Coping with syntactic complexity in English–Chinese sight translation by translation and interpreting students.

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 192-213
Author(s):  
Xingcheng Ma
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Contextual Information ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Syntactic Complexity ◽  
Reading Span ◽  
Discourse Context ◽  
Reading Task ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Initial Stage

Abstract This study approaches syntactic complexity from a relative point of view and examines how translation and interpreting students cope with relative clauses and passive constructions, two exemplifications of syntactic complexity in English–Chinese sight translation. A group of students (N = 23) took part in the study. The study consisted of three parts: an English reading span test, a sight translation task, and a baseline reading task. During the sight translation task, the participants sight translated English sentences with different degrees of structural asymmetry into Chinese in the single sentence context and the discourse context. During the baseline reading task, they silently read the English sentences and answered the comprehension questions. The participants' eye movements in the sight translation and baseline reading tasks were recorded as indicators of cognitive load. Three major findings were generated: (1) Syntactic complexity resulted in a significant increase in cognitive load during the sight translation task. The syntactic aspects of the target language were activated during the initial stage of comprehension, which favoured the parallel view of translation. (2) Although sight translation became more time efficient due to wider contexts, a larger amount of contextual information did not make word-based processing less effortful, as indicated by more fixations and the longer regression path duration in the discourse context. (3) No correlations were found between reading span and cognitive load in addressing syntactical complexity.

scholarly journals A Cross-Linguistic Study of L3 Phonological Acquisition of Stop Contrasts

SAGE Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 215824402098551
Author(s):  
Jiaqi Liu ◽  
Jiayan Lin
Keyword(s):  
First Language ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Phonological Acquisition ◽  
Acoustic Feature ◽  
L2 Reading ◽  
Reading Task ◽  
Third Language ◽  
Phonetic Similarity ◽  
L3 Acquisition ◽  
Initial Stage

The research reported in this article investigated how students learning Japanese or Russian as a third language (L3) perceived and produced word-initial stops in their respective target language and the link between perception and production. The participants in the study were 39 Chinese university students who spoke Mandarin Chinese as their first language (L1), English as their second language (L2), and Japanese or Russian as their L3. An L3 identification task, an L3 reading task, and an L2 reading task were used to investigate the learners’ perception and production of word-initial stops. The results demonstrated that the phonetic similarity in different stop categories between L1, L2, and L3 contributed to learners’ confusion in perception. On the contrary, L3 learners could perceive the new acoustic feature voicing lead, but found it difficult to produce L3 voiced stops. In addition, the study found a positive relationship between the perception and production of voiceless stops in the initial stage of L3 acquisition, but there was no correlation between the perception and production of voiced stops. Pedagogical implications for L3 speech learning are discussed on the basis of the results.

A cognitive investigation of ‘chunking’ and ‘reordering’ for coping with word-order asymmetry in English-to-Chinese sight translation

Interpreting ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xingcheng Ma ◽  
Dechao Li
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Eye Movement ◽  
Word Order ◽  
Cognitive Process ◽  
Contextual Information ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Cognitive Mechanism ◽  
Target Production ◽  
New Perspective ◽  
Task Conditions

Abstract Word-order asymmetry between source language and target language has been recognized as a major obstacle in interpreting. Regarding whether the original word order is changed in target production, two strategies for asymmetrical structures are identified: chunking and reordering. This study primarily examined the cognitive mechanism involved in applying these two strategies during English to Chinese sight translation. The cognitive load associated with chunking and reordering was measured by eye movement and the resulting data were analysed. A group of interpreting trainees sight-translated asymmetrical sentences in two contexts: sentence and text. Their eye-movement measures, including total dwell time, fixation count and rereading rate, were recorded. The results demonstrate that chunking was the primary strategy used to render word-order asymmetry in both task conditions. A greater cognitive load was found in the reordered sentences. More contextual information did not contribute to an execution of the strategies that required less effort. This research is one of the first attempts to explore the cognitive process associated with interpreting strategies for word-order asymmetry. It provides a new perspective with which to deepen our understanding of the cognitive mechanism underlying the use of a strategy.

