is the object of the natural language in all its manifestations. The new synergetic way of thinking in the meta-language of advertising is nonlinear, and evolutionary. This is the current stage of development of linguistics as an attempt of system description meta-language of advertising and its effects on customers are different segments of the population, that is, a synergistic perception of the content of advertising texts in English and their components.

Laser vibrometry measurements of vibration and sound fields of a bowed violin

Science.gov (United States)

Gren, Per; Tatar, Kourosh; Granström, Jan; Molin, N.-E.; Jansson, Erik V.

2006-04-01

Laser vibrometry measurements on a bowed violin are performed. A rotating disc apparatus, acting as a violin bow, is developed. It produces a continuous, long, repeatable, multi-frequency sound from the instrument that imitates the real bow-string interaction for a 'very long bow'. What mainly differs is that the back and forward motion of the real bow is replaced by the rotating motion with constant velocity of the disc and constant bowing force (bowing pressure). This procedure is repeatable. It is long lasting and allows laser vibrometry techniques to be used, which measure forced vibrations by bowing at all excited frequencies simultaneously. A chain of interacting parts of the played violin is studied: the string, the bridge and the plates as well as the emitted sound field. A description of the mechanics and the sound production of the bowed violin is given, i.e. the production chain from the bowed string to the produced tone.

Early Sound Symbolism for Vowel Sounds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ferrinne Spector

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Children and adults consistently match some words (e.g., kiki to jagged shapes and other words (e.g., bouba to rounded shapes, providing evidence for non-arbitrary sound–shape mapping. In this study, we investigated the influence of vowels on sound–shape matching in toddlers, using four contrasting pairs of nonsense words differing in vowel sound (/i/ as in feet vs. /o/ as in boat and four rounded–jagged shape pairs. Crucially, we used reduplicated syllables (e.g., kiki vs. koko rather than confounding vowel sound with consonant context and syllable variability (e.g., kiki vs. bouba. Toddlers consistently matched words with /o/ to rounded shapes and words with /i/ to jagged shapes (p < 0.01. The results suggest that there may be naturally biased correspondences between vowel sound and shape.

Remediating Language Deficient/Dyslexic College Students: An Interview with Robert Nash.

Science.gov (United States)

Lundquist, Arlene J.; Nash, Robert

1988-01-01

Robert Nash responds to questions concerning his personal and professional background, the Simultaneous Multisensory Instructional Procedure for Teaching the Complete Sound Structure of the Language, problems associated with dyslexia, the social/emotional impact of learning disabilities, and the University of Wisconsin's Project Success for…

IST BENOGO (IST – 2001-39184) Deliverable I-AAU-05-01: Role of sound in VR and Audio Visual Preferences

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nordahl, Rolf

This Periodic Progres Report (PPR) document reports on the studies done in Aalborg University on December 2004 concerning role of sound in VR, audio-visual correlations and attention triggering. The report contains a description and evaluation of the experiments run, together with the analysis...... of the data captured by the head tracker, which provide valuable insights on the role of sound events in VR....

THE LANGUAGE OF MEDICAL ADVERTISING MATERIALS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Birutė Briaukienė

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Increasingly audacious steps in advertising are made to affect the customer and to encourage them to buy the advertised goods. Advertising is highly important in gaining a foothold in the business environment. Usually, the advertising texts fail to meet the norms of the standard Lithuanian language. The aim of this article is to compare the language of the advertising booklets of two pharmacies. The linguistic analysis of the advertising booklets of Camelia and Euro Pharmacy for March 2014 showed that in terms of language errors the booklets of the two pharmacies were similar, and the character of the errors was identical in both cases. The advertising booklets of both pharmacies contained lexical, syntactic, morphological, and logical errors. The advertising booklet of the Camelia pharmacy presents 121 items, which advertising descriptions contain 55.3% of language errors. The advertising booklet of the Euro Pharmacy presents advertising descriptions of 103 items, where language errors comprise 57.2%. The majority of the errors detected in the advertising booklets of the two pharmacies are lexical (Camelia – 33.8%, and Euro Pharmacy – 37.3% or syntactic (Camelia – 27.9%, and Euro Pharmacy – 37.3%. Both publications contain nearly equal numbers of lexical errors (Camelia – 17.6%, and Euro Pharmacy – 18.7%. The greatest difference was observed in the number of morphological errors (Camelia – 20.7%, and Euro Pharmacy – 5.7%. In addition to that, the name of the Camelia pharmacy is in conflict with the norms of both Lithuanian and Latin languages.

Sound Art and Spatial Practices: Situating Sound Installation Art Since 1958

OpenAIRE

Ouzounian, Gascia

2008-01-01

This dissertation examines the emergence and development ofsound installation art, an under-recognized tradition that hasdeveloped between music, architecture, and media art practicessince the late 1950s. Unlike many musical works, which are concernedwith organizing sounds in time, sound installations organize sounds inspace; they thus necessitate new theoretical and analytical modelsthat take into consideration the spatial situated-ness of sound. Existingdiscourses on “spatial sound” privile...

