Heritage speaker competence differences, language change and input type: inflected infinitives in Heritage Brazilian Portuguese

It has been argued that colloquial dialects of Brazilian Portuguese (BP) have undergone significant linguistic change resulting in the loss of inflected infinitives (e.g., Pires, 2002, 2006). Since BP adults, at least educated ones, have complete knowledge of inflected infinitives, the implicit claim is that they are transmitted via formal education in the standard dialect. In the present article, I test one of the latent predictions of such claims; namely, the fact that heritage speakers of BP who lack formal education in the standard dialect should never develop native-like knowledge of inflected infinitives. In doing so, I highlight two significant implications (a) that heritage speaker grammars are a good source for testing dialectal variation and language change proposals and (b) incomplete acquisition and/or attrition are not the only sources of heritage language competence differences. Employing the syntactic and semantic tests of Rothman and Iverson (2007), I compare heritage speakers' knowledge to Rothman and Iverson's advanced adult L2 learners and educated native controls. Unlike the latter groups, the data for heritage speakers indicate that they do not have target knowledge of inflected infinitives, lending support to Pires' claims, suggesting that literacy plays a significant role in the acquisition of this grammatical property in BP.

Weaning diet induces sustained metabolic phenotype shift in the pig and influences host response to Bifidobacterium lactis NCC2818

Background: The process of weaning causes a major shift in intestinal microbiota and is a critical period for developing appropriate immune responses in young mammals. Objective: To use a new systems approach to provide an overview of host metabolism and the developing immune system in response to nutritional intervention around the weaning period. Design: Piglets (n¼14) were weaned onto either an eggbased or soya-based diet at 3 weeks until 7 weeks, when all piglets were switched onto a fish-based diet. Half the animals on each weaning diet received Bifidobacterium lactis NCC2818 supplementation from weaning onwards. Immunoglobulin production from immunologically relevant intestinal sites was quantified and the urinary 1H NMR metabolic profile was obtained from each animal at post mortem (11 weeks). Results: Different weaning diets induced divergent and sustained shifts in the metabolic phenotype, which resulted in the alteration of urinary gut microbial co-metabolites, even after 4 weeks of dietary standardisation. B lactis NCC2818 supplementation affected the systemic metabolism of the different weaning diet groups over and above the effects of diet. Additionally, production of gut mucosa-associated IgA and IgM was found to depend upon the weaning diet and on B lactis NCC2818 supplementation. Conclusion: The correlation of urinary 1H NMR metabolic profile with mucosal immunoglobulin production was demonstrated, thus confirming the value of this multiplatform approach in uncovering non-invasive biomarkers of immunity. This has clear potential for translation into human healthcare with the development of urine testing as a means of assessing mucosal immune status. This might lead to early diagnosis of intestinal dysbiosis and with subsequent intervention, arrest disease development. This system enhances our overall understanding of pathologies under supra-organismal control.

Exploring writing in products in students with language impairments and autism spectrum disorders

Oral language skills scaffold written text production; students with oral language difficulties often experience writing problems. The current study examines the ways in which oral language problems experienced by students with language impairment (LI) and students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) impact on their production of written text. One hundred and fifty seven participants (Mage = 10;2) with LI or ASD completed standardized measures of oral language, transcription, working memory, and nonverbal ability and produced a written narrative text assessed for productivity, grammatical accuracy, and quality. Measures of transcription, productivity, and grammatical accuracy, but not text quality, were poorer for students with LI. Transcription skills accounted for the majority of variance in the writing of the LI cohort. For the ASD cohort, handwriting, oral language and autism symptomatology were significant predictors. When students with ASD also experienced language problems, their performance was equivalent to that observed in the LI cohort.

Conceptual representation in bilinguals: the role of language specificity and conceptual change

Most prominent models of bilingual representation assume a degree of interconnection or shared representation at the conceptual level. However, in the context of linguistic and cultural specificity of human concepts, and given recent findings that reveal a considerable amount of bidirectional conceptual transfer and conceptual change in bilinguals, a particular challenge that bilingual models face is to account for non-equivalence or partial equivalence of L1 and L2 specific concepts in bilingual conceptual store. The aim of the current paper is to provide a state-of-the-art review of the available empirical evidence from the fields of psycholinguistics, cognitive, experimental, and cross-cultural psychology, and discuss how these may inform and develop further traditional and more recent accounts of bilingual conceptual representation. Based on a synthesis of the available evidence against theoretical postulates of existing models, I argue that the most coherent account of bilingual conceptual representation combines three fundamental assumptions. The first one is the distributed, multi-modal nature of representation. The second one concerns cross-linguistic and cross-cultural variation of concepts. The third one makes assumptions about the development of concepts, and the emergent links between those concepts and their linguistic instantiations.

