Reconciling underspecification with the overlapping decomposition

Natural language grammar contains pockets of linear morphological contiguity, in which formal identity between non-contiguous categories is either unattested or extremely rare. Also called *ABA domains, the analysis of these etiologically heterogeneous patterns has been a fruitful site of cross-theoretic discourse. Following Caha (2017), surface *ABA distributions may be classified as resulting from one of at least two morphosyntactic decompositions: cumulating and overlapping. The cumulating decomposition characterizes Bobaljik's (2012) comparative suppletion, and describes domains in which the final category of an *ABA domain is the most featurally or representationally complex. In contrast, the overlapping decomposition describes domains in which the medial category is the most complex, which Caha further argues is poorly handled by realizational architectures that assume underspecification. This study reconciles underspecification with the overlapping distribution by means of a requirement of contextual contiguity, in which a Vocabulary entry can only realize a complex feature bundle [X, Y] if and only if there exists another entry that realizes either of the simplex features [X] or [Y].

Functional Categories: Complementizers and Adpositions

The standard observation is that complementizers corresponding to English that involve the illocutionary force of the clause, but the situation is not that simple, as factivity and modality may come into play, too. Complementizers are cross-linguistically systematically morpho-phonologically identical to other categories like nouns, verbs, and adpositions (that is, prepositions and post-positions). Recently there have been attempts to account for the formal identity of complementizers with other categories by decomposing the complementizer morpheme into smaller pieces. New ways of thinking about function words like complementizers and (some) prepositions involve digging into their internal structure(s) through determining the presence or absence of structural homogeneity within and across languages or by taking a nanosyntactic approach to cross-category syncretism.

Aristotle's Formal Identity of Intellect and Object: A Solution to the Problem of Modal Epistemology

In De Anima Book III, Aristotle subscribed to a theory of formal identity between the human mind and the extra-mental objects of our understanding. This has been one of the most controversial features of Aristotelian metaphysics of the mind. I offer here a defense of the Formal Identity Thesis, based on specifically epistemological arguments about our knowledge of necessary or essential truths.

Ellipsis in Transformational Grammar

This chapter examines three themes concerning ellipsis that have been extensively discussed in transformational generative grammar: structure, recoverability, and licensing. It reviews arguments in favor of the analysis according to which the ellipsis site is syntactically fully represented, and compares the two variants of this analysis (the deletion analysis and the LF-copying analysis). It is concluded that the deletion analysis is superior to the LF-copying analysis. A discussion of recoverability follows, which concludes that in order for elided material to be recoverable, a semantic identity condition must be satisfied, but that is not a sufficient condition: syntactic or formal identity must be taken into account. The chapter finally considers licensing. It reviews some proposals in the literature about what properties of licensing heads and what local relation between the ellipsis site and the licensing head are relevant to ellipsis licensing.

The double function of the interpretant in Peirce’s theory of signs

There seem to be two distinct aspects to the role played by the Interpretant in Peirce’s account of the sign relation. On the one hand, the Interpretant is said to establish the relation between the Sign and Object. That is, the Sign can “stand for” its Object, and thereby actually function as a Sign, only by virtue of its being interpreted as such by an Interpretant. On the other hand, the Interpretant is said to be “determined” by the Sign in such a way that it is thereby mediately determined by the Sign’s Object. How can we understand the relation between these two aspects of the Interpretant? This is the question with which this paper is concerned. I begin by drawing a distinction between what I call the first-order function and second-order function of the Interpretant, and illustrating this distinction using Peirce’s example of comparing the letters p and b in § 9 of the 1867 “On a New List of Categories.” I then show that this same distinction can be discerned in a significant passage in the second section of Peirce’s 1903 “A Syllabus of Certain Topics of Logic,” as well as in his early definition of the Interpretant in the “New List.” This double function of the Interpretant has been noted in the Peircean literature, specifically by Joseph Ransdell in his 1966 dissertation, and more recently by André De Tienne. However, an important aspect of what I call the second-order function of the Interpretant remains unclarified in Ransdell and De Tienne’s approaches, namely, its relation to the logical operation of hypostatic abstraction. I will show that the Interpretant, in its second-order function, plays a role formally identical in the sign process to the role played by hypostatic abstraction in Peirce’s demonstrations of the Reduction Thesis. This formal identity will afford us with a way of understanding the relation between the two aspects of the Interpretant in terms of hypostatic abstraction.

Brito, Radulphus (c.1270–c.1320)

Radulphus Brito was a prominent master of arts at the University of Paris around 1300. In order to secure the foundation of concepts in extramental reality, he devised a system of four types of ‘intentions’, first and second, abstract and concrete. As a philosopher of language, similar concerns made him claim a formal identity between the modes of signifying (of words) and the modes of being signified (of things).

The origin of the Semitic relative marker

All Semitic languages use a relative marker as at least one strategy of relativization, and all branches show reflexes or relics of reflexes of an interdental relative marker. The wide consensus that the relative pronoun was originally identical to the proximal demonstrative is based on the formal identity between the bases of the two in West Semitic, and on the wide attestation of the process Demonstrative > Relative in world languages. In this paper, we will show that there are a number of significant problems with the reconstruction of the relative pronoun, which, when taken together, make tracing its origin to the demonstrative highly unlikely. Instead we will argue that the opposite is true: the demonstrative in West Semitic is a secondary formation on the basis of the relative marker.

