On embedded contrastive focus in Mandarin Chinese

Abstract This article investigates the previously undocumented focus-sensitiveness of certain scope-bearing expressions in Mandarin, and argues that the syntactic effects of this property should be accommodated by a structure that involves multiple dependencies and inherited dependencies. At the empirical side, it is shown that in Mandarin, certain quantificational expressions as well as typical focusing adverbs have to occur at positions where they (i) c‑command and (ii) be as close as possible to the contrastive foci that they associate with. The similarity to the typical association-with-focus configurations is captured under a unified Agree analysis that incorporated previous variable-adjunction-site analysis for focusing particles in German, while the additional dependencies in these structures are accounted for by multiple Agree and feature inheritance. This analysis is compared with some alternative approaches, which do not have equal empirical coverage or require more complex theoretical assumptions.

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Corpora and intuition: a study of Mandarin Chinese adverbial clauses and subjecthood

Corpora ◽

10.3366/cor.2006.1.2.187 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 1 (2) ◽

pp. 187-216 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

May L-Y Wong

Keyword(s):

Mandarin Chinese ◽

Semantic Function ◽

Text Type ◽

Corpus Linguistic ◽

Semantic Classes ◽

New Information ◽

Theoretical Assumptions ◽

Adverbial Clauses ◽

Adverbial Clause ◽

Linguistic Methods

This paper presents a corpus-based approach to investigating the distribution of adverbial clauses and their subjects (overt vs. non-overt) in spoken and written Mandarin Chinese. It argues that the choice of subject type is determined by three variables, namely, given-new information, semantic function of adverbial clause and text type. In written Chinese, the distribution of subject types varies across semantic classes of adverbial clauses, but not across text categories. The influence of semantic classes on the distribution of subject types, however, depends on text type. For the same semantic function, the decision as to whether to include a subject is governed by given and new information. In contrasting the distribution of subject types of adverbial clauses across speech and writing, it was found that both spoken and written Chinese use more overt subjects in clauses of reason. Methodologically, this study demonstrates how quantitative corpus-linguistic methods can be used to supplement introspective theoretical assumptions with authentic, observable evidence in order to gain better insights into the behaviour of adverbial clauses in speech and writing.

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Feature Inheritance and Object Raising in Epistemic Modal Constructions in Mandarin Chinese

LSA Annual Meeting Extended Abstracts ◽

10.3765/exabs.v0i0.496 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 1 ◽

pp. 17

Author(s):

Chao-Ting Chou

Keyword(s):

Mandarin Chinese ◽

Structural Requirement ◽

Epistemic Modal ◽

Present Evidence ◽

Apparent Violation ◽

Feature Inheritance ◽

Minimal Link Condition ◽

Phase Impenetrability Condition ◽

Activity Condition

We present evidence to argue that the object raising in epistemic modal constructions in Chinese is A-movement. The consequence of this claim is the apparent violation of Minimal Link Condition. Following Chomsky’s (2007 & 2008) feature inheritance hypothesis, we argue that the T of the TP complement of epistemic verbs does not contain any unvalued phi-features due to the absence of the CP-layer, and contains only the inherent EPP structural requirement, which, in itself, does not impose minimality restriction on the search of the goal. The implication of this analysis is three-fold: (i) the checking-based approach to A-movement does not hold in Chinese, (ii) Chinese employs the delayed version of Phase Impenetrability Condition, and (iii) activity condition in Chinese is subject to factor(s) other than Case.

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Translating emphatic/contrastive focus from English to Mandarin Chinese

Machine Translation ◽

10.1007/s10590-009-9055-8 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 22 (4) ◽

pp. 181-203

Author(s):

Chen-li Kuo ◽

Allan Ramsay

Keyword(s):

Mandarin Chinese ◽

Contrastive Focus

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Alternative approaches to ultra-high resolution imaging

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100087562 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 49 ◽

pp. 650-651

Author(s):

J.M. Cowley

Keyword(s):

High Resolution ◽

High Voltage ◽

High Resolution Electron Microscopy ◽

Crystal Defects ◽

High Resolution Imaging ◽

General Applicability ◽

Resolution Electron ◽

Radiation Resistant ◽

Resolution Imaging ◽

Alternative Approaches

By extrapolation of past experience, it would seem that the future of ultra-high resolution electron microscopy rests with the advances of electron optical engineering that are improving the instrumental stability of high voltage microscopes to achieve the theoretical resolutions of 1Å or better at 1MeV or higher energies. While these high voltage instruments will undoubtedly produce valuable results on chosen specimens, their general applicability has been questioned on the basis of the excessive radiation damage effects which may significantly modify the detailed structures of crystal defects within even the most radiation resistant materials in a period of a few seconds. Other considerations such as those of cost and convenience of use add to the inducement to consider seriously the possibilities for alternative approaches to the achievement of comparable resolutions.

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Behavioral and emotional differences between children of divorce and children from intact families: Clinical significance and mediating processes *This study is part of a dissertation () supported from the German research community.

Swiss Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1024//1421-0185.61.1.5 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 61 (1) ◽

pp. 5-14 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Andreas Schick

Keyword(s):

Self Esteem ◽

Research Community ◽

Children Of Divorce ◽

Group Differences ◽

Significant Group ◽

Intact Families ◽

Divorce Adjustment ◽

Theoretical Assumptions ◽

German Research ◽

Clinically Significant

The following study is based on a sample of 241 9-13-year-old children (66 children from divorced parents, 175 children from non divorced parents). They were examined for differences regarding anxiety, self-esteem, different areas of competence, and degree of behavior problems. With a focus on the children’s experiences, the clinically significant differences were examined. Clinically significant differences, revealing more negative outcomes for the children of divorce, were only found for social anxiety and unstable performance. The frequency of clinical significant differences was independent of the length of time the parents had been separated. The perceived destructiveness of conflict between the parents one of four facets of interparental conflict in this study functioned as a central mediator of the statistically significant group differences. The children’s perception of the father’s social support was a less reliable indicator of variance. Further studies should try to make underlying theoretical assumptions about the effects of divorce more explicit, to distinguish clearly between mediating variables, and to investigate them with respect to specific divorce adjustment indicators.

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