The interface between spoken and written language: developmental disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Hulme, Charles; Snowling, Margaret J

2014-01-01

We review current knowledge about reading development and the origins of difficulties in learning to read. We distinguish between the processes involved in learning to decode print, and the processes involved in reading for meaning (reading comprehension). At a cognitive level, difficulties in learning to read appear to be predominantly caused by deficits in underlying oral language skills. The development of decoding skills appears to depend critically upon phonological language skills, and variations in phoneme awareness, letter-sound knowledge and rapid automatized naming each appear to be causally related to problems in learning to read. Reading comprehension difficulties in contrast appear to be critically dependent on a range of oral language comprehension skills (including vocabulary knowledge and grammatical, morphological and pragmatic skills).

The Routledge Dictionary of English Language Studies

CERN Document Server

Pearce, Michael

2012-01-01

Filled with real examples of the way people use English in different contexts, The Routledge Dictionary of English Language Studies is an indispensable guide to the richness and variety of the English language for both students and the general reader.From abbreviation to zero-article, via fricative and slang, the Dictionary contains over 600 wide ranging and informative entries covering:the core areas of language description and analysis: phonetics and phonology, grammar, lexis, semantics, pragmatics and discoursesociolinguistics, including entries on social and regional variation, stylistic v

Analysis of financial soundness of manufacturing companies in Indonesia Stock Exchange

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Widi Hidayat

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This study aims to provide information to the issuer and Bapepam and Indonesian Institute of Accountants with additional important information content of ratings and financial soundness of the indicators that do not harm investors. This is an explanatory and descriptive nature of causality using quantitative methods, using all companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (ISE taken as the sample. The data were analyzed using discriminant statistical analysis tools are processed with SPSS. The results showed that the level of financial soundness of the manufacturing industries listed on the ISE such as 23 (62% Companies Current Asset Growth (CAG is low as well as Fixed Asset growth (FAG 28 (76% companies is still low, Equity Growth (EqG by 27 (73% the company, Revenue growth (RG 27 (65% companies and Net Income Growth (NIG 35 (95% firms. Two manufacturing companies have a very high NIG, thus, NIG average is very high. The seven models of financial soundness were tested based on the growth of corporate finance such as CAG, FAG, LG, EqG, RG, ExG and NIG. Only one model is not significant, the model RG, while the other model is a significant, with a significant difference be-tween the growths rates of the sound and unsound corporate finances industry groups.

From Vocal Replication to Shared Combinatorial Speech Codes: A Small Step for Evolution, A Big Step for Language

Science.gov (United States)

Oudeyer, Pierre-Yves

Humans use spoken vocalizations, or their signed equivalent, as a physical support to carry language. This support is highly organized: vocalizations are built with the re-use of a small number of articulatory units, which are themselves discrete elements carved up by each linguistic community in the articulatory continuum. Moreover, the repertoires of these elementary units (the gestures, the phonemes, the morphemes) have a number of structural regularities: for example, while our vocal tract allows physically the production of hundreds of vowels, each language uses most often 5, and never more than 20 of them. Also, certain vowels are very frequent, like /a,e,i,o,u/, and some others are very rare, like /en/. All the speakers of a given linguistic community categorize the speech sounds in the same manner, and share the same repertoire of vocalizations. Speakers of different communities may have very different ways of categorizing sounds (for example, Chinese use tones to distinguish sounds), and repertoires of vocalizations. Such an organized physical support of language is crucial for the existence of language, and thus asking how it may have appeared in the biological and/or cultural history of humans is a fundamental questions. In particular, one can wonder how much the evolution of human speech codes relied on specific evolutionary innovations, and thus how difficult (or not) it was for speech to appear.

Learning foreign sounds in an alien world: videogame training improves non-native speech categorization.

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Sung-joo; Holt, Lori L

2011-01-01

Although speech categories are defined by multiple acoustic dimensions, some are perceptually weighted more than others and there are residual effects of native-language weightings in non-native speech perception. Recent research on nonlinguistic sound category learning suggests that the distribution characteristics of experienced sounds influence perceptual cue weights: Increasing variability across a dimension leads listeners to rely upon it less in subsequent category learning (Holt & Lotto, 2006). The present experiment investigated the implications of this among native Japanese learning English /r/-/l/ categories. Training was accomplished using a videogame paradigm that emphasizes associations among sound categories, visual information, and players' responses to videogame characters rather than overt categorization or explicit feedback. Subjects who played the game for 2.5h across 5 days exhibited improvements in /r/-/l/ perception on par with 2-4 weeks of explicit categorization training in previous research and exhibited a shift toward more native-like perceptual cue weights. Copyright © 2011 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Adapting tests of sign language assessment for other sign languages--a review of linguistic, cultural, and psychometric problems.

Science.gov (United States)

Haug, Tobias; Mann, Wolfgang

2008-01-01

Given the current lack of appropriate assessment tools for measuring deaf children's sign language skills, many test developers have used existing tests of other sign languages as templates to measure the sign language used by deaf people in their country. This article discusses factors that may influence the adaptation of assessment tests from one natural sign language to another. Two tests which have been adapted for several other sign languages are focused upon: the Test for American Sign Language and the British Sign Language Receptive Skills Test. A brief description is given of each test as well as insights from ongoing adaptations of these tests for other sign languages. The problems reported in these adaptations were found to be grounded in linguistic and cultural differences, which need to be considered for future test adaptations. Other reported shortcomings of test adaptation are related to the question of how well psychometric measures transfer from one instrument to another.