Emotional and behavioural problems in children with language impairments and children with autism spectrum disorders

Background: Although it is well-established that children with language impairment (LI) and children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) both show elevated levels of emotional and behavioural problems, the level and types of difficulties across the two groups have not previously been directly compared. Aims: To compare levels of emotional and behavioural problems in children with LI and children with ASD recruited from the same mainstream schools. Methods & Procedures: We measured teacher-reported emotional and behavioural problems using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) in a sample of 5-to-13-year old children with LI (N=62) and children with ASD (N=42) attending mainstream school but with identified special educational needs. Outcomes & Results: Both groups showed similarly elevated levels of emotional, conduct and hyperactivity problems. The only differences between the LI and ASD groups were on subscales assessing peer problems (which were higher in the ASD group) and prosocial behaviours (which were higher in the LI group). Overall, there were few associations between emotional and behavioural problems and child characteristics, reflecting the pervasive nature of these difficulties in children with LI and children with ASD, although levels of problems were higher in children with ASD with lower language ability. However, in the ASD group only, a measure of family social economic status was associated with language ability and attenuated the association between language ability and emotional and behavioural problems. Conclusions & Implications: Children with LI and children with ASD in mainstream school show similarly elevated levels of emotional and behavioural problems, which require monitoring and may benefit from intervention. Further work is required to identify the child, family and situational factors that place children with LI and children with ASD at risk of emotional and behavioural problems, and whether these differ between the two groups. This work can then guide the application of evidence-based interventions to these children.

A new South American network to study the atmospheric electric field and its variations related to geophysical phenomena

In this paper we present the capability of a new network of field mill sensors to monitor the atmospheric electric field at various locations in South America; we also show some early results. The main objective of the new network is to obtain the characteristic Universal Time diurnal curve of the atmospheric electric field in fair weather, known as the Carnegie curve. The Carnegie curve is closely related to the current sources flowing in the Global Atmospheric Electric Circuit so that another goal is the study of this relationship on various time scales (transient/monthly/seasonal/annual). Also, by operating this new network, we may also study departures of the Carnegie curve from its long term average value related to various solar, geophysical and atmospheric phenomena such as the solar cycle, solar flares and energetic charged particles, galactic cosmic rays, seismic activity and specific meteorological events. We then expect to have a better understanding of the influence of these phenomena on the Global Atmospheric Electric Circuit and its time-varying behavior.

English language teaching and educational reform in Western China: a knowledge management perspective

This study examines the impact of a large-scale UK-based teacher development programme on innovation and change in English language education in Western China within a knowledge management (KM) framework. Questionnaire data were collected from 229 returnee teachers in 15 cohorts. Follow-up interviews and focus groups were conducted with former participants, middle and senior managers, and teachers who had not participated in the UK programme. The results showed evidence of knowledge creation and amplification at individual, group and inter-organizational levels. However, the present study also identified knowledge creation potential through the more effective organization of follow-up at the national level, particularly for the returnee teachers. It is argued that the KM framework might offer a promising alternative to existing models and metaphors of Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

Conflicting language ideologies and contradictory language practices in Singaporean bilingual families

Informed by family language policy (FLP) as the theoretical framework, I illustrate in this paper how language ideologies can be incongruous and language policies can be conflicting through three multilingual families in Singapore representing three major ethnic groups – Chinese, Malay and Indian. By studying their family language audits, observing their language practices, and engaging in conversations about their language ideologies, I look at what these families do and do not do and what they claim to do and not to do. Data were collected over a period of 6 months with more than 700 minutes of recording of actual interactions. Analysis of the data reveals that language ideologies are ‘power-inflected’ and tend to become the source of educational and social tensions which in turn shape family language practices. In Singapore these tensions are illustrated by the bilingual policy recognising mother tongues (MTs) and English as official languages, and its educational policy establishing English as the medium of instruction. The view of English as having instrumental values and MTs as having cultural functions reveals that language choices and practices in family domains are value-laden in everyday interactions and explicitly negotiated and established through FLP.