A INFLUÊNCIA DA MUDANÇA NA CULTURA E NO CLIMA ORGANIZACIONAL: O CASO DO INSTITUTO FEDERAL DA PARAÍBA (IFPB), CAMPUS SOUSA

Este trabalho trata da mudança implantada pela Lei nº 11.892/2008 que integrou as Escolas Técnicas, Agrotécnicas e Centros Federais de Educação para a formação dos Institutos Federais de Educação no Brasil. Na Paraíba, a Escola Agrotécnica Federal de Sousa passou a ser o Instituto Federal da Paraíba (IFPB), Campus Sousa foi objeto desta pesquisa. O objetivo foi analisar a influência da mudança sobre a cultura e o clima organizacional do IFPB, Campus. A metodologia utilizada foi o estudo de caso e a estratégia qualitativa com utilização da entrevista e do questionário. Portanto, a mudança influenciou na cultura organizacional e no clima organizacional, modificando crenças, rituais, valores e que, apesar de estar em um estágio avançado, a organização ainda não tem uma identidade real definida, necessitando que haja um processo mais efetivo de socialização da identidade formal para que isto ocorra.AbstractThis work deals with the change implemented by Law 11,892 / 2008 that integrated the Technical Schools, Agrotechnics and Federal Centers of Education for the formation of the Federal Institutes of Education in Brazil. In Paraíba, the Federal Agro-technical School of Sousa became the Federal Institute of Paraíba (IFPB), Campus Sousa was the object of this research. The objective was to analyze the influence of the change on the culture and the organizational climate of the IFPB, Campus. The methodology used was the case study and the qualitative strategy using the interview and the questionnaire. Therefore, the change has influenced the organizational culture and the organizational climate, modifying beliefs, rituals, values and that, despite being at an advanced stage, the organization does not yet have a definite real identity, necessitating a more effective process of socialization of the organization. Formal identity for this to occur.

Motivações semânticas e pragmáticas na mudança gramatical

<p>O objetivo deste artigo é demonstrar a influência de fatores semânticos e pragmáticos sobre processos de mudança linguística. O estudo focaliza as orações completivas do português, particularmente a oração introduzida pela conjunção <em>se</em>, forma homônima à conjunção que introduz a oração adverbial condicional. Ao rastrear a origem dessa oração completiva do português, a pesquisa busca explicar as razões da identidade formal entre as duas conjunções observada não só em português, mas na maioria das línguas românicas. Com base em registros de filólogos e romanistas, o estudo revela que a similaridade entre as conjunções se explica pela etimologia da conjunção integrante <em>se</em>, advinda da conjunção latina <em>si </em>que substituiu as partículas interrogativas do latim. Conforme se defende no texto, essa substituição teria sido possível graças a propriedades semânticas e pragmáticas compartilhadas por interrogativas e condicionais. Esses significados e funções comuns entre as duas orações mostram, portanto, que a homonímia entre as formas de condicional e de interrogativa indireta nas línguas românicas não é fortuita. A origem em uma oração condicional, que tem significado basicamente hipotético, explica também por que a completiva introduzida por <em>se </em>do português não se gramaticaliza do mesmo modo que uma completiva introduzida por <em>que</em>. De modo mais amplo, as análises demonstram que fatores de ordem semântica e pragmática podem determinar a trajetória de mudança em que se envolve uma forma linguística. Como conclusão, o estudo enfatiza a importância de se considerarem aspectos semânticos e pragmáticos, paralelamente a aspectos formais, nas pesquisas sobre mudança linguística.</p><p>This paper aims to demonstrate the influence of semantic and pragmatic factors on linguistic change processes. The study focuses on complement clauses in the Portuguese language, particularly the one introduced by the conjunction <em>se </em>(if/whether), which is the homonym of the conjunction that introduces the conditional clause. By tracking the origin of this complement clause in Portuguese, the research seeks to explain the reasons for formal identity between the two conjunctions <em>se </em>observed not only in Portuguese, but also in most Romance languages. Based on statements of philologists and Romanists, this study reveals that the similarity between conjunctions is explained by the etymology of the complementizer <em>se</em>, arising from the Latin conjunction <em>si </em>that replaced the interrogative particles in Latin. As it is argued in the text, this replacement would have been made possible by semantic and pragmatic properties shared by interrogative and conditional clauses. Therefore, these meanings and common features between the two clauses show that the homonym between forms of conditionals and indirect questions in Romance languages is not fortuitous. The origin of a conditional clause, whose meaning is basically a hypothesis, also explains why the completive clause introduced by <em>se </em>in Portuguese is not grammaticalized in the same way as a completive clause introduced by <em>que </em>(that). More broadly, the analyses demonstrate that semantic and pragmatic factors can determine a specific trajectory of change to a linguistic form. In conclusion, this study emphasizes the importance of considering semantic and pragmatic aspects, parallel to formal aspects, in researches on language change.</p>