Temporal information in speech: acoustic, auditory and linguistic aspects

1992 ◽  
Vol 336 (1278) ◽  
pp. 367-373 ◽  

The temporal properties of speech appear to play a more important role in linguistic contrasts than has hitherto been appreciated. Therefore, a new framework for describing the acoustic structure of speech based purely on temporal aspects has been developed. From this point of view, speech can be said to be comprised of three main temporal features, based on dominant fluctuation rates: envelope, periodicity, and fine-structure. Each feature has distinct acoustic manifestations, auditory and perceptual correlates, and roles in linguistic contrasts. The applicability of this three-featured temporal system is discussed in relation to hearing-impaired and normal listeners.

Author(s):  
Philippe Chuard

The temporal aspects of experience raise three related questions, central to our understanding of temporal consciousness: how do sensory experiences carry information about, or make us aware of, some of the temporal features of perceived events (if at all)—in what format, by what mechanisms?; do the temporal properties of conscious experiences—including the arrangement of their temporal parts—play any role in how these experiences present or represent the temporal properties of perceived events?; how does such temporal representation manifest itself in the phenomenology of the relevant experiences? Most theories of temporal consciousness can be divided in terms of how they treat these questions. This chapter begins with a brief sketch of the main theories currently on the market and some of their background assumptions; it then moves to a—also brief—critical review of some of the arguments at the centre of the dispute.


Author(s):  
Purificação Silvano ◽  
Luís Filipe Cunha

In this paper we investigate three different types of infinitive constructions involving para in European Portuguese, viz. purpose clauses, complement clauses in which para behaves as a true complementizer and complement clauses in which para behaves as a preposition pertaining to the main sentence. We begin with a brief characterization of the Portuguese simple infinitive, arguing that, in appropriate conditions, it exhibits defective temporal properties that are, nonetheless, non-specified whenever another component in the sentence ascribes temporal information to the infinitive clause. Then we compare the three constructions under analysis: although there are clear divergences in their semantic behaviour, we observe that in all cases the situation represented by the infinitive clause is systematically located in an interval that follows its Temporal Perspective Point provided by the main clause. In order to account for this regularity, we propose that, in these contexts, (i) the infinitive is non-specified regarding its temporal features and (ii) the lexical properties of para are responsible for the posteriority reading stated above.


2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (s1) ◽  
pp. s146-s171
Author(s):  
Michał Mrugalski

AbstractConsidering that enacitivsm emerged in rebellion against the representativism of first-generation cognitive science, an enactivist approach to narrative, which after all does relate events, situations, people, necessitates a directly realistic (i. e. anti-representationalist) concept of perspective on literary objects. Ingarden’s description of the spatio-temporal properties of the cognizing of the literary work, in the process of which the reader transgresses the realm of signs (representation) toward embodied and culturally embedded cognition of objects and events in a presented world, may serve as a prototype for an enactive approach narrative, provided the theory in question is situated in its original context, for example that of Ingarden’s ongoing discussion with structuralism regarded at this juncture as a representationist stance. In the first step, I am referring to the philosophical tradition of direct realism, which was apparently invigorated by the theories of embodied and enactive cognition, to propose a way of conceiving first-person perspective on literary objects and events, first-person and temporal perspective on objects being the royal road to all sorts of enaction. In the second step, I am tackling the issue of point of view in East and Central European structuralism by recalling its most general context of the dialectical relationship between synchrony and diachrony. The interpretation of linguistic signs by the receiver is a space in which structuralism and Ingarden’s phenomenology concur as they share a similar model of receptive temporality, rooted in Husserl’s description of the inner consciousness of time and aiming to reduce the ambiguity of linguistic units and increase the predictability of meaning. In Ingarden, however, there is a threshold between the linguistic and the extralinguistic elements of the literary work, which are conceived in a directly realistic manner. I specifically recall the notion of “objectification,” which was suppressed by that of “concretization,” as a borderland between indirect (semiotic) and indirect (objectual and enactive) representation. In the conclusion, I point to the major differences between present-day cognitivist aesthetics and Ingarden’s approach, which was immersed in the culture of his time, and ask whether these differences impede us to achieve as interesting results as Ingarden’s.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Amardeep Mohanlal Dugar

<p>'Tangible lighting controls' is used as an umbrella term to describe lighting control systems that are easy to understand and pleasurable to use by end-users. The crucial question posed is, what is the nature of interface designs sought by end-users for maximising interaction with lighting control systems? The manner in which this question is posed implies a fundamental assumption that improved usability and end-user experience are the primary goals. The concept of end-user understanding of lighting control interfaces is proposed as a basis for improving the usability and end-user experience of lighting control interfaces. Usability engineering methods involving survey research, experimental mock-ups and prototyping have been used to enable end-users to design and evaluate lighting control interfaces. The essential difference is to include end-users' point of view about ease of understanding control functions and pleasure of performing control tasks along with a technical point of view about meeting required standards. Manufacturers' claims about the effectiveness of existing lighting control interfaces are challenged, and an entirely different way of thinking about interface design is revealed. Such a change of thinking may be seen as a new framework for improved designs of lighting control interfaces as well as evaluation of their usability and end-user experience.</p>


