scholarly journals Using the Tolerance Principle to predict phonological change

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Betsy Sneller ◽  
Josef Fruehwald ◽  
Charles Yang
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Change ◽  
Simulation Method ◽  
Complex Change ◽  
Tolerance Principle ◽  
Phonological Change

AbstractLanguage acquisition is a well-established avenue for language change (Labov, 2007). Given the theoretical importance of language acquisition to language change, it is all the more important to formulate clear theories of transmission-based change. In this paper, we provide a simulation method designed to test the plausibility of different possible transmission-based changes, using the Tolerance Principle (Yang, 2016) to determine precise points at which different possible changes may become plausible for children acquiring language. We apply this method to a case study of a complex change currently in progress: the allophonic restructuring of /æ/ in Philadelphia English. Using this model, we are able to evaluate several competing explanations of the ongoing change and determine that the allophonic restructuring of /æ/ in Philadelphia English is mostly likely the result of children acquiring language from mixed dialect input, consisting of approximately 40% input from speakers with a nasal /æ/ split. We show that applying our simulation to a phonological change allows us to make precise quantitative predications about the progress of this change. Moreover, it forces us to reassess intuitively plausible hypotheses about language change, such as grammatical simplification, in a quantitative and independently motivated framework of acquisition.

When Language Fails

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Yang
Keyword(s):  
Language Change ◽  
Language Variation ◽  
Language Variation And Change ◽  
Numerical Studies ◽  
Tolerance Principle

The theory predicts complete lexicalization when the number of exceptions to a rule exceeds the threshold, which leads to morphological gaps: without a productive rule, you only know the derived form if you hear it otherwise ineffability arises. Detailed numerical studies for gaps in Russian, English, Spanish, and Polish. The Tolerance Principle also directly bears on language variation and change, in that it provides/predicts the conditions under which language change is actuated. As a case study, the theory explains why—and when—the so-called dative sickness, and other instances of case substitution, took place in Icelandic in the 19th centuries.

Rule Invention in the Acquisition of Morphology Revisited

1988 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 425-431 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen M. Camarata ◽  
Lisa Erwin
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Acoustic Parameters ◽  
Impaired Child ◽  
Language Impaired ◽  
Intensity Parameters ◽  
Suprasegmental Features ◽  
Acoustic Analyses ◽  
Suprasegmental Cues

This paper presents a case study of a language-impaired child who signaled the distinction between English singular and plural using suprasegmental cues rather than the usual segmental form used within the parent language. Acoustic analyses performed within the first study in the paper revealed that the suprasegmental features used to maintain this distinction included various duration, fundamental frequency, and intensity parameters. Acoustic analyses Were also performed on a set of matched two- and four-item plural forms within a second study. The results of these analyses indicated that the same acoustic parameters were used to distinguish two-item plural forms from four-item plural forms. This case of linguistic creativity is offered as further evidence in support of the model of language acquisition that emphasizes the active role children take in the acquisition process. Additionally, the phonological, morphological, and psycholinguistic factors that may contribute to such rule invention are discussed.

Scales and Units

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn M. de Luna
Keyword(s):  
Language Change ◽  
Historical Linguistics ◽  
Bantu Languages ◽  
The North ◽  
First Case ◽  
Linguistic Evidence ◽  
River Region ◽  
History Of ◽  
Alternative Approaches

This chapter uses two case studies to explore how historians study language movement and change through comparative historical linguistics. The first case study stands as a short chapter in the larger history of the expansion of Bantu languages across eastern, central, and southern Africa. It focuses on the expansion of proto-Kafue, ca. 950–1250, from a linguistic homeland in the middle Kafue River region to lands beyond the Lukanga swamps to the north and the Zambezi River to the south. This expansion was made possible by a dramatic reconfiguration of ties of kinship. The second case study explores linguistic evidence for ridicule along the Lozi-Botatwe frontier in the mid- to late 19th century. Significantly, the units and scales of language movement and change in precolonial periods rendered visible through comparative historical linguistics bring to our attention alternative approaches to language change and movement in contemporary Africa.