Some Dictionary Descriptions of Grammatical Structure | Branford ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper examines some points in the treatment of grammatical structure in four recent dictionaries of English as Ll. These are viewed against the background concepts of "Iexicogrammar" (Halliday 1978) and of the interdependence of lexicographical and syntactic descriptions of language. Its scope is necessari1y ...

AP English language & composition crash course

CERN Document Server

Hogue, Dawn

2012-01-01

AP English Language & Composition Crash Course - Gets You a Higher Advanced Placement Score in Less Time Crash Course is perfect for the time-crunched student, the last-minute studier, or anyone who wants a refresher on the subject. AP English Language & Composition Crash Course gives you: Targeted, Focused Review - Study Only What You Need to Know Crash Course is based on an in-depth analysis of the AP English Language & Composition course description outline and actual Advanced Placement test questions. It covers only the information tested on the exam, so you can make the most of your valua

Sound a very short introduction

CERN Document Server

Goldsmith, Mike

2015-01-01

Sound is integral to how we experience the world, in the form of noise as well as music. But what is sound? What is the physical basis of pitch and harmony? And how are sound waves exploited in musical instruments? Sound: A Very Short Introduction looks at the science of sound and the behaviour of sound waves with their different frequencies. It also explores sound in different contexts, covering the audible and inaudible, sound underground and underwater, acoustic and electronic sound, and hearing in humans and animals. It concludes with the problem of sound out of place—noise and its reduction.

The language capacity: architecture and evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Chomsky, Noam

2017-02-01

There is substantial evidence that the human language capacity (LC) is a species-specific biological property, essentially unique to humans, invariant among human groups, and dissociated from other cognitive systems. Each language, an instantiation of LC, consists of a generative procedure that yields a discrete infinity of hierarchically structured expressions with semantic interpretations, hence a kind of "language of thought" (LOT), along with an operation of externalization (EXT) to some sensory-motor system, typically sound. There is mounting evidence that generation of LOT observes language-independent principles of computational efficiency and is based on the simplest computational operations, and that EXT is an ancillary process not entering into the core semantic properties of LOT and is the primary locus of the apparent complexity, diversity, and mutability of language. These conclusions are not surprising, since the internal system is acquired virtually without evidence in fundamental respects, and EXT relates it to sensory-motor systems that are unrelated to it. Even such properties as the linear order of words appear to be reflexes of the sensory motor system, not available to generation of LOT. The limited evidence from the evolutionary record lends support to these conclusions, suggesting that LC emerged with Homo sapiens or not long after, and has not evolved since human groups dispersed.

A typology of verbal derivation in Ethiopian Afro-Asiatic languages

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fufa Teso, Tolemariam

2009-01-01

This work discusses the typology of the middle, the causative and the passive marking systems of Ethiopian Afro-Asiatic languages. The discussion of these verbal derivations started from detail description of the Causative derivation of the representative languages: Oromo, Amharic and Shakkinoono

Speed of sound in hadronic matter using non-extensive statistics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khuntia, Arvind; Sahoo, Pragati; Garg, Prakhar; Sahoo, Raghunath; Jean Cleymans

2015-01-01

The evolution of the dense matter formed in high energy hadronic and nuclear collisions is controlled by the initial energy density and temperature. The expansion of the system is due to the very high initial pressure with lowering of temperature and energy density. The pressure (P) and energy density (ϵ) are related through speed of sound (c 2 s ) under the condition of local thermal equilibrium. The speed of sound plays a crucial role in hydrodynamical expansion of the dense matter created and the critical behaviour of the system evolving from deconfined Quark Gluon Phase (QGP) to confined hadronic phase. There have been several experimental and theoretical studies in this direction. The non-extensive Tsallis statistics gives better description of the transverse momentum spectra of the produced particles created in high energy p + p (p¯) and e + + e - collisions

Cochlear implants and spoken language processing abilities: Review and assessment of the literature

OpenAIRE

Peterson, Nathaniel R.; Pisoni, David B.; Miyamoto, Richard T.

2010-01-01

Cochlear implants (CIs) process sounds electronically and then transmit electric stimulation to the cochlea of individuals with sensorineural deafness, restoring some sensation of auditory perception. Many congenitally deaf CI recipients achieve a high degree of accuracy in speech perception and develop near-normal language skills. Post-lingually deafened implant recipients often regain the ability to understand and use spoken language with or without the aid of visual input (i.e. lip reading...

What is Sound?

OpenAIRE

Nelson, Peter

2014-01-01

What is sound? This question is posed in contradiction to the every-day understanding that sound is a phenomenon apart from us, to be heard, made, shaped and organised. Thinking through the history of computer music, and considering the current configuration of digital communi-cations, sound is reconfigured as a type of network. This network is envisaged as non-hierarchical, in keeping with currents of thought that refuse to prioritise the human in the world. The relationship of sound to musi...

Broadcast sound technology

CERN Document Server

Talbot-Smith, Michael

1990-01-01

Broadcast Sound Technology provides an explanation of the underlying principles of modern audio technology. Organized into 21 chapters, the book first describes the basic sound; behavior of sound waves; aspects of hearing, harming, and charming the ear; room acoustics; reverberation; microphones; phantom power; loudspeakers; basic stereo; and monitoring of audio signal. Subsequent chapters explore the processing of audio signal, sockets, sound desks, and digital audio. Analogue and digital tape recording and reproduction, as well as noise reduction, are also explained.