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis Philipp

&lt;p&gt;A height definition in terms of geopotential numbers offers a variety of advantages. Moreover, from the theoretical point of view, such a definition is considered more fundamental.&amp;#160;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We know, however, that relativistic gravity (here General Relativity) requires to reformulate the basic geodetic notions and to develop a consistent theoretical framework, relativistic geodesy, to yield an undoubtedly correct interpretation of measurement results.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The new framework of chronometric geodesy that builds on the comparison of clocks offers fundamental insight into the spacetime geometry if a solid theoretical formulation of observables is underlying modern high-precision measurements. Here we approach a genuine relativistic definition of the concept of height. Based on the relativistic generalization of geopotential numbers, a definition of chronometric height is suggested, which reduces to the well-known notions in the weak-field limit.&lt;/p&gt;


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefania Varano

&lt;p&gt;Sign languages &amp;#8203;&amp;#8203;arise from the need of communities of deaf people to communicate with each other and with others. Like all natural languages, they are tied to the traditions and cultures of the communities that invented and developed them. The sign language used in Italy is the Italian Sign Language, LIS.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;The strong iconicity of LIS is very interesting from the point of view of communication and didactics of astronomy, also for the hearing impaired. The signs used for astronomical concepts and objects often express the meaning and nature of what is represented, much more than a single word in the Italian language does.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;LIS is therefore effective not only for inclusive communication aimed at deaf people, but it can be effective for everyone, both in terms of equity and awareness of diversity and in terms of knowledge of astronomy and its link with culture and tradition.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;We will present a set of videos published on EduINAF, the outreach and education online magazine of the Italian National Isntitute for Astrophysics, in which the LIS is the main medium of the storytelling. Each video has subtitles, in order to make the LIS understandable for all.&lt;/p&gt;


2011 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 138-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Huyghe

This paper deals with the spatial features of event-denoting nouns [EvNs], which are often overlooked in the linguistic literature on space. EvNs can refer to spatial entities, as they can be used as trajectors in localization sentences (Il y a une cérémonie dans l’église ‘There is a ceremony in the church’). Still, EvNs differ in several ways from nouns denoting prototypical spatial entities. They do not combine with complements denoting spatial extension (*une cérémonie de deux hectares ‘a four acres’ ceremony’), and they are associated with specific nouns and verbs of location (le lieu / *la place de la cérémonie ‘the location / the place of the ceremony’, Une cérémonie a lieu / *se trouve dans l’église ‘A ceremony takes place / is in the church’). It is assumed that the peculiarity of the spatial denotation of EvNs is due to their direct relation to time. The dependence between the spatial and temporal properties of EvNs shows when these nouns are used as landmarks (Pierre se rend à la cérémonie ‘Peter goes to the ceremony’). First, spatial eventive landmarks bear a temporal specification. Second, the temporal features of events determine their ability to be used as spatial landmarks.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Morgan L. Gustison ◽  
Thore J. Bergman

Abstract Human speech has many complex spectral and temporal features traditionally thought to be absent in the vocalizations of other primates. Recent explorations of the vocal capabilities of non-human primates are challenging this view. Here, we continue this trend by exploring the spectro-temporal properties of gelada (Theropithecus gelada) vocalizations. First, we made cross-species comparisons of geladas, chacma baboons, and human vowel space area. We found that adult male and female gelada exhaled grunts–a call type shared with baboons—have formant profiles that overlap more with human vowel space than do baboon grunts. These gelada grunts also contained more modulation of fundamental and formant frequencies than did baboon grunts. Second, we compared formant profiles and modulation of exhaled grunts to the derived call types (those not shared with baboons) produced by gelada males. These derived calls contained divergent formant profiles, and a subset of them, notably wobbles and vocalized yawns, were more modulated than grunts. Third, we investigated the rhythmic patterns of wobbles, a call type shown previously to contain cycles that match the 3–8 Hz tempo of speech. We use a larger dataset to show that the wobble rhythm overlaps more with speech rhythm than previously thought. We also found that variation in cycle duration depends on the production modality; specifically, exhaled wobbles were produced at a slower tempo than inhaled wobbles. Moreover, the variability in cycle duration within wobbles aligns with a linguistic property known as ‘Menzerath’s law’ in that there was a negative association between cycle duration and wobble size (i.e. the number of cycles). Taken together, our results add to growing evidence that non-human primates are anatomically capable of producing modulated sounds. Our results also support and expand on current hypotheses of speech evolution, including the ‘neural hypothesis’ and the ‘bimodal speech rhythm hypothesis’.


2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (H15) ◽  
pp. 302-302
Author(s):  
Yasunori Fujii

I start with assuming a gravitational scalar field as the dark-energy supposed to be responsible for the accelerating universe. Also from the point of view of unification, a scalar field implies a time-variability of certain “constants” in Nature. In this context I once derived a relation for the time-variability of the fine-structure constant α: Δα/α =ζ Ƶ(α/π) Δσ, where ζ and Ƶ are the constants of the order one, while σ on the right-hand side is the scalar field in action in the accelerating universe. I use the reduced Planckian units with c=ℏ =MP(=(8π G)−1/2)=1. I then compared the dynamics of the accelerating universe, on one hand, and Δα/α derived from the analyses of QSO absorption lines, Oklo phenomenon, also different atomic clocks in the laboratories, on the other hand. I am here going to discuss the theoretical background of the relation, based on the scalar-tensor theory invented first by Jordan in 1955.


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