scholarly journals Adopting StudyIntonation CAPT Tools to Tonal Languages Through the Example of Vietnamese

2021 ◽  
Vol 102 ◽  
pp. 01007
Author(s):  
Nhi Nguyen Van ◽  
Son Luu Xuan ◽  
Iurii Lezhenin ◽  
Natalia Bogach ◽  
Evgeny Pyshkin
Keyword(s):  
Complex System ◽  
Visual Perception ◽  
Subtle Difference ◽  
Tonal Language ◽  
Pitch Processing ◽  
Language Background ◽  
Combined Use ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Visualization Algorithms

In tonal languages, tones are associated with both and phonological and lexical domains. Accurate tone articulation is required in order to convey the correct meaning. Learning tones at both word and phrase levels is often challenging for L2 learners with non-tonal language background, because of possible subtle difference between the close tones. In this paper, we discuss an adoption of StudyIntonation CAPT tools to the case of Vietnamese language being a good example of register tonal language with a complex system of tones comprising such features as tone pitch, its length, contour melody, intensity and phonation. The particular focus of this contribution is to assess the adoption of StudyIntonation course toolkit and its pitch processing and visualization algorithms in order to evaluate how the combined use of audio and visual perception mechanisms supported by StudyIntonation may help learners to improve the accuracy of their pronunciation and intonation with respect to tonal languages.

scholarly journals SPOKEN AND WRITTEN REPRESENTATION OF NUMBER IN L2 CATALAN INDEFINITE DETERMINER PHRASES

2007 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 321-350
Author(s):  
Liliana Tolchinski ◽  
Naymé Salas ◽  
Joan Perera
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
First Language ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Similar Time ◽  
Language Background ◽  
Indefinite Article ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
L1 Influence ◽  
The Relationship

The study explores the relationship that second language (L2) learners of Catalan establish between the spoken and the written representation of number inflection within an indefinite-article Determiner Phrase (DP); and it also addresses first language (L1) influence in this processo Five- to eight-year-olds, speakers of varieties of Chinese and Moroccan Arabic, with differing degrees of literacy instruction in their home countries —but similar time of residence in Catalonia— participated in the study. The children carried out individual semi-structured tasks designed to evaluate comprehension and production of changes in number inflections (un cotxe ‘a car’; uns cotxes ‘a-pl cars ’). Results showed that, irrespective of children’s language background, comprehension preceded production of singular and plural indefinite-article DPs; spoken representation was easier than written representation of number changes; and production of plural indefinite-article DPs was more difficult than its singular counterpart. Despite typological differences between the languages compared, both groups of L2 learners, even the Catalan control group, underwent similar processes.

Identification of English vowels by non-native listeners: Effects of listeners’ experience of the target dialect and talkers’ language background

2020 ◽  
pp. 026765832096564
Author(s):  
Shinsook Lee ◽  
Jaekoo Kang ◽  
Hosung Nam
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Speech Intelligibility ◽  
American English ◽  
British English ◽  
Language Background ◽  
English Vowels ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Uk

This study investigates how second language (L2) listeners’ perception is affected by two factors: the listeners’ experience with the target dialect – North American English (NAE) vs. Standard Southern British English (SSBE) – and talkers’ language background: native vs. non-native talkers; i.e. interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit (ISIB) talker effects. Two groups of native-Korean-speaking listeners with different target English dialects – L1-Korean listeners of English as a second language (ESL) in the USA and L1-Korean ESL listeners in the UK – were tested on the identification of 12 English vowels spoken by native and non-native (L1-Korean) talkers of NAE and SSBE. The results show that the L2 listeners’ experience with the target dialect had a significant impact on the accuracy of their identification of the L2 vowels. However, no ISIB-talker effects were observed for the L1-Korean listener groups regardless of the listeners’ differences in experience with the two varieties of English. The study adds to the L2 sound acquisition literature and the ISIB literature by looking into L2 learners’ identification of L2 vowels, taking into account the learners’ differences in experience with two standard varieties of English (NAE and SSBE) and the interaction between the learners’ experience with the two varieties and ISIB-talker effects. It also sheds some light on the issue of adult L2 learners’ ability to learn the vowels of a new target variety.

