The syntax–lexicon continuum in Construction Grammar

2010 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 54-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans C. Boas

This paper offers an alternative analysis of Goldberg’s (1995) account of communication verbs appearing in the ditransitive construction. Based on a more finely-grained frame-semantic analysis of constructional phenomena, it is shown that generalizations over specific syntactic frames are possible at different levels of semantic abstraction. This, in turn, allows us to make across-the-board generalizations that hold not only between lexical units evoking the same frame, but also between lexical units belonging to different frames at different levels of abstraction. The resulting network of constructions combines Goldberg’s proposals regarding the status of abstract-schematic constructions with item-specific knowledge regarding the specific lexical units, with various midpoints in between. This approach has the advantage that there is no need for fusing lexical entries with abstract meaningful constructions, thereby avoiding some of the problems that arise due to the separation of syntax and the lexicon in some constructional approaches.

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Closs Traugott

My aim in this paper is to show that, in modified form, semantic connectivity maps of the kind developed in van der Auwera & Plungian (1998) and van der Auwera (2013) can be useful for showing the development over time of relationships among polysemous constructions. Since these maps pertain primarily to meaning and are intended as contributions to cross-linguistic generalizations rather than to language-specific grammars, their purpose might seem orthogonal to construction grammar, in which form–meaning pairs are the basic units of grammar. I propose that the semantic maps can usefully be rethought as being of two kinds: schema-construction maps that represent relationships between abstract, conceptual schemas linked to underspecified form, and micro-construction maps that represent relationships between specific constructions. These two kinds of maps capture both form and meaning since they represent form–meaning pairings, but at different levels of abstraction. They can also capture direction of changes, as tendencies at the schema level and specific trajectories at the micro-level. My case study is the development of the marginal modals better, rather, sooner (see Denison & Cort 2010, van der Auwera & De Wit 2010). I show that better is significantly different in distribution and meaning from rather and sooner, and that, although they form a family of micro-constructions, they do not form a tight-knit group. This can be captured well by modified semantic maps.


Author(s):  
Arne Zeschel ◽  
Kristel Proost

Abstract Novel formats of construction-based description hold great potential for phenomena that fall through the cracks in traditional kinds of linguistic reference works. On the example of German verb argument structure constructions with a prepositional object, we demonstrate that a construction-based description of such phenomena is superior to existing lexicographic and grammaticographic treatments, but that it also poses a number of new problems. The most fundamental of these relates to the fact that construction-based analyses can be proposed on different levels of abstraction. We illustrate pertinent problems relating to the precise identification of constructional form and meaning and suggest a multi-layered descriptive format for web-based electronic reference constructica that can accommodate these challenges. Semantically, the proposed solution integrates both lumping and splitting perspectives on constructional grain size and permits users to flexibly zoom in and out on individual elements in the resource. Formally, it can capture variation in the number and marking of realised arguments as found in e.g. passives and transitivity alternations. Aspects of the theoretical controversy between Construction Grammar and Valency Theory are addressed where relevant, but our focus is on questions of description and the practical implementation of construction-based analyses in a suitable type of linguistic reference work.


2009 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-258
Author(s):  
Mónica Domínguez Pérez

This study deals with children's literature translated from Castilian Spanish into Galician, Basque and Catalan by a different publisher from that of the source text, between 1940 and 1980, and with the criteria used to choose books for translation during that period. It compares the different literatures within Spain and examines the intersystemic and intercultural relations that the translations reflect. Following the polysystems theory, literature is here conceived as a network of agents of different kinds: authors, publishers, readers, and literary models. Such a network, called a polysystem, is part of a larger social, economic, and cultural network. These extra-literary considerations play an important role in determining the selection of works to be translated. The article suggests that translations can be said to establish transcultural relations, and that they demonstrate different levels of power within a specific interliterary community. It concludes that, while translations may aim to change the pre-existent relationships, frequently they just reflect the status quo.


Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (15) ◽  
pp. 5136
Author(s):  
Bassem Ouni ◽  
Christophe Aussagues ◽  
Saadia Dhouib ◽  
Chokri Mraidha

Sensor-based digital systems for Instrumentation and Control (I&C) of nuclear reactors are quite complex in terms of architecture and functionalities. A high-level framework is highly required to pre-evaluate the system’s performance, check the consistency between different levels of abstraction and address the concerns of various stakeholders. In this work, we integrate the development process of I&C systems and the involvement of stakeholders within a model-driven methodology. The proposed approach introduces a new architectural framework that defines various concepts, allowing system implementations and encompassing different development phases, all actors, and system concerns. In addition, we define a new I&C Modeling Language (ICML) and a set of methodological rules needed to build different architectural framework views. To illustrate this methodology, we extend the specific use of an open-source system engineering tool, named Eclipse Papyrus, to carry out many automation and verification steps at different levels of abstraction. The architectural framework modeling capabilities will be validated using a realistic use case system for the protection of nuclear reactors. The proposed framework is able to reduce the overall system development cost by improving links between different specification tasks and providing a high abstraction level of system components.


2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnold Gehlen

Moral and Hypermoral, Arnold Gehlen´s final book-length publication, is an elaboration on basic theses which had initially been brought forward in Gehlen´s anthropological magnum opus "Der Mensch". In this respect, this draft of a "pluralistic ethics" is conceived as an elaboration on as well as a concretion of his doctrine of man. In this book, Gehlen set himself the task of combining anthropology, behavioral science, and sociology in a “genealogy of morality”, thus exposing four interdependent forms of ethics: from an ethos of "reciprocity" via “eudaimonism” and “humanitarianism” to an ethos of institutions, including the state. Gehlen made a decisive stand against the "abstract ethics of the Enlightenment": systematically, his book is primarily an anthropological justification of ethics, conceived as a "majority of moral authorities" and "social regulations." These are not subjected to an evolutionary interpretation, that is, as progress from an ethics of proximity to a world-encompassing morality. Moralities, whether based on instinct or arising from the needs of particular institutions, are always culturally shaped and set on different levels of abstraction. With its broad scope, the book belongs in the context of basic philosophical-sociological research known as philosophical anthropology.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanlong Sun ◽  
Hongbin Wang

According to the data-frame theory, sensemaking is a macrocognitive process in which people try to make sense of or explain their observations by processing a number of explanatory structures called frames until the observations and frames become congruent. During the sensemaking process, the parietal cortex has been implicated in various cognitive tasks for the functions related to spatial and temporal information processing, mathematical thinking, and spatial attention. In particular, the parietal cortex plays important roles by extracting multiple representations of magnitudes at the early stages of perceptual analysis. By a series of neural network simulations, we demonstrate that the dissociation of different types of spatial information can start early with a rather similar structure (i.e., sensitivity on a common metric), but accurate representations require specific goal-directed top-down controls due to the interference in selective attention. Our results suggest that the roles of the parietal cortex rely on the hierarchical organization of multiple spatial representations and their interactions. The dissociation and interference between different types of spatial information are essentially the result of the competition at different levels of abstraction.


2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (8) ◽  
pp. 3162-3179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shamraiz Ahmad ◽  
Kuan Yew Wong

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review and analyze the recent sustainability assessment studies in the manufacturing industry from the triple-bottom-line (TBL) perspective. This paper aims to depict the status quo of practical sustainability assessment, summarize the different levels and boundaries of evaluation, and highlight the difficulties and further improvements needed to make the assessment more effective in the manufacturing industry. Design/methodology/approach Four keywords, namely, sustainability assessment, sustainable manufacturing, TBL and green production, were used to explore and find the relevant articles. First, this paper systematically reviewed the studies and analyzed the different levels and boundaries of sustainability assessment. Following this, the reviewed studies were critically discussed along with their merits and shortcomings. Findings The review showed that most of the sustainability assessment studies were conducted on product, company and process levels in the manufacturing industry. Nevertheless, there is still a need to focus more on plant and process level assessments to achieve the TBL objectives. Environmental assessment is comparatively matured in manufacturing industries. However, from the economic and social viewpoints, only cost analysis and workers’ safety, respectively, were considered in most of the studies. The economic and social indicators need to be more inclusive and should be validated and standardized for manufacturing industries. Originality/value Unlike previous sustainability assessment reviews in manufacturing industries which were mostly based on life cycle assessment, this paper has included environmental, social and economic aspects in one comprehensive review and focused on recent studies published from 2010 to 2017. This paper has explored the recent sustainability assessment trends and provided insights into the development of sustainability assessment in the manufacturing sector.


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