A sociolinguistic consideration of free and open source software teams as virtual communities of practice

A sociolinguistic exploration of free and open source software (FOSS) development teams as virtual communities of practice will offer further conclusions about the identity of these groups and their relevance to linguistic inquiry. Making use of the "third wave" notion of style laid out by Eckert (2012), it is revealed how a FOSS community may make use of certain language norms to cement their identity both against their opponent of proprietary software groups and within the larger spheres of the Internet.

Review of scribal education in ancient Israel: The Old Hebrew epigraphic evidence by Christopher Rollston

In this illustrative and thorough article, Christopher Rollston argues for the existence of, in R’s words, “a formal, standardized scribal education” in Ancient Israel (47). R bases his argument on a systematic analysis of the epigraphic evidence of Old Hebrew (i.e. Iron Age II Hebrew, ca. 1000-550 ce) and offers the following as his supporting arguments: (i) In terms of the ductus, the stance, and the relative spatial relationship of graphs, the Old Hebrew (OH) script: (a) displays synchronic consistency, (b) demonstrates discernable, diachronic development, and (c) differs markedly from those of nearby polities (Phoenicia, Arameans); (ii) In terms of orthography, the OH script exhibits synchronic (and arguably regional) consistency with distinctive features that were in opposition with the features of the Phoenician and Aramaic national scripts; and (iii) In terms of content, hieratic numerals (which derive from a complex number system originally borrowed from Egypt) were inscribed on many OH documents, suggesting that an administrative or governing body routinized their usage (and practical dissemination) throughout Iron Age Israel

Language of Ignorance

The purpose of this study was to determine whether commonly-used slang at Boston College is pejorative to women. Research was gathered through the use of an online survey given to thirteen English-speaking Boston College undergraduate students. Other sources were used as well, in order to find the origins and historical context of the most popular slang terms that came up in the data. The survey asked students to list eight offensive slang terms and then use them to answer a series of questions. By giving example sentences, potential environments for usage, and possible positive uses of pejorative terms, participants were able to flesh out their understandings of these terms before then being asked to group their words into the categories "masculine," "feminine," or "neutral." The results of the survey proved that there is an extreme bias against women in everyday slang, and while there are some slang terms that refer mostly to men, these terms are never considered as harmful as those which describe women.

Polyglotism and Identity in Modern-Day Lebanon

Lebanon is a polyglot country, where Western languages such as English or French, or more traditional/oriental languages such as Classical Arabic, have much societal and political power. Although all Lebanese speak Levantine Arabic (Shaami), many of them master multiple languages and can decide to strongly identify with a select few not only for the love of the language, but mostly for the message each language brings with it: is Lebanon a cosmopolitan Westernized country that differentiates itself from the Arab world? Or should Lebanon look towards its Oriental roots and celebrate its Muslim-Arabic heritage? This paper seeks to prove that, in Lebanon, the implicit or explicit choice of language is a tool to convey one’s political, religious, and cultural views. This created a strong divide between Eastern and Western oriented Lebanese in the 20th century and is one of the main causes for the political turmoil in modern Lebanon.

A Squirt of Ketchup and a Dollop of Remoulade

This research article explores the linguistics of restaurant service for variously priced restaurants in the Boston area.

Coffee's Dark Secrets: Linguistic Variation in Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts

This paper explores the linguistic implications of language in coffee shops, focusing on Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts stores located around Boston College. I interviewed baristas, recorded menus, tallied the greetings used by baristas, thereby focusing on coffee-related jargon as well as the language used towards entering customers. My research demonstrated a difference in practice in the two chains, with Starbucks utilizing a self-invented code of coffee-specific jargon, something Dunkin Donuts avoided. Dunkin Donuts baristas also showed a preference for simple, single-word greetings, whereas Starbucks tended towards questions regarding the customer’s specific order, shifting focus onto the drink itself. Baristas at Starbucks used elaborate, detailed phrases to describe their coffee; contrastingly, Dunkin Donuts employees politely but very briefly answered my questions. In conclusion, Starbucks-lexicon markets itself as differentiated from the majority of coffee shops, whereas Dunkin Donuts seeks a solidarity-based approach, implying a different audience. Future research could compare other chains of coffee shops, determining whether Starbucks is alone in its brand-specific lexicon or if other coffee shops have adopted its use as well.

The Rhode Island Dialect: An Investigation of Language Change in New England

This is an investigation into the shifting dialect boundaries of New England, wherein I investigated the speech use and speech perceptions of native Rhode Islanders to see if, like the surrounding dialects, the Rhode Island dialect is diminishing over time.

The Means to an End: Phonology's Prominence in a Reading Task

For decades, psycholinguists have engaged in a debate over the steps involved in the reading process. Do readers find meaning in texts through a phonological route or a lexical route? This paper, which takes into account two previous studies, investigates the influence of phonology and lexical spelling by analyzing the results of a reading judgment task.

Two Linguistic Case Studies of the Craft of Songwriting: 'Imagine' and 'Like a Rolling Stone'

The songs “Imagine” and “Like a Rolling Stone”, written by John Lennon and Bob Dylan respectively, demonstrate the musicians' acute awareness of the expressive force which saturates particular grammatical constructions, lexemes, tense/aspect combinations, and other linguistic phenomena. Lennon and Dylan brandish their linguistic savvy by connecting with their audiences, albeit in fundamentally different ways. This paper seeks to highlight some commonalities and differences between how two of the most famous singer/songwriters of the late 60s and early 70s both connected with and manipulated their listenership. Furthermore, it seeks to demonstrate how a close linguistic analysis contributes to the general understanding of the momentous socio-cultural responses these songs elicited in popular culture. The methodology involves a close investigation of linguistic forms, including line-by-line analyses and comparisons between the two writers.

History of the English Word Melancholy

Melancholy, a very dynamic word, has in fact grown more abstract with time to the point where now, many may find it hard to separate from depression or sadness. While melancholy is of course very related to depression, its meaning nowadays can mean anything from somberly introspective to nostalgic. Different from the modern day use of depression to describe the psychological illness, melancholy in both its early days and now is often used to denote a specific personality characteristic of someone, but to see how this came about, it is important to look at the word's earliest beginning in ancient Greek.