scholarly journals VISUAL AND COGNITIVE INTERPRETATION OF HETEROGENEOUS DATA

2019 ◽  
Vol XLII-2/W12 ◽  
pp. 243-247 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. Zakharova ◽  
A. G. Podvesovskii ◽  
A. V. Shklyar
Keyword(s):  
Visual Perception ◽  
Visual Analysis ◽  
Cognitive Maps ◽  
Data Interpretation ◽  
Heterogeneous Data ◽  
Biomedical Data ◽  
Combined Use ◽  
Complicating Factors ◽  
Visualization Tools ◽  
Specialized Subject

<p><strong>Abstract.</strong> The paper identifies conditions that allow the use of visualization means as tools for practical study of heterogeneous data. Effectiveness requirements, the amount of input data or uncertainty of the overall goal of data analysis should be considered complicating factors for such a study. Development and practical application of visualization tools allow to overcome these factors as a result of using the advantages of visual perception for the source data interpretation. Use of cognitive maps has been proposed as a way to compensate for the subjective aspects of visual perception, as well as a tool for verifying the results of visual analysis. Combined use of visualization tools and cognitive maps forms cognitive interpretation technology, which allows solving the problems of research of empirical data belonging to specialized subject areas. An example application of this technology for processing biomedical data is considered.</p>

Leren Spellen in Engels als Vreemde Taal

2000 ◽  
Vol 64 ◽  
pp. 145-151
Author(s):  
A.J. van Berkel
Keyword(s):  
Complex System ◽  
Second Language ◽  
English Orthography ◽  
Visual Patterns ◽  
L2 Learners

What makes it possible for learners of English as a second language to learn how to spell this complex system, without any instruction about phoneme-grapheme correspondences or rules? The author shows that a graphotactic description of English orthography reveals many systematic visual patterns. L2 learners appear to be sensitive to these patterns. This may explain how they acquire the spelling system: by picking up visual patterns.

Effects of tonal language background on tests of temporal sequencing in children

2015 ◽  
Vol 54 (12) ◽  
pp. 951-957
Author(s):  
Siti Zamratol-Mai S. Mukari ◽  
Xuan Yu ◽  
Wan Syafira Ishak ◽  
Rafidah Mazlan
Keyword(s):  
Tonal Language ◽  
Language Background ◽  
Temporal Sequencing

Pitch Processing in Tonal-Language-Speaking Children with Autism: An Event-Related Potential Study

2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (11) ◽  
pp. 3656-3667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luodi Yu ◽  
Yuebo Fan ◽  
Zhizhou Deng ◽  
Dan Huang ◽  
Suiping Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Children With Autism ◽  
Event Related Potential ◽  
Tonal Language ◽  
Pitch Processing ◽  
Potential Study

Processing of grammatical gender in French as a first and second language: Evidence from ERPs

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 76-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheryl Frenck-Mestre ◽  
Alice Foucart ◽  
Haydee Carrasco-Ortiz ◽  
Julia Herschensohn
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
English Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Grammatical Gender ◽  
Event Related Potential ◽  
Gender Agreement ◽  
Language Background ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Phonetic Cues

The present study examined the processing of grammatical gender in second language (L2) French as a function of language background (Experiment 1) and as a function of overt phonetic properties of agreement (Experiment 2) by examining Event Related Potential (ERP) responses to gender discord in L2 French. In Experiment 1 we explored the role of the presence/absence of abstract grammatical gender in the L1 (gendered German, ungendered English): we compared German and English learners of French when processing post-nominal plural (no gender cues on determiner) attributive adjectives that either agreed in gender with the noun or presented a gender violation. We found grammaticalized responses (P600) by native and L1 English learners, but no response by German L1, a result we attribute to the possible influence of plurality, which is gender neutralized in German DP concord. In Experiment 2, we examined the role of overt phonetic cues to noun-adjective gender agreement in French, for both native speakers and Spanish L2 learners of French, finding that both natives and L2 learners showed a more robust P600 in the presence of phonetic cues. These data, in conjunction with those of other ERP studies can best be accounted for by a model that allows for native language influence, that is not, however constrained by age of acquisition, and that must also allow for clear cues in the input to influence acquisition and/or processing.