Propagation of sound

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wahlberg, Magnus; Larsen, Ole Næsbye

2017-01-01

properties can be modified by sound absorption, refraction, and interference from multi paths caused by reflections.The path from the source to the receiver may be bent due to refraction. Besides geometrical attenuation, the ground effect and turbulence are the most important mechanisms to influence...... communication sounds for airborne acoustics and bottom and surface effects for underwater sounds. Refraction becomes very important close to shadow zones. For echolocation signals, geometric attenuation and sound absorption have the largest effects on the signals....

Qualitative Descriptive Methods in Health Science Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Colorafi, Karen Jiggins; Evans, Bronwynne

2016-07-01

The purpose of this methodology paper is to describe an approach to qualitative design known as qualitative descriptive that is well suited to junior health sciences researchers because it can be used with a variety of theoretical approaches, sampling techniques, and data collection strategies. It is often difficult for junior qualitative researchers to pull together the tools and resources they need to embark on a high-quality qualitative research study and to manage the volumes of data they collect during qualitative studies. This paper seeks to pull together much needed resources and provide an overview of methods. A step-by-step guide to planning a qualitative descriptive study and analyzing the data is provided, utilizing exemplars from the authors' research. This paper presents steps to conducting a qualitative descriptive study under the following headings: describing the qualitative descriptive approach, designing a qualitative descriptive study, steps to data analysis, and ensuring rigor of findings. The qualitative descriptive approach results in a summary in everyday, factual language that facilitates understanding of a selected phenomenon across disciplines of health science researchers. © The Author(s) 2016.

Achieving Sound Beauty in Chinese Translations of English Songs

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

陶薪平

2017-01-01

Song is a kind of combination of language and music. Song achieves its aesthetic information and arouses feeling with its own sentiments and aesthetic effect. However, various kinds of present problems lead to much loss of beauty. Besides, the theoretical works concerning this area is much meager. Translation of English songs into Chinese has been studied from functional equivalence theory or the functionalism. The present thesis offers a new perspective―beauty in sound from Xu Yuanchong's"three beauties principle", aiming to seek possible ways to represent beauty in translation practice, and some typical examples are compared and analyzed.

Effects of lips and hands on auditory learning of second-language speech sounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Hirata, Yukari; Kelly, Spencer D

2010-04-01

Previous research has found that auditory training helps native English speakers to perceive phonemic vowel length contrasts in Japanese, but their performance did not reach native levels after training. Given that multimodal information, such as lip movement and hand gesture, influences many aspects of native language processing, the authors examined whether multimodal input helps to improve native English speakers' ability to perceive Japanese vowel length contrasts. Sixty native English speakers participated in 1 of 4 types of training: (a) audio-only; (b) audio-mouth; (c) audio-hands; and (d) audio-mouth-hands. Before and after training, participants were given phoneme perception tests that measured their ability to identify short and long vowels in Japanese (e.g., /kato/ vs. /kato/). Although all 4 groups improved from pre- to posttest (replicating previous research), the participants in the audio-mouth condition improved more than those in the audio-only condition, whereas the 2 conditions involving hand gestures did not. Seeing lip movements during training significantly helps learners to perceive difficult second-language phonemic contrasts, but seeing hand gestures does not. The authors discuss possible benefits and limitations of using multimodal information in second-language phoneme learning.

Influence of computerized sounding out on spelling performance for children who do and do not rely on AAC.

Science.gov (United States)

McCarthy, Jillian H; Hogan, Tiffany P; Beukelman, David R; Schwarz, Ilsa E

2015-05-01

Spelling is an important skill for individuals who rely on augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). The purpose of this study was to investigate how computerized sounding out influenced spelling accuracy of pseudo-words. Computerized sounding out was defined as a word elongated, thus providing an opportunity for a child to hear all the sounds in the word at a slower rate. Seven children with cerebral palsy, four who use AAC and three who do not, participated in a single subject AB design. The results of the study indicated that the use of computerized sounding out increased the phonologic accuracy of the pseudo-words produced by participants. The study provides preliminary evidence for the use of computerized sounding out during spelling tasks for children with cerebral palsy who do and do not use AAC. Future directions and clinical implications are discussed. We investigated how computerized sounding out influenced spelling accuracy of pseudowords for children with complex communication needs who did and did not use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Results indicated that the use of computerized sounding out increased the phonologic accuracy of the pseudo-words by participants, suggesting that computerized sounding out might assist in more accurate spelling for children who use AAC. Future research is needed to determine how language and reading abilities influence the use of computerized sounding out with children who have a range of speech intelligibility abilities and do and do not use AAC.

THE ‘UNFORGETTABLE’ EXPERIENCE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE ANXIETY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Morana Drakulić

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Foreign language anxiety (FLA has long been recognized as a factor that hinders the process of foreign language learning at all levels. Among numerous FLA sources identified in the literature, language classroom seems to be of particular interest and significance, especially in the formal language learning context, where the course and the teacher are often the only representatives of language. The main purpose of the study is to determine the presence and potential sources of foreign language anxiety among first year university students and to explore how high anxiety levels shape and affect students’ foreign language learning experience. In the study both the questionnaire and the interviews were used as the data collection methods. Thematic analysis of the interviews and descriptive statistics suggest that most anxiety-provoking situations stem from the language classroom itself.