”Potato seeking rice”: language, culture, and identity in gay personal ads in Hong Kong

This paper examines the relationship between language, culture, and identity in a corpus of gay personal ads collected from two publications in Hong Kong in the three years before the 1997 transition of sovereignty. Gay personal ads are seen äs an "island of discourse," whose marginal nature is reflected in the use of language and in turn reflects issues of marginalization in the larger social context. Using Fairclough's (1992, 1993) three- dimensional model for critical discourse analysis, an attempt is made to uncover the relationship between text structure and issues ofpower/ideology in the society that produces the texts. On the level of text, it was found that structural components, particularly the degree of grammatical elaboration, differ according to the stated race or cultural background of the authors and their targets. On the level of discourse practice, authors were found to appropriate a variety of "voices"from the larger culture arena, the use of which amplifies or limits the participation of particular classes of individuals. Finally, on the level of social practice, the ads were found to reflect and re-create both the racial stereotypes and heterosexist ideology found in the dominant culture.

Interaction of plant growth regulators and reactive oxygen species to regulate petal senescence in wallflowers (Erysimum linifolium)

Background In many species floral senescence is coordinated by ethylene. Endogenous levels rise, and exogenous application accelerates senescence. Furthermore, floral senescence is often associated with increased reactive oxygen species, and is delayed by exogenously applied cytokinin. However, how these processes are linked remains largely unresolved. Erysimum linifolium (wallflower) provides an excellent model for understanding these interactions due to its easily staged flowers and close taxonomic relationship to Arabidopsis. This has facilitated microarray analysis of gene expression during petal senescence and provided gene markers for following the effects of treatments on different regulatory pathways. Results In detached Erysimum linifolium (wallflower) flowers ethylene production peaks in open flowers. Furthermore senescence is delayed by treatments with the ethylene signalling inhibitor silver thiosulphate, and accelerated with ethylene released by 2-chloroethylphosphonic acid. Both treatments with exogenous cytokinin, or 6-methyl purine (which is an inhibitor of cytokinin oxidase), delay petal senescence. However, treatment with cytokinin also increases ethylene biosynthesis. Despite the similar effects on senescence, transcript abundance of gene markers is affected differentially by the treatments. A significant rise in transcript abundance of WLS73 (a putative aminocyclopropanecarboxylate oxidase) was abolished by cytokinin or 6-methyl purine treatments. In contrast, WFSAG12 transcript (a senescence marker) continued to accumulate significantly, albeit at a reduced rate. Silver thiosulphate suppressed the increase in transcript abundance both of WFSAG12 and WLS73. Activity of reactive oxygen species scavenging enzymes changed during senescence. Treatments that increased cytokinin levels, or inhibited ethylene action, reduced accumulation of hydrogen peroxide. Furthermore, although auxin levels rose with senescence, treatments that delayed early senescence did not affect transcript abundance of WPS46, an auxin-induced gene. Conclusions A model for the interaction between cytokinins, ethylene, reactive oxygen species and auxin in the regulation of floral senescence in wallflowers is proposed. The combined increase in ethylene and reduction in cytokinin triggers the initiation of senescence and these two plant growth regulators directly or indirectly result in increased reactive oxygen species levels. A fall in conjugated auxin and/or the total auxin pool eventually triggers abscission.

Absolute Thellier paleointensities from Ponta Grossa dikes (southern Brazil) and the early Cretaceous geomagnetic field strength

We report a detailed rock magnetic and Thellier paleointensity study from similar to 130.5 Ma Ponta Grossa Dike Swarms in Southern Brazil. Twenty-nine samples from seven cooling units were pre-selected for paleointensity experiments based on their low viscosity index, stable remanent magnetization and close to reversible continuous thermomagnetic curves. 19 samples characterized by negative pTRM tests, Arai concave- up curves or positive pTRM tests with NRM loss uncorrelated with TRM acquisition were rejected. High quality reliable paleointensity determinations are determined from detailed evaluation criteria, with 10 samples belonging to three dikes passing the tests. The site-mean paleointensity values obtained in this study range from 25.6 +/- 4.3 to 11.3 +/- 2.1 mu T and the corresponding VDM`s range from 5.7 +/- 0.9 to 2.5 +/- 0.5 (10(22) Am(2)). These data yield a VDM mean value of 4.1 +/- 1.6 x 10(22) Am(2). Significant variability of Earth`s magnetic field strength is observed for Ponta Grossa Dikes with the mean value being significantly lower as compared to the mean VDM obtained from the nearby Parana Magmatic Province. The paleointensities for the Ponta Grossa Dikes are in agreement with absolute paleointensities retrieved from the submarine basaltic glasses from 130 to 120 Ma. It seems that a relatively low field prevailed just before the Cretaceous Normal Superchron.

