Language and Letters of the Bluestocking Network : Sociolinguistic Issues in Eighteenth Century Epistolary English

This study deals with language change and variation in the correspondence of the eighteenth-century Bluestocking circle, a social network which provided learned men and women with an informal environment for the pursuit of scholarly entertainment. Elizabeth Montagu (1718 1800), a notable social hostess and a Shakespearean scholar, was one of their key figures. The study presents the reconstruction of Elizabeth Montagu s social networks from her youth to her later years with a special focus on the Bluestocking circle, and linguistic research on private correspondence between Montagu and her Bluestocking friends and family members between the years 1738 1778. The epistolary language use is investigated using the methods and frameworks of corpus linguistics, historical sociolinguistics, and social network analysis. The approach is diachronic and concerns real-time language change. The research is based on a selection of manuscript letters which I have edited and compiled into an electronic corpus (Bluestocking Corpus). I have also devised a network strength scale in order to quantify the strength of network ties and to compare the results of the linguistic research with the network analysis. The studies range from the reconstruction and analysis of Elizabeth Montagu s most prominent social networks to the analysis of changing morphosyntactic features and spelling variation in Montagu s and her network members correspondence. The linguistic studies look at the use of the progressive construction, preposition stranding and pied piping, and spelling variation in terms of preterite and past participle endings in the regular paradigm (-ed, - d, -d, - t, -t) and full / contracted spellings of auxiliary verbs. The results are analysed in terms of social network membership, sociolinguistic variables of the correspondents, and, when relevant, aspects of eighteenth-century linguistic prescriptivism. The studies showed a slight diachronic increase in the use of the progressive, a significant decrease of the stigmatised preposition stranding and increase of pied piping, and relatively informal but socially controlled epistolary spelling. Certain significant changes in Elizabeth Montagu s language use over the years could be attributed to her increasingly prominent social standing and the changes in her social networks, and the strength of ties correlated strongly with the use of the progressive in the Bluestocking Corpus. Gender, social rank, and register in terms of kinship/friendship had a significant influence in language use, and an effect of prescriptivism could also be detected. Elizabeth Montagu s network ties resulted in language variation in terms of network membership, her own position in a given network, and the social factors that controlled eighteenth-century interaction. When all the network ties are strong, linguistic variation seems to be essentially linked to the social variables of the informants.

Aquisição de interrogativas preposicionadas em português europeu

Dissertação apresentada para cumprimento dos requisitos necessários à obtenção do grau de Mestre em Desenvolvimento e Perturbações da Linguagem na Criança, área de especialização em Terapia da Fala

Cayó la yuta : Basta de contrabando en la pasiva

El presente trabajo esboza una crítica con base empírica y conceptual al análisis de la construcción pasiva basado en la operación contrabando (smuggling) propuesto por Collins (2005). En primer lugar, se exponen los argumentos de tipo empírico, los cuales se basan en aspectos de la construcción pasiva española (y de otras lenguas romance de sujeto nulo) que la derivación de Collins no permite explicar. Los fenómenos más salientes que se discuten son: (i) la imposibilidad de dar cuenta de los sujetos postverbales en la pasiva de lenguas romance de sujeto nulo (e.g. fueron detenidos los asaltantes) dado el ascenso del Sintagma de Participio a la posición de especificador de Voz (contra Belletti 2009); (ii) el obligatorio tratamiento como argumento verbal del complemento agente que impide dar cuenta de su comportamiento ante islas de extracción débiles (e.g. *por el docente, no sabe Juan por qué fue desaprobada María); (iii) y la imposibilidad de explicar el arrastre de la preposición (pied-piping) ante movimiento del nominal que recibe interpretación de argumento externo a la periferia izquierda (e.g. ¿por quién fueron arrestados los asaltantes?). Los argumentos conceptuales se basan, principalmente, en la inexistencia de requerimientos gramaticales para varias de las suboperaciones y movimientos de los que depende esta derivación de la pasiva. Además, se defienden las observaciones de Gehrke y Grillo (2007) con respecto a la naturaleza ad-hoc del análisis (que, en términos técnicos, se reducen a que las computaciones propuestas por Collins requieren "ver hacia adelante" (look-ahead) en la derivación). Ante estas consideraciones, se defiende el análisis de la construcción pasiva presentado durante el auge del modelo GB (Jaeggli 1986, Baker et al. 1989), el cual, sin ser perfecto, resulta mucho más consistente con respecto al requerimiento de adecuación descriptiva de toda teoría gramatical