Translating iconicities of classical Chinese poetry

Semiotica ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 (224) ◽  
pp. 19-44
Author(s):  
Guangxu Zhao ◽  
Luise von Flotow
Keyword(s):  
Ezra Pound ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Chinese Characters ◽  
Chinese Poetry ◽  
Princeton University ◽  
Amy Lowell ◽  
Classical Chinese ◽  
Classical Chinese Poetry ◽  
History Of

Abstract In the history of translating classical Chinese poetry, there are two kinds of translators. The first kind translate classical Chinese poetry “by way of intellectual, directional devices” (Yip, Wai-lim. 1969. Ezra Pound’s Cathay. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press: 16). What these translators are concerned with most is the coherence of their translations. They give little attention to the ideogrammic nature of Chinese characters. I call them traditional translators. These translators include those in the history of translating classical Chinese poetry from its beginning to the first decade of the twentieth century, although there are still some who translate classical Chinese poetry in this way later. The second kind of translator is highly interested in the images created by ideogrammic Chinese characters and tries to convey them in target language. We call them modernist translators. These translators are represented by some American modernist poets such as Ezra Pound, Amy Lowell, Florence Ayscough, etc. From the point of view of iconicity, modernist translators’ contribution lies in their concern with the iconic characteristics of Chinese characters. But they did not give enough attention to syntactical iconicity and textual iconicity in classical Chinese poetry.

Children's judgements of the functional acceptability of referential communications in discourse contexts

1983 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian P. Ackerman
Keyword(s):  
Short Stories ◽  
Young Children ◽  
Contextual Information ◽  
Discourse Context ◽  
Contextual Influence

ABSTRACTThis study determined whether young children are sensitive to the contextual influence of previous discourse on judgements of the adequacy of referential communications. Four- and six-year-old children were read short stories containing terminal referential communications that were either ambiguous or informative relative to a perceptual display of candidate-referential objects. Contextual information was given in the story prior to the terminal communication that was irrelevant to the ambiguous communications or that made these communications functionally informative. The subjects were required to say whether the listener in the story could identify one unique referent. The results showed that the judgements of both groups of children were sensitive to the discourse context of the communications. The children discriminated between the functionally informative and ambiguous communications.

TRANSLATION OF PROPER NAMES FROM KAZAKH INTO ENGLISH (IN THE CASE OF TURKISTAN BY M. JUMABAYEV): LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL ASPECTS

2021 ◽  
pp. 129-138
Author(s):  
G. Mehmet ◽  
◽  
А.E. Alpysbayeva ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Proper Names ◽  
Translation Studies ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Research Development ◽  
Cultural Aspects ◽  
Scientific Substantiation

The article is the first to consider the translation of proper names used in M. Zhumabaev's poem Turkestan from Kazakh into English from the point of view of the principles of forenization and domestication. This famous work of the poet, which describes the whole essence of the Turkic peoples, is saturated with historical and culturally distinct anthroponyms and toponyms. The analytical part examines the question of how this information was reflected in the target language, how much the calorie was adopted or preserved. In general, the translation of proper names from Kazakh into English is one of the branches of domestic translation studies that needs scientific substantiation and research development.

Implementing Business Intelligence in Electricity Markets

2010 ◽  
pp. 283-295
Author(s):  
José Ramón Cancelo ◽  
Antoni Espasa
Keyword(s):  
Electricity Markets ◽  
Business Intelligence ◽  
Explicit Knowledge ◽  
Time Series Data ◽  
Contextual Information ◽  
Electricity Consumption ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Series Data ◽  
Basic Ideas ◽  
Set Up

The authors elaborate on three basic ideas that should guide the implementation of business intelligence tools. First, the authors advocate for closing the gap between structured information and contextual information. Second, they emphasize the need for adopting the point of view of the organization to assess the relevance of any proposal. In the third place, they remark that any new tool is expected to become a relevant instrument to enhance the learning of the organization and to generate explicit knowledge. To illustrate their point, they discuss how to set up a forecasting support system to predict electricity consumption that converts raw time series data into market intelligence, to meet the needs of a major organization operating at the Spanish electricity markets.

