scholarly journals The Middle Construction in Minimalist Syntax: English and Slovenian

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 45-61
Author(s):  
Jakob Lenardič

The paper discusses the argument structure of the English middle construction and its Slovenian equivalent from the perspective of minimalist syntax. The paper first introduces Bruening’s (2012) recent approach to syntactic middle formation, which posits that middle sentences are derived via an operator that existentially quantifies over the open agent variable introduced by an active Voice projection. Subsequently, the paper argues that the adverbial modifier in the middle construction is not a semantic argument of the null operator, contra Bruening (2012). Finally, the paper proposes that the reflexive morpheme se in the related Slovenian se-sentences plays a role of valency reduction similar to that of the null English operator.

Author(s):  
Diane Massam

This book presents a detailed descriptive and theoretical examination of predicate-argument structure in Niuean, a Polynesian language within the Oceanic branch of the Austronesian family, spoken mainly on the Pacific island of Niue and in New Zealand. Niuean has VSO word order and an ergative case-marking system, both of which raise questions for a subject-predicate view of sentence structure. Working within a broadly Minimalist framework, this volume develops an analysis in which syntactic arguments are not merged locally to their thematic sources, but instead are merged high, above an inverted extended predicate which serves syntactically as the Niuean verb, later undergoing movement into the left periphery of the clause. The thematically lowest argument merges as an absolutive inner subject, with higher arguments merging as applicatives. The proposal relates Niuean word order and ergativity to its isolating morphology, by equating the absence of inflection with the absence of IP in Niuean, which impacts many aspects of its grammar. As well as developing a novel analysis of clause and argument structure, word order, ergative case, and theta role assignment, the volume argues for an expanded understanding of subjecthood. Throughout the volume, many other topics are also treated, such as noun incorporation, word formation, the parallel internal structure of predicates and arguments, null arguments, displacement typology, the role of determiners, and the structure of the left periphery.


2005 ◽  
Vol 14 (03n04) ◽  
pp. 667-676 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. D. MAHARAJ ◽  
M. GOVENDER

In a recent approach in modeling a radiating relativistic star undergoing gravitational collapse the role of the Weyl stresses was emphasized. It is possible to generate a model which is physically reasonable by approximately solving the junction conditions at the boundary of the star. In this paper we demonstrate that it is possible to solve the Einstein field equations and the junction conditions exactly. This exact solution contains the Friedmann dust solution as a limiting case. We briefly consider the radiative transfer within the framework of extended irreversible thermodynamics and show that relaxational effects significantly alter the temperature profiles.


2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 37
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Senay ◽  
Muhammet Usak ◽  
Zeynep Ceren Acarturk

Talking about eating in the passive, as opposed to the active voice, (e.g., The cake will be eaten vs. I will eat the cake) can lead people to see the act of eating to be triggered by the food to a greater extent, leading to the continuation of past eating habits. Depending on whether or not the past habits are healthy, the motivation for healthy eating may change as a result. In study 1, writing passive sentences increased the motivation for healthy eating to the extent that people reported eating healthy in the past. Moreover, in study 2 across 127 languages spoken in 94 countries, when the acted-upons of actions (e.g., the food in the act of eating) became relatively more salient in a language, people became more likely to act on cultural habits that may be relatively healthier, decreasing unhealthy eating. The results are important for understanding the perceived role of food in starting eating as it impacts healthy eating across cultures.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-74
Author(s):  
Alison Biggs ◽  
David Embick

An important ongoing discussion in theories of argument structure concerns the explanatory division of labor between thematic properties and event structure. In this context, the English get-passive provides an interesting test case. Much previous work has analyzed get-passives as differing thematically from be-passives. Yet many get-passive properties remain poorly understood. We present an analysis of the get-passive centered on the proposal that it contains additional event structure (realized as get) relative to its be counterpart. We employ by-adjuncts to identify the event structures in passive types, and demonstrate that the behavior of this and other diagnostics support the conclusion that get- and be-passives differ systematically in ways that accord with our analysis. Further discussion considers the prominent proposal from previous studies that get-passives differ thematically from be-passives in (sometimes) assigning an Agent role to their surface subjects. We show that there is no evidence for such an analysis. Instead, intuitions about the interpretation of the get-passive surface subject arise from how an event’s Responsible Party is identified: contrasts between get and be on this dimension are a consequence of event structural differences between the two. The overall result is a unified analysis of the get-passive, one that has implications for the role of event structure in understanding the syntax and interpretation of arguments.


2001 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 127-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANNA L. THEAKSTON ◽  
ELENA V. M. LIEVEN ◽  
JULIAN M. PINE ◽  
CAROLINE F. ROWLAND

2010 ◽  
Vol 93-94 ◽  
pp. 479-484
Author(s):  
J. Mahadlek ◽  
J. Charoenteeraboon ◽  
Supab Choopun ◽  
Thawatchai Phaechamud

Periodontal disease is a major cause of tooth loss, therefore a more recent approach such as thermosensitive gel is loaded with antimicrobial drugs to be delivered locally to the periodontal pocket. The effect of ZnO on thermosensitive gel properties including gelation-gel melting temperature, rheology, syringeability, and the release behavior of antimicrobial drug such as doxycycline hyclate were investigated. The increased amount of ZnO apparently decreased the gelation temperature of the Lutrol® F127 system. Syringeability of the doxycycline hyclate-Lutrol® F127 systems were increased with the increased amount of ZnO. System comprising zinc oxide could prolong the release of doxycycline hyclate from Lutrol F127 systems and could be delivered from a syringe through a needle for utilizing in periodontitis therapy at the periodontal pocket.


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