Cayó la yuta : Basta de contrabando en la pasiva

El presente trabajo esboza una crítica con base empírica y conceptual al análisis de la construcción pasiva basado en la operación contrabando (smuggling) propuesto por Collins (2005). En primer lugar, se exponen los argumentos de tipo empírico, los cuales se basan en aspectos de la construcción pasiva española (y de otras lenguas romance de sujeto nulo) que la derivación de Collins no permite explicar. Los fenómenos más salientes que se discuten son: (i) la imposibilidad de dar cuenta de los sujetos postverbales en la pasiva de lenguas romance de sujeto nulo (e.g. fueron detenidos los asaltantes) dado el ascenso del Sintagma de Participio a la posición de especificador de Voz (contra Belletti 2009); (ii) el obligatorio tratamiento como argumento verbal del complemento agente que impide dar cuenta de su comportamiento ante islas de extracción débiles (e.g. *por el docente, no sabe Juan por qué fue desaprobada María); (iii) y la imposibilidad de explicar el arrastre de la preposición (pied-piping) ante movimiento del nominal que recibe interpretación de argumento externo a la periferia izquierda (e.g. ¿por quién fueron arrestados los asaltantes?). Los argumentos conceptuales se basan, principalmente, en la inexistencia de requerimientos gramaticales para varias de las suboperaciones y movimientos de los que depende esta derivación de la pasiva. Además, se defienden las observaciones de Gehrke y Grillo (2007) con respecto a la naturaleza ad-hoc del análisis (que, en términos técnicos, se reducen a que las computaciones propuestas por Collins requieren "ver hacia adelante" (look-ahead) en la derivación). Ante estas consideraciones, se defiende el análisis de la construcción pasiva presentado durante el auge del modelo GB (Jaeggli 1986, Baker et al. 1989), el cual, sin ser perfecto, resulta mucho más consistente con respecto al requerimiento de adecuación descriptiva de toda teoría gramatical

Cayó la yuta : Basta de contrabando en la pasiva

El presente trabajo esboza una crítica con base empírica y conceptual al análisis de la construcción pasiva basado en la operación contrabando (smuggling) propuesto por Collins (2005). En primer lugar, se exponen los argumentos de tipo empírico, los cuales se basan en aspectos de la construcción pasiva española (y de otras lenguas romance de sujeto nulo) que la derivación de Collins no permite explicar. Los fenómenos más salientes que se discuten son: (i) la imposibilidad de dar cuenta de los sujetos postverbales en la pasiva de lenguas romance de sujeto nulo (e.g. fueron detenidos los asaltantes) dado el ascenso del Sintagma de Participio a la posición de especificador de Voz (contra Belletti 2009); (ii) el obligatorio tratamiento como argumento verbal del complemento agente que impide dar cuenta de su comportamiento ante islas de extracción débiles (e.g. *por el docente, no sabe Juan por qué fue desaprobada María); (iii) y la imposibilidad de explicar el arrastre de la preposición (pied-piping) ante movimiento del nominal que recibe interpretación de argumento externo a la periferia izquierda (e.g. ¿por quién fueron arrestados los asaltantes?). Los argumentos conceptuales se basan, principalmente, en la inexistencia de requerimientos gramaticales para varias de las suboperaciones y movimientos de los que depende esta derivación de la pasiva. Además, se defienden las observaciones de Gehrke y Grillo (2007) con respecto a la naturaleza ad-hoc del análisis (que, en términos técnicos, se reducen a que las computaciones propuestas por Collins requieren "ver hacia adelante" (look-ahead) en la derivación). Ante estas consideraciones, se defiende el análisis de la construcción pasiva presentado durante el auge del modelo GB (Jaeggli 1986, Baker et al. 1989), el cual, sin ser perfecto, resulta mucho más consistente con respecto al requerimiento de adecuación descriptiva de toda teoría gramatical