Thinking soap But Speaking ‘oaps’. The Sound Preparation Period: Backward Calculation From Utterance to Muscle Innervation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nora Wiedenmann

2010-04-01

Full Text Available

In this article’s model—on speech and on speech errors, dyscoordinations, and disorders—, the time-course from the muscle innervation impetuses to the utterance of sounds as intended for canonical speech sound sequences is calculated backward. This time-course is shown as the sum of all the known physiological durations of speech sounds and speech gestures that are necessary to produce an utterance. The model introduces two internal clocks, based on positive or negative factors, representing certain physiologically-based time-courses during the sound preparation period (Lautvorspann. The use of these internal clocks show that speech gestures—like other motor activities—work according to a simple serialization principle: Under non-default conditions,
alterations of the time-courses may cause speech errors of sound serialization, dyscoordinations of sounds as observed during first language acquisition, or speech disorders as pathological cases. These alterations of the time-course are modelled by varying the two internal-clock factors. The calculation of time-courses uses as default values the sound durations of the context-dependent Munich PHONDAT Database of Spoken German (see Appendix 4. As a new, human approach, this calculation agrees mathematically with the approach of Linear Programming / Operations Research. This work gives strong support to the fairly old suspicion (of 1908 of the famous Austrian speech error scientist Meringer [15], namely that one mostly thinks and articulates in a different serialization than is audible from one’s uttered sound sequences.

Making fictions sound real

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Langkjær, Birger

2010-01-01

This article examines the role that sound plays in making fictions perceptually real to film audiences, whether these fictions are realist or non-realist in content and narrative form. I will argue that some aspects of film sound practices and the kind of experiences they trigger are related...... to basic rules of human perception, whereas others are more properly explained in relation to how aesthetic devices, including sound, are used to characterise the fiction and thereby make it perceptually real to its audience. Finally, I will argue that not all genres can be defined by a simple taxonomy...... of sounds. Apart from an account of the kinds of sounds that typically appear in a specific genre, a genre analysis of sound may also benefit from a functionalist approach that focuses on how sounds can make both realist and non-realist aspects of genres sound real to audiences....

Computer language evaluation for MFTF SCDS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anderson, R.E.; McGoldrick, P.R.; Wyman, R.H.

1979-01-01

The computer languages available for the systems and application implementation on the Supervisory Control and Diagnostics System (SCDS) for the Mirror Fusion Test Facility (MFTF) were surveyed and evaluated. Four language processors, CAL (Common Assembly Language), Extended FORTRAN, CORAL 66, and Sequential Pascal (SPASCAL, a subset of Concurrent Pascal [CPASCAL]) are commercially available for the Interdata 7/32 and 8/32 computers that constitute the SCDS. Of these, the Sequential Pascal available from Kansas State University appears best for the job in terms of minimizing the implementation time, debugging time, and maintenance time. This improvement in programming productivity is due to the availability of a high-level, block-structured language that includes many compile-time and run-time checks to detect errors. In addition, the advanced data-types in language allow easy description of the program variables. 1 table

Object orientation affects spatial language comprehension.

Science.gov (United States)

Burigo, Michele; Sacchi, Simona

2013-01-01

Typical spatial descriptions, such as "The car is in front of the house," describe the position of a located object (LO; e.g., the car) in space relative to a reference object (RO) whose location is known (e.g., the house). The orientation of the RO affects spatial language comprehension via the reference frame selection process. However, the effects of the LO's orientation on spatial language have not received great attention. This study explores whether the pure geometric information of the LO (e.g., its orientation) affects spatial language comprehension using placing and production tasks. Our results suggest that the orientation of the LO influences spatial language comprehension even in the absence of functional relationships. Copyright © 2013 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Design automation, languages, and simulations

CERN Document Server

Chen, Wai-Kai

2003-01-01

As the complexity of electronic systems continues to increase, the micro-electronic industry depends upon automation and simulations to adapt quickly to market changes and new technologies. Compiled from chapters contributed to CRC's best-selling VLSI Handbook, this volume covers a broad range of topics relevant to design automation, languages, and simulations. These include a collaborative framework that coordinates distributed design activities through the Internet, an overview of the Verilog hardware description language and its use in a design environment, hardware/software co-design, syst

On the use of Kripke modality in language theory

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Karsten Hvidtfelt

2006-01-01

The article shows how the formal modal technique known as 'Kripke-Modality' can be used as a descriptive tool in language theory. My use is motivated by a version of the well-known liar's paradox: anyone claiming natural language to be semantically undecidable may only on pain on inconsistency...

Making an Online Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language*

African Journals Online (AJOL)

of a digital medium and an existing body of descriptive research on the language, ... ing lexemes and word class in a polysynthetic language, deriving usage ..... higher education, white-collar occupations, the arts, media, and political advo- cacy. ..... and Niemalä explain that if mouth patterns are treated as a formational ele-.

English language education in Jordan: Some recent trends and challenges

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Madallh Alhabahba

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to map out the status of English language teaching (ELT as practised in the Arab World and, specifically, in Jordan today. The study also aims to bring into focus significant issues that need to be addressed in ELT in the Arab World. This paper presents a review of the current status of English language education, with an emphasis on the need for urgent reforms in the teaching of English in the Arab World. Further, longitudinal data in respect to classroom and workplace English proficiency are presented. English language education seems to be up-to-date teacher-centred and bound to other issues such as teaching the textbook rather than focusing on developing lifelong strategies. There is a critical need for writing national standards for English language professional development programmes that should be based on the findings of sound research. The paper highlights the significance of teaching English language through observing and reviewing the current practices.