Relative contribution of pre- and post-synaptic effects to the neostigmine-induced recovery of neuromuscular transmission blocked by vecuronium

The relative contribution of the pre- and post-synaptic effects to the neostigmine-induced recovery of neuromuscular transmission blocked by vecuronium was studied. A conjunction of myographical and electrophysiological techniques was employed. The preparation was the sciatic nerve-extensor digitorum longus muscle of the rat, in vitro. The physiological variables recorded were nerve-evoked twitches (generated at 0.1 Hz), tetanic contractions (generated at 50 Hz) and end-plate potentials (epps), generated in trains of 50 Hz. The epps were analyzed in: amplitude of first epp in the train; mean amplitude of the 30th to the 59th epp in the train (epps-plateau); half-decay time of the epp; early tetanic rundown of epps in the train; plateau tetanic rundown of epps in the train; quantal content of the epps and quantal size. In myographical experiments, a concentration of vecuronium was found (0.8 mu m) that affected both twitches and tetanic contractions and a concentration of neostigmine was found (0.048 mu m) that completely restored the twitch affected by vecuronium. The cellular effects of vecuronium and neostigmine, studied alone or in association, in the above-mentioned concentrations, were scrutinized by means of electrophysiological techniques. These showed that vecuronium alone decreased the peak amplitude, the quantal content of epps and the quantal size and reinforced the tetanic rundown of epps. Neostigmine alone increased the peak amplitude, the quantal content and the half-decay time of the epps. When employed in the presence of vecuronium, neostigmine increased both the quantal content of the epps (via a presynaptic effect) and the half-decay time of the epps (via a postsynaptic effect). Seeing the pre- and the post-synaptic effects of neostigmine were of similar magnitude, they permit to conclude that both these effects contributed significantly to the restoration by neostigmine of the neuromuscular transmission blocked by vecuronium.

Prosodic Morphology : Gender in Arabic Perfect Active and Passive 3rd Person Singular Verbs

Prosodic /template Morphology, that "draws heavily on the theoretical apparatus and formalisms of the generative phonology model known as autosegmental phonology" (Katamba, F. 1993: 154), is the best analysis that can handle Arabic morphology. Verbs in Arabic are represented on three independent tiers: root tier, the skeletal tier and the vocalic melody tier (Katamba, F. 1993). Vowel morphemes, which are represented by diacritics, are inserted within the consonant morphemes, which are represented by primary symbols, to form words. The morpheme tier hypothesis paves the way to understand the nonconcatenative Arabic morphology. This paper analyzes gender in perfect active and passive 3rd person singular verbs on the basis of PM. The focus of the analysis shall be drawn heavily on the most common Arabic verbs; triconsonantal verbs, with brief introduction of the less common verbs; quadriconsonantal perfect active and passive masculine and feminine 3rd person singular verbs. I shall, too, cast the light on some vowel changes that some verbs undergo when voice changes.

Narration in Swedish pre- and primary school : a recourse for language development and multilingualism

Increased immigration in Europe and worldwide has led to more pre- and primary school students being educated through the medium of a second language, and there is considerable research, much of it coming from Australia, to suggest that in order to cope with this situation, children will need to begin to acquire, from their earliest years in pre-school, a variety of knowledge-based language skills that will be sufficient to carry them through the subject-based education they will encounter in their subsequent schooling. This is particularly important for L2-students who are less likely to meet academic language outside the school. In this paper, based on transcripts of oral interactions in the classroom, it is argued that conversational and story-telling skills, oral and written, provide a rich environment for the development of academic school language, while at the same time promoting and making good use of the cultural diversity that is increasingly a feature of pre-primary and primary classrooms.