On L2 grammar and processing: the case of oblique relative clauses and the Null-Prep phenomenon

This dissertation investigates the acquisition of oblique relative clauses in L2 Spanish by English and Moroccan Arabic speakers in order to understand the role of previous linguistic knowledge and its interaction with Universal Grammar on the one hand, and the relationship between grammatical knowledge and its use in real-time, on the other hand. Three types of tasks were employed: an oral production task, an on-line self-paced grammaticality judgment task, and an on-line self-paced reading comprehension task. Results indicated that the acquisition of oblique relative clauses in Spanish is a problematic area for second language learners of intermediate proficiency in the language, regardless of their native language. In particular, this study has showed that, even when the learners’ native language shares the main properties of the L2, i.e., fronting of the obligatory preposition (Pied-Piping), there is still room for divergence, especially in production and timed grammatical intuitions. On the other hand, reaction time data have shown that L2 learners can and do converge at the level of sentence processing, showing exactly the same real-time effects for oblique relative clauses that native speakers had. Processing results demonstrated that native and non-native speakers alike are able to apply universal processing principles such as the Minimal Chain Principle (De Vincenzi, 1991) even when the L2 learners still have incomplete grammatical representations, a result that contradicts some of the predictions of the Shallow Structure Hypothesis (Clahsen & Felser, 2006). Results further suggest that the L2 processing and comprehension domains may be able to access some type of information that it is not yet available to other grammatical modules, probably because transfer of certain L1 properties occurs asymmetrically across linguistic domains. In addition, this study also explored the Null-Prep phenomenon in L2 Spanish, and proposed that Null-Prep is an interlanguage stage, fully available and accounted within UG, which intermediate L2 as well as first language learners go through in the development of pied-piping oblique relative clauses. It is hypothesized that this intermediate stage is the result of optionality of the obligatory preposition in the derivation, when it is not crucial for the meaning of the sentence, and when the DP is going to be in an A-bar position, so it can get default case. This optionality can be predicted by the Bottleneck Hypothesis (Slabakova, 2009c) if we consider that these prepositions are some sort of functional morphology. This study contributes to the field of SLA and L2 processing in various ways. First, it demonstrates that the grammatical representations may be dissociated from grammatical processing in the sense that L2 learners, unlike native speakers, can present unexpected asymmetries such as a convergent processing but divergent grammatical intuitions or production. This conclusion is only possible under the assumption of a modular language system. Finally, it contributes to the general debate of generative SLA since in argues for a fully UG-constrained interlanguage grammar.

The Processing of Preposition-Stranding Constructions in English

One of the prominent questions in modern psycholinguistics is the relationship between the grammar and the parser. Within the approach of Generative Grammar, this issue has been investigated in terms of the role that Principles of Universal Grammar may play in language processing. The aim of this research experiment is to investigate this topic. Specifically, this experiment aims to test whether the Minimal Structure Principle (MSP) plays a role in the processing of Preposition-Stranding versus Pied-Piped Constructions. This investigation is made with a self-paced reading task, an on-line processing test that measures participants’ unconscious reaction to language stimuli. Monolingual English speakers’ reading times of sentences with Preposition-Stranding and Pied-Piped Constructions are compared. Results indicate that neither construction has greater processing costs, suggesting that factors other than the MSP are active during language processing.

Status Survey of the Malabar Pied Hornbill in the Dandeli Region, Northern Western Ghats, India