Sound sensitivity of neurons in rat hippocampus during performance of a sound-guided task

Science.gov (United States)

Vinnik, Ekaterina; Honey, Christian; Schnupp, Jan; Diamond, Mathew E.

2012-01-01

To investigate how hippocampal neurons encode sound stimuli, and the conjunction of sound stimuli with the animal's position in space, we recorded from neurons in the CA1 region of hippocampus in rats while they performed a sound discrimination task. Four different sounds were used, two associated with water reward on the right side of the animal and the other two with water reward on the left side. This allowed us to separate neuronal activity related to sound identity from activity related to response direction. To test the effect of spatial context on sound coding, we trained rats to carry out the task on two identical testing platforms at different locations in the same room. Twenty-one percent of the recorded neurons exhibited sensitivity to sound identity, as quantified by the difference in firing rate for the two sounds associated with the same response direction. Sensitivity to sound identity was often observed on only one of the two testing platforms, indicating an effect of spatial context on sensory responses. Forty-three percent of the neurons were sensitive to response direction, and the probability that any one neuron was sensitive to response direction was statistically independent from its sensitivity to sound identity. There was no significant coding for sound identity when the rats heard the same sounds outside the behavioral task. These results suggest that CA1 neurons encode sound stimuli, but only when those sounds are associated with actions. PMID:22219030

Development of a test and flight engineering oriented language. Phase 3: Presentation

Science.gov (United States)

Kamsler, W. F.; Case, C. W.; Kinney, E. L.; Gyure, J.

1970-01-01

The format material used in an oral presentation of the phase 3 study effort is given. The material includes a description of the language ALOFT and a terminology comparison with other test languages.

Effect of language of instruction on physics achievement

Science.gov (United States)

Ho, Kwok K.

This study investigated the relationship between physics achievement and language of instruction in a situation where instruction was in the second language of both students and teachers. One hundred and seventy-six grade ten physics students (first language was Chinese) were selected from four classes of two secondary schools in Hong Kong. For three months (with four lessons per week), two classes of students learned the content material (light and sound) in Chinese and two classes learned the material in English. Group differences were controlled by using individual aptitude scores as covariates in the analysis. There were no differences in achievement, students' motivation, and effort spent in physics in that controlled teaching period. This was probably because the Anglo-Chinese group was sufficiently proficient in English so they did not encounter additional difficulty in learning physics when compared with the Chinese group.

Attitudinal Dispositions of Students toward the English Language: Sociolinguistic and Sociocultural Considerations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ersoy Erdemir

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Problem Statement: The status, value, and importance of a language is often measured by the attitudes toward that language. Learning a second or foreign language and attaining proficiency in it is closely related to the attitudes of learners toward the language. A few studies have investigated language attitudes of Turkish students toward the English language in Turkey. However, the same issue has not been explored among Turkish students learning and using the English language in a country where English is spoken as the first language.Purpose: This exploratory study investigated the attitudes of Turkish students toward learning and using English language as they lived and pursued their university degrees in a northeastern city in the United States. The study examined students’ attitudinal dispositions toward English based on sociolinguistic and sociocultural considerations.Methods: The study included 8 student participants (4 male and 4 female who were born in Turkey and spoke Turkish as their native language. They were all enrolled in a state university studying different programs in Engineering Sciences and Social Sciences. Data were collected conducting in-depth interviews with students over a two-month period. Participants were interviewed twice individually, and 16 interviews were conducted in total. Each interview took 50 to 60 minutes and was transcribed by the researcher. Data analysis included (1 intensive (rereadings of interview transcripts and identifying attitudinal themes and patterns in the data through emergent coding; and (2 making qualitative connections among themes and patterns through identifying their consistency by applying axial coding. Coded dataset was then descriptively interpreted in its entirety.Findings: Participants displayed mostly positive dispositions toward learning and using the English language; however, their attitudinal patterns varied with regards to sociolinguistic and sociocultural considerations

The origins of duality of patterning in artificial whistled languages

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verhoef, T.

2012-01-01

In human speech, a finite set of basic sounds is combined into a (potentially) unlimited set of well-formed morphemes. Hockett (1960) placed this phenomenon under the term 'duality of patterning' and included it as one of the basic design features of human language. Of the thirteen basic design

Use of information-retrieval languages in automated retrieval of experimental data from long-term storage

Science.gov (United States)

Khovanskiy, Y. D.; Kremneva, N. I.

1975-01-01

Problems and methods are discussed of automating information retrieval operations in a data bank used for long term storage and retrieval of data from scientific experiments. Existing information retrieval languages are analyzed along with those being developed. The results of studies discussing the application of the descriptive 'Kristall' language used in the 'ASIOR' automated information retrieval system are presented. The development and use of a specialized language of the classification-descriptive type, using universal decimal classification indices as the main descriptors, is described.

Advances in the development of an integrated data assimilation and sounding system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dabberdt, W.F.; Parsons, D.; Kuo, Y.H.; Dudhia, J.; Guo, Y.R.; Van Baelen, J.; Martin, C.; Oncley, S.