Which is the best listener group?

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 170-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yinyin Zhu
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Prosody ◽  
Tonal Language ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
In The Beginning ◽  
Better Than ◽  
Made In

This study investigated the perception of six Chinese emotional prosodies (neutrality, happiness, anger, surprise, sadness and sarcasm) by 20 Chinese native listeners, 20 naïve Dutch listeners and 20 advanced Dutch L2 learners of Chinese. The results showed that advanced Dutch L2 learners of Chinese recognized Chinese emotional prosody significantly better than Chinese native listeners and Dutch naïve listeners. The results also indicated that naïve non-native listeners could recognize emotions in an unknown language as well as the natives did. Chinese native listeners did not show an in-group advantage for identifying emotions in Chinese more accurately and confidently. Neutrality was the easiest emotion for all the three listener groups to identify and anger was recognized equally well by all the listener groups. The prediction made in the beginning of the study is confirmed, which claims that listeners of a tonal language will be less intent on paralinguistic use of prosody than listeners of a non-tonal language.

scholarly journals A Multilevel Gamma-Clustering Layout Algorithm for Visualization of Biological Networks

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomas Hruz ◽  
Markus Wyss ◽  
Christoph Lucas ◽  
Oliver Laule ◽  
Peter von Rohr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complex System ◽  
Systems Biology ◽  
Complex Networks ◽  
Network Structure ◽  
Biological Networks ◽  
Large Graphs ◽  
Layout Algorithm ◽  
Underlying Network ◽  
Visualization Algorithms ◽  
Edge Crossings

Visualization of large complex networks has become an indispensable part of systems biology, where organisms need to be considered as one complex system. The visualization of the corresponding network is challenging due to the size and density of edges. In many cases, the use of standard visualization algorithms can lead to high running times and poorly readable visualizations due to many edge crossings. We suggest an approach that analyzes the structure of the graph first and then generates a new graph which contains specific semantic symbols for regular substructures like dense clusters. We propose a multilevel gamma-clustering layout visualization algorithm (MLGA) which proceeds in three subsequent steps: (i) a multilevel γ-clustering is used to identify the structure of the underlying network, (ii) the network is transformed to a tree, and (iii) finally, the resulting tree which shows the network structure is drawn using a variation of a force-directed algorithm. The algorithm has a potential to visualize very large networks because it uses modern clustering heuristics which are optimized for large graphs. Moreover, most of the edges are removed from the visual representation which allows keeping the overview over complex graphs with dense subgraphs.

On the acquisition of complex classifier constructions by L2 learners of a sign language

2021 ◽  
pp. 136216882199096
Author(s):  
Eveline Boers-Visker
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Language Background ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Classifier Predicates

Sign language learners with a spoken language background face the challenge of acquiring a second language in a different modality. In the course of this endeavor, one of the modality-specific phenomena they encounter is the use of classifier predicates, also known as depicting signs. Classifier predicates contain a meaningful hand configuration that refers to an entity, denoting a salient characteristic of this entity (Zwitserlood, 2003). The use of a classifier predicate allows the signer to indicate the location, motion and orientation of a referent. If two classifier predicates are used simultaneously, the signer can represent the spatial arrangement of both referents (Schembri, Jones and Burnham, 2001). This visual representation is new for learners with a spoken language background. Since there is a paucity of literature on second language (L2) sign language acquisition, there is no empirical evidence on the developmental stages that L2 learners go through in acquiring the devices to produce such visual representations. In this study, we followed 14 novel learners of Sign Language of the Netherlands (NGT) over a period of two years. The learners were asked to produce sign language descriptions of prompts containing various objects (e.g. cars, bicycles, trucks, human beings and animals) that could be depicted by a classifier predicate. Analyses show that after a year of instruction, the majority of learners are capable of producing scene descriptions featuring two classifier predicates to denote the spatial layout of the objects. The first classifier predicates appear in the data at an early stage, suggesting that the strategy of denoting an object with a meaningful handshape representing the object is not difficult to learn. Furthermore, the data show that learners initially struggle with the orientation of objects and handshape selection. This study is the first to systematically elicit classifier predicates from novel learners for an extended period of time. The results have important implications for the field of sign language pedagogy and teaching.

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