The Malabar Pied Hornbill, Anthracoceros coronatus, is a near threatened species, endemic to the tropical deciduous forests of central and southern India and Sri Lanka. The Dandeli region in Karnataka (India) is believed to be the last stronghold of this species in the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot. Being a rapidly developing area with a growing human population, the threats to this species and their habitat are mounting, especially due to a large number of hydroelectric projects and habitat fragmentation caused by paper and plywood industries. This study evaluated the change in population status of the Malabar Pied Hornbill over a 23 year period and defined priorities for the long term conservation and monitoring of hornbills in Dandeli. Encounter rates of hornbills were also analysed in relation to the density and species richness of trees and fruiting trees, basal area, canopy cover and distance from river. Hornbill encounters were not significantly different compared to the earlier study carried out by Reddy in 1988, but were significantly different across the five sites in the current study. Higher numbers of hornbills were encountered closer to the river, but these results were only marginally significant. The mean numbers of hornbills recorded at the two roost sites identified in Dandeli were 26 +/- 4.47 (n=16 counts) and 31.78 +/- 3.53 (n=14 counts) respectively. The study also helped build local awareness about the species, train local Forest Department staff in monitoring hornbills and develop a management plan for its conservation.

Worker piping triggers hissing for coordinated colony defence in the dwarf honeybee Apis florea

Defending a large social insect colony containing several thousands of workers requires the simultaneous action of many individuals. Ideally this action involves communication between the workers, enabling coordinated action and a fast response. The Asian dwarf honeybee, Apis florea, is a small honeybee with an open nesting habit and a comparatively small colony size, features that leave them particularly exposed to predators. We describe here a novel defence response of these bees in which the emission of an initial warning signal from one individual (“piping”) is followed 0.3 to 0.7 seconds later by a general response from a large number of bees (“hissing”). Piping is audible to the human ear, with a fundamental frequency of 384 ± 31Hz and lasting for 0.82 ± 0.35 seconds. Hissing is a broad band, noisy signal, clearly audible to the human observer and produced by slight but visible movements of the bees' wings. Hissing begins in individuals close to the piping bee, spreads rapidly to neighbours and results in an impressive coordinated crescendo occasionally involving the entire colony. Piping and hissing are accompanied by a marked decrease, or even cessation, of worker activities such as forager dancing and departures from the colony. We show that whereas hissing of the colony can be elicited without piping, the sequential and correlated piping and hissing response is specific to the presence of potential predators close to the colony. We suggest that the combined audio-visual effect of the hissing might deter small predators, while the cessation of flight activity could decrease the risk of predation by birds and insects which prey selectively on flying bees.

System reliability analysis of granular filter for protection against piping in dams

Granular filters are provided for the safety of water retaining structure for protection against piping failure. The phenomenon of piping triggers when the base soil to be protected starts migrating in the direction of seepage flow under the influence of seepage force. To protect base soil from migration, the voids in the filter media should be small enough but it should not also be too small to block smooth passage of seeping water. Fulfilling these two contradictory design requirements at the same time is a major concern for the successful performance of granular filter media. Since Terzaghi era, conventionally, particle size distribution (PSD) of granular filters is designed based on particle size distribution characteristics of the base soil to be protected. The design approach provides a range of D15f value in which the PSD of granular filter media should fall and there exist infinite possibilities. Further, safety against the two critical design requirements cannot be ensured. Although used successfully for many decades, the existing filter design guidelines are purely empirical in nature accompanied with experience and good engineering judgment. In the present study, analytical solutions for obtaining the factor of safety with respect to base soil particle migration and soil permeability consideration as proposed by the authors are first discussed. The solution takes into consideration the basic geotechnical properties of base soil and filter media as well as existing hydraulic conditions and provides a comprehensive solution to the granular filter design with ability to assess the stability in terms of factor of safety. Considering the fact that geotechnical properties are variable in nature, probabilistic analysis is further suggested to evaluate the system reliability of the filter media that may help in risk assessment and risk management for decision making.

Pied Piper of Hamelin due date card

This is a due date card for the book titled Pied Piper of Hamelin, with stamped dates from 1939-1940.

Problèmes orthopédiques du pied vieillissant : les possibilités conservatrices doivent être explorées systématiquement

Les pathologies orthopédiques du pied du sujet âgé incluent principalement les troubles dégénératifs et les séquelles de traumatismes. Le pied est également l'organe cible d'autres pathologies, telles que la polyarthrite rhumatoïde (PR), le diabète, les insuffisance artérielles et les troubles neurologiques qui peuvent avoir pour conséquence des anomalies orthopédiques.