1994-01-01

The Integrated Data Assimilation and Sounding System (IDASS) provides continuous high-resolution tropospheric profiles. The measurement system (Integrated Sounding System, or ISS) is developed around a suite of in situ and active and passive remote sensors. Observations from ISS networks provide a high-resolution description of atmospheric structure on the mesoscale. Measurements are coupled with a state-of-the-art mesoscale modeling system. The mesoscale data assimilation scheme is the Newtonian nudging technique. In the mesoscale data assimilation process, observations of wind, temperature, and humidity are used to nudge or relax the time-dependent model variables to the observed values. The end product is a highly resolved four-dimensional meteorological data set (including three components of wind, temperature, humidity, cloud water, and integrated moisture)

A grammar of Abui : A Papuan language of Alor

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kratochvil, František

2007-01-01

This work contains the first comprehensive description of Abui, a language of the Trans New Guinea family spoken approximately by 16,000 speakers in the central part of the Alor Island in Eastern Indonesia. The description focuses on the northern dialect of Abui as spoken in the village

Memory for product sounds: the effect of sound and label type.

Science.gov (United States)

Ozcan, Elif; van Egmond, René

2007-11-01

The (mnemonic) interactions between auditory, visual, and the semantic systems have been investigated using structurally complex auditory stimuli (i.e., product sounds). Six types of product sounds (air, alarm, cyclic, impact, liquid, mechanical) that vary in spectral-temporal structure were presented in four label type conditions: self-generated text, text, image, and pictogram. A memory paradigm that incorporated free recall, recognition, and matching tasks was employed. The results for the sound type suggest that the amount of spectral-temporal structure in a sound can be indicative for memory performance. Findings related to label type suggest that 'self' creates a strong bias for the retrieval and the recognition of sounds that were self-labeled; the density and the complexity of the visual information (i.e., pictograms) hinders the memory performance ('visual' overshadowing effect); and image labeling has an additive effect on the recall and matching tasks (dual coding). Thus, the findings suggest that the memory performances for product sounds are task-dependent.

33 CFR 167.1702 - In Prince William Sound: Prince William Sound Traffic Separation Scheme.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false In Prince William Sound: Prince William Sound Traffic Separation Scheme. 167.1702 Section 167.1702 Navigation and Navigable Waters COAST....1702 In Prince William Sound: Prince William Sound Traffic Separation Scheme. The Prince William Sound...

A Typed Text Retrieval Query Language for XML Documents.

Science.gov (United States)

Colazzo, Dario; Sartiani, Carlo; Albano, Antonio; Manghi, Paolo; Ghelli, Giorgio; Lini, Luca; Paoli, Michele

2002-01-01

Discussion of XML focuses on a description of Tequyla-TX, a typed text retrieval query language for XML documents that can search on both content and structures. Highlights include motivations; numerous examples; word-based and char-based searches; tag-dependent full-text searches; text normalization; query algebra; data models and term language;…

Sounds Exaggerate Visual Shape

Science.gov (United States)

Sweeny, Timothy D.; Guzman-Martinez, Emmanuel; Ortega, Laura; Grabowecky, Marcia; Suzuki, Satoru

2012-01-01

While perceiving speech, people see mouth shapes that are systematically associated with sounds. In particular, a vertically stretched mouth produces a /woo/ sound, whereas a horizontally stretched mouth produces a /wee/ sound. We demonstrate that hearing these speech sounds alters how we see aspect ratio, a basic visual feature that contributes…

Word learning in adults with second language experience: Effects of phonological and referent familiarity

Science.gov (United States)

Kaushanskaya, Margarita; Yoo, Jeewon; Van Hecke, Stephanie

2014-01-01

Purpose The goal of this research was to examine whether phonological familiarity exerts different effects on novel word learning for familiar vs. unfamiliar referents, and whether successful word-learning is associated with increased second-language experience. Method Eighty-one adult native English speakers with various levels of Spanish knowledge learned phonologically-familiar novel words (constructed using English sounds) or phonologically-unfamiliar novel words (constructed using non-English and non-Spanish sounds) in association with either familiar or unfamiliar referents. Retention was tested via a forced-choice recognition-task. A median-split procedure identified high-ability and low-ability word-learners in each condition, and the two groups were compared on measures of second-language experience. Results Findings suggest that the ability to accurately match newly-learned novel names to their appropriate referents is facilitated by phonological familiarity only for familiar referents but not for unfamiliar referents. Moreover, more extensive second-language learning experience characterized superior learners primarily in one word-learning condition: Where phonologically-unfamiliar novel words were paired with familiar referents. Conclusions Together, these findings indicate that phonological familiarity facilitates novel word learning only for familiar referents, and that experience with learning a second language may have a specific impact on novel vocabulary learning in adults. PMID:22992709

Sound Zones

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Martin Bo; Olsen, Martin

2017-01-01

Sound zones, i.e. spatially confined regions of individual audio content, can be created by appropriate filtering of the desired audio signals reproduced by an array of loudspeakers. The challenge of designing filters for sound zones is twofold: First, the filtered responses should generate...... an acoustic separation between the control regions. Secondly, the pre- and post-ringing as well as spectral deterioration introduced by the filters should be minimized. The tradeoff between acoustic separation and filter ringing is the focus of this paper. A weighted L2-norm penalty is introduced in the sound...