The traceback method and the early constructicon: theoretical and methodological considerations

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikolas Koch ◽  
Stefan Hartmann ◽  
Antje Endesfelder Quick
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Child Language ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Methodological Choices ◽  
Corpus Data ◽  
Methodological Considerations ◽  
Language Corpus

AbstractUsage-based approaches assume that children’s early utterances are item-based. This has been demonstrated in a number of studies using the traceback method. In this approach, a small amount of “target utterances” from a child language corpus is “traced back” to earlier utterances. Drawing on a case study of German, this paper provides a critical evaluation of the method from a usage-based perspective. In particular, we check how factors inherent to corpus data as well as methodological choices influence the results of traceback studies. To this end, we present four case studies in which we change thresholds and the composition of the main corpus, use a cross-corpus approach tracing one child’s utterances back to another child’s corpus, and reverse and randomize the target utterances. Overall, the results show that the method can provide interesting insights—particularly regarding different pathways of language acquisition—but they also show the limitations of the method.

scholarly journals A Simplified Simulation Method for Flood-Induced Bend Scour—A Case Study Near the Shuideliaw Embankment on the Cho-Shui River

Water ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen-Dar Guo ◽  
Jian-Hao Hong ◽  
Cheng-Hsin Chen ◽  
Chih-Chiang Su ◽  
Jihn-Sung Lai
Keyword(s):  
Simulation Method

scholarly journals Introduction to language acquisition, bilingualism and copula choice in Spanish

2008 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 273-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
PEDRO GUIJARRO-FUENTES ◽  
KIMBERLY L. GEESLIN
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
Language Change ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Language Attrition ◽  
Areas Of Interest

In several of the most widely read Spanish grammars an entire chapter is devoted to the two copular verbs in Spanish, ser “to be” and estar “to be”, and their many contexts of use (Bull, 1965; Solé and Solé, 1977; Whitley, 1986; Bosque and Demonte, 1999; King and Suñer, 1999; Butt and Benjamin, 2000). For some, the interest in this structure stems from the range of meanings that can be expressed with these two forms, whereas for others it is the variability in the use of these verbs with adjectives, existing between groups, individuals and particular social contexts, that generates inquiry. The combination of these two traits makes the contrast difficult to acquire and likely to be lost or weakened in contexts of language attrition or language contact (Silva-Corvalán, 1986; Geeslin, 2002) and this complexity makes the copula contrast in Spanish an excellent mechanism for exploring broader issues such as theories of acquisition and language change, which are of value to a readership well beyond those working directly on Spanish. After a brief description of the distribution of ser and estar, we provide an overview of the various theoretical descriptions of the copula contrast that exist and their implications for research on bilingualism. Next, we provide a description of the papers in this volume, and outline the areas of interest for readers whose research extends beyond Spanish grammar.

scholarly journals A look-ahead Monte Carlo simulation method for improving parental selection in trait introgression

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Saba Moeinizade ◽  
Ye Han ◽  
Hieu Pham ◽  
Guiping Hu ◽  
Lizhi Wang
Keyword(s):  
Monte Carlo ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Simulation Method ◽  
Multiple Trait ◽  
Look Ahead ◽  
Probability Of Success ◽  
Genetic Distribution ◽  
Selection Of ◽  
Trait Introgression

AbstractMultiple trait introgression is the process by which multiple desirable traits are converted from a donor to a recipient cultivar through backcrossing and selfing. The goal of this procedure is to recover all the attributes of the recipient cultivar, with the addition of the specified desirable traits. A crucial step in this process is the selection of parents to form new crosses. In this study, we propose a new selection approach that estimates the genetic distribution of the progeny of backcrosses after multiple generations using information of recombination events. Our objective is to select the most promising individuals for further backcrossing or selfing. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method, a case study has been conducted using maize data where our method is compared with state-of-the-art approaches. Simulation results suggest that the proposed method, look-ahead Monte Carlo, achieves higher probability of success than existing approaches. Our proposed selection method can assist breeders to efficiently design trait introgression projects.

scholarly journals Traffic queue modeling using arena simulation software (a case study of Mergan 4-Way intersection in Malang City)

2018 ◽  
Vol 204 ◽  
pp. 02009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dani Yuniawan ◽  
P.P Aang Fajar ◽  
Samsudin Hariyanto ◽  
Romi Setiawan
Keyword(s):  
Flow System ◽  
Simulation Method ◽  
Simulation Software ◽  
Verification And Validation ◽  
Scenario Simulation ◽  
Traffic Light ◽  
Simulation Scenario ◽  
Research Outcome ◽  
Arena Simulation

Currently Mergan 4-way intersection is one of intersection that have most traffic dense in Malang City, East Java - Indonesia. This research implement simulation method in order to give several solution option to manage the traffic queue in Mergan 4-way intersection. Simulation method is conducted with several phase, from problem identification up to verification and validation also scenario simulation. Arena Simulation software v.14 is chosen as the tool to modeling the traffic queue line. The research outcome give several solution through Traffic Light 2 simulation scenario. With this simulation scenario, the traffic flow system simulation can be run with fewer queues of vehicles.

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