Context-Aware Identity Management in Pervasive Ad-hoc Environments

2009 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 29-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdullahi Arabo ◽  
Qi Shi ◽  
Madjid Merabti
Keyword(s):  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Identity Management ◽  
Emergency Services ◽  
Contextual Information ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Context Aware ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Proximity Services ◽  
Hoc Networks

Contextual information and Identity Management (IM) is of paramount importance in the growing use of portable mobile devices for sharing information and communication between emergency services in pervasive ad-hoc environments. Mobile Ad-hoc Networks (MANets) play a vital role within such a context. The concept of ubiquitous/pervasive computing is intrinsically tied to wireless communications. Apart from many remote services, proximity services (context-awareness) are also widely available, and people rely on numerous identities to access these services. The inconvenience of these identities creates significant security vulnerability as well as user discomfort, especially from the network and device point of view in MANet environments. In this article, the authors address how contextual information is represented to facilitate IM and present a User-centered and Context-aware Identity Management (UCIM) framework for MANets.

scholarly journals Do not give up! The importance of mistakes in the process of teaching and learning foreign languages

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 244
Author(s):  
Eduardo Dias da Silva ◽  
Romar Souza-Dias ◽  
Juscelino Francisco do Nascimento
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Foreign Languages ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Learning Programs

This paper aims to highlight the importance of errors and mistakes as an essential part in the process of teaching and learning foreign languages (FL). We understand that, while trying to produce meanings in the foreign language, learners, through some errors and mistakes, can develop the mental structures necessary for the consolidation of the target language. In this way, mistakes can e a strong tool indicator for teachers to assess and also to understand how far learners are in relation to the intended knowledge, according to objectives outlined in learning programs. The theoretical approach that orients our way of thinking is based on the point of view of some theorists, such as: Brito (2014); Corder (1967; 1985), Cavalari (2008); Richards and Rodgers (2004); Silva (2014); Simões (2007), among others. The results have demonstrated that the teacher, as a mediator of knowledge, must have a balanced attitude towards the students’ learning needs in order to help the learners to reach their best in the learning process. So, with this study, we expect that, in Teacher Education, mistakes could not be seen as something negative, but positive and necessary for the development of the student’s communicative competence.

scholarly journals Do Oral and Literacy Skills in Native Ghanaian Akan Language Modulate English Reading Comprehension as Second Language? A Study in Selected Basic Schools in Ghana

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Stephen Ntim
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Target Language ◽  
School Students ◽  
English Only ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
English Reading Comprehension ◽  
The Impact

<p>This study investigated oral and literacy skills in native Ghanaian Akan language in mediating English reading comprehension of bilingual basic school students. Levene’s test for homogeneity of variance between groups on questions directly found in text showed variances were significantly different [F=49.070, p=0.00]. Bonferroni Post-hoc test comparing groups on questions requiring making multiple sentence meanings to be able to answer, data indicated a significant difference between mean scores of students who speak both English and Akan and students who speak English Only in favour of students who speak both English and Akan. Also, students who speak Akan Only performed significantly better than students who speak English Only with.no significant difference between mean scores of students who speak Akan Only and students who speak both English and Akan. This suggests the impact of native language in second language reading comprehension is enormous. When bilinguals are reading second language (and in this study English) they are likely to make use of previous knowledge, strategies and processes from the first language through cognitive/psycholinguistic factors as orthographic processing, phonological code and meaning activation among others and by so doing limiting the effect of cognitive load in the target language.</p>

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