Classroom Management in Foreign Language Education: An Exploratory Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diego Fernando Macías

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This review examines studies in the area of classroom management in foreign language education. It is organized into three large areas: The first area focuses on the distinctive characteristics of foreign language instruction that are more likely to impact classroom management in foreign language classes. The second area provides a description of classroom management issues that foreign language teachers usually encounter in their practice; and the third area centers on the different alternatives to reduce the negative impact of classroom management on foreign language classes. Conclusions suggest a need for more research particularly on the relationship between classroom management and aspects such as target language use and teaching methods.

Arabic Natural Language Processing System Code Library

Science.gov (United States)

2014-06-01

Adelphi, MD 20783-1197 This technical note provides a brief description of a Java library for Arabic natural language processing ( NLP ) containing code...for training and applying the Arabic NLP system described in the paper "A Cross-Task Flexible Transition Model for Arabic Tokenization, Affix...and also English) natural language processing ( NLP ), containing code for training and applying the Arabic NLP system described in Stephen Tratz’s

Can road traffic mask sound from wind turbines? Response to wind turbine sound at different levels of road traffic sound

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pedersen, Eja; Berg, Frits van den; Bakker, Roel; Bouma, Jelte

2010-01-01

Wind turbines are favoured in the switch-over to renewable energy. Suitable sites for further developments could be difficult to find as the sound emitted from the rotor blades calls for a sufficient distance to residents to avoid negative effects. The aim of this study was to explore if road traffic sound could mask wind turbine sound or, in contrast, increases annoyance due to wind turbine noise. Annoyance of road traffic and wind turbine noise was measured in the WINDFARMperception survey in the Netherlands in 2007 (n=725) and related to calculated levels of sound. The presence of road traffic sound did not in general decrease annoyance with wind turbine noise, except when levels of wind turbine sound were moderate (35-40 dB(A) Lden) and road traffic sound level exceeded that level with at least 20 dB(A). Annoyance with both noises was intercorrelated but this correlation was probably due to the influence of individual factors. Furthermore, visibility and attitude towards wind turbines were significantly related to noise annoyance of modern wind turbines. The results can be used for the selection of suitable sites, possibly favouring already noise exposed areas if wind turbine sound levels are sufficiently low.

Moving beyond Communicative Language Teaching: A Situated Pedagogy for Japanese EFL Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Lochland, Paul W.

2013-01-01

This article questions the appropriateness of communicative language teaching (CLT) in classrooms teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) to Japanese students. The four main criticisms of CLT are the ambiguity of its description, the benefits of CLT for language learning, the amalgamation of CLT methods with local classroom practices, and the…

Description of Sizewell B nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meyer, G.; Stokke, E.

1997-09-01

The intention of this report is to present a condensed technical description of Sizewell B in a language understandable to non-technical personnel. It is unavoidable that some parts will be less precise than the technically initiated would like to see, but hopefully the content still give a realistic picture of Sizewell B. The technical description is based on publicly available material, of which the Sizewell B safety report has been particularly useful. Nearly all figures and drawings found in this description are reproductions of corresponding material in the safety report. To keep the description from becoming too voluminous it has been necessary to condense some background material down to a small volume. Hopefully this has not introduced any errors or inaccuracies, possible oversimplification at certain points must be weighed against the wish to cover most of the topics in the agreed table of contents for these NKS reports. (au)

Deep hierarchical attention network for video description

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Shuohao; Tang, Min; Zhang, Jun

2018-03-01

Pairing video to natural language description remains a challenge in computer vision and machine translation. Inspired by image description, which uses an encoder-decoder model for reducing visual scene into a single sentence, we propose a deep hierarchical attention network for video description. The proposed model uses convolutional neural network (CNN) and bidirectional LSTM network as encoders while a hierarchical attention network is used as the decoder. Compared to encoder-decoder models used in video description, the bidirectional LSTM network can capture the temporal structure among video frames. Moreover, the hierarchical attention network has an advantage over single-layer attention network on global context modeling. To make a fair comparison with other methods, we evaluate the proposed architecture with different types of CNN structures and decoders. Experimental results on the standard datasets show that our model has a more superior performance than the state-of-the-art techniques.

Strategies for human-driven robot comprehension of spatial descriptions by older adults in a robot fetch task.

Science.gov (United States)

Carlson, Laura; Skubic, Marjorie; Miller, Jared; Huo, Zhiyu; Alexenko, Tatiana

2014-07-01

This contribution presents a corpus of spatial descriptions and describes the development of a human-driven spatial language robot system for their comprehension. The domain of application is an eldercare setting in which an assistive robot is asked to "fetch" an object for an elderly resident based on a natural language spatial description given by the resident. In Part One, we describe a corpus of naturally occurring descriptions elicited from a group of older adults within a virtual 3D home that simulates the eldercare setting. We contrast descriptions elicited when participants offered descriptions to a human versus robot avatar, and under instructions to tell the addressee how to find the target versus where the target is. We summarize the key features of the spatial descriptions, including their dynamic versus static nature and the perspective adopted by the speaker. In Part Two, we discuss critical cognitive and perceptual processing capabilities necessary for the robot to establish a common ground with the human user and perform the "fetch" task. Based on the collected corpus, we focus here on resolving the perspective ambiguity and recognizing furniture items used as landmarks in the descriptions. Taken together, the work presented here offers the key building blocks of a robust system that takes as input natural spatial language descriptions and produces commands that drive the robot to successfully fetch objects within our eldercare scenario. Copyright © 2014 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.