181 research outputs found
From technical to teachable: Phonetics and phonology
No full textAs linguists, we value our jargon and training since they allow us to make precise, explicit characterizations of linguistic phenomena. However, it is easy to recognize that this same jargon prevents non-linguists, community members and teachers in particular, from engaging with the literature in a useful way (see, e.g. Penfield & Tucker 2011). Based on workshops given at the Oklahoma Breath of Life (Author 2014) and the Annual Symposium on the American Indian (Author 2012), I discuss specific activities that can be used in the classroom/workshop to make linguistic knowledge from the highly technical sub-fields of phonetics and phonology more accessible to language teachers and language users.
This paper consists of three parts. First, since highlighting L1-L2 similarities can have a positive effect on L2 comprehension and production (Ringbom 1987, 1992, 2007), I provide a list of IPA sounds that can be illustrated in terms of English phonemes and allophones (which could be extended straightforwardly to other languages). For example, English does not have a palatal stop phoneme /c/, but [c] appears as an allophone at the beginning of words like key (Ladefoged & Johnson 2010), and having participants contrast that with the sound at the beginning of car can help them distinguish [c] from [k].
Second, I provide a technique for motivating language teachers, students, and language users to ‘buy in’ to the need for learning at least some phonetics jargon. The thumbnail version of the exercise is: give an explanation for a sound like [p] and then ask participants to describe a number of other sounds such as [t, k, b, g, m, n…]. Having participants think about how to describe a sound helps them see the value of some jargon – for example, agreeing on precise labels for different parts of the vocal tract.
Third, I provide an illustration for how to discuss and explain the phoneme vs. allophone distinction in phonology without ever using the terms phoneme or allophone. The guiding principle is that these concepts can be made accessible to non-specialists when recast in more common but less precise terms and illustrated repeatedly with concrete examples from languages they know or study.
In sum, by actively de-jargoning linguistic material and giving up a small amount of precision and technical detail, linguistic knowledge can be made much more usable in language learning environments, and this, in turn, can result in higher quality language instruction in the community.
REFERENCES
Author. 2014. Phonetics II: More Sounds and how to read them. Presented at the 2014 Breath of Life Workshop and Documentation Project. Sam Noble Museum, Norman, Oklahoma. May 18-23rd.
Author. 2012. Teaching the unique sounds of your language. Presented at the 40th Annual Symposium on the American Indian. Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, OK. April 9-14th.
Ladefoged, P. & K. Johnson. 2010. A Course in Phonetics, 6th edition. Boston: Thomson Wadsworth.
Penfield, S.D. & Tucker, B.V. 2011. From Documenting to Revitalizing an Endangered Language: Where do Applied Linguists Fit? Language and Education, 25: 291-305.
Ringbom, H. 1987. The role of the first language in foreign language learning. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Ringbom, H. 1992. On L1 transfer in L2 comprehension and L2 production. Language Learning 42: 85-112.
Ringbom, H. 2007. Cross-linguistic similarity in foreign language learning. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters
Crop visitation by wild bees declines over an 8‐year time series: A dramatic trend, or just dramatic between‐year variation?
No full textDespite widespread recognition of the need for long-term monitoring of pollinator abundances and pollination service provision, such studies are exceedingly rare.
In this study, we assess changes in bee visitation and net capture rates at watermelon crop flowers at 19 farms in the mid-Atlantic region of the USA from 2005 to 201
Over the eight years, we found a 58% decline in wild bee visitation to crop flowers, but no significant change in honeybee visitation rate. Most types of wild bees showed similar declines in both the visitation and the net capture data; bumblebees however declined by 56% in the visitation data but showed no change in net capture rates.
While we detected large and significant declines in wild bees when using GLMM models, permutation analyses that account for non-directional variation in abundance were non-significant, demonstrating the challenge of identifying and describing trends in highly variable populations.
As far as we are aware, this paper represents one of fewer than 10 published time series (defined as >5 years of data) studies of changes in bee abundance, and one of only two such studies conducted in an agricultural setting. More such studies are needed in order to understand the magnitude of bee decline and its ramifications for crop pollination.Please do not hesitate to contact the corresponding author on this paper with questions about the data and usage: Andrew Aldercotte - [email protected] provided by: National Institute of Food and AgricultureCrossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100005825Award Number: 2009‐ 65104‐0578
Measuring Dutch Metropolitan Mobility Performance: The Design of a Sustainable Mobility Tool
No full textSystems Engineering, Policy Analysis and Management (SEPAM
Prevalence and characteristics of overweight and obesity in indigenous Australian children: a systematic review
No full textAccepted author version posted online: 17 Jun 2015Evidence-based profiling of obesity and overweight in Indigenous Australian children has been poor. This study systematically reviewed evidence of the prevalence and patterns of obesity/overweight, with respect to gender, age, remoteness and birth weight, in Indigenous Australian children, 0-18 years (PROSPERO CRD42014007626). Study quality and risk of bias were assessed. 25 publications (21 studies) met inclusion criteria, with large variations in prevalence for obesity or overweight (11% to 54%) reported. A high degree of heterogeneity in study design was observed, few studies (6/21) were representative of the target population, and few appropriately recruited Indigenous children (8/21). Variability in study design, conduct and small sample sizes mean that it is not possible to derive a single estimate for prevalence although two highquality studies indicate at least one in four Indigenous Australian children are overweight or obese. Four of six studies reporting on gender, found overweight/obesity higher in girls and eight studies reporting on overweight/obesity by age suggest prevalence increases with age with one high quality large national study reporting total overweight/obesity as 22.4% of children aged 2-4 years, 27.5% of those aged 5-9, 38.5% aged 10-14 and 36.3% aged 15-17. Three of four studies, reporting obesity/overweight by region, found lower rates for children living in more remote areas than urban areas.Suzanne Marie Dyer, Judith Streak Gomersall, Lisa Gaye Smithers, Carol Davy, Dylan T Coleman, Jackie Mary Stree
An Alpha-based Prescreening Methodology for a Common but Unknown Source Likelihood Ratio with Different Subpopulation Structures
No full textPrescreening is a commonly used methodology in which the forensic examiner includes sources from the background population that meet a certain degree of similarity to the given piece of evidence. The goal of prescreening is to find the sources closest to the given piece of evidence in an alternative source population for further analysis. This paper discusses the behavior of an based prescreening methodology in the form of a Hotelling test on the background population for a common but unknown source likelihood ratio. An extensive simulation study with synthetic and real data were conducted. We find that prescreening helps give an accurate estimate of the likelihood ratio when there is a subpopulation structure in the alternative source population
An outdoor educator’s self-study of enacting a pedagogical model for outdoor adventure education to facilitate affective learning experiences
No full textBackground: Outdoor Adventure Education (OAE) has a long history of being associated with the facilitation of affective learning experiences. This research explores this relationship between OAE and the facilitation of affective learning experiences by enacting a pedagogical model. This inquiry was prompted by the publication of two papers in Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy–‘A new pedagogical model for adventure in curriculum’ [Williams, A., and N. Wainwright. 2016a. “A New Pedagogical Model for Adventure in the Curriculum: Part One–Advocating for the Model.” Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy 21 (5): 481–500. doi:10.1080/17408989.2015.1048211; Williams, A., and N. Wainwright. 2016b. “A New Pedagogical Model for Adventure in the Curriculum: Part Two–Outlining the Model.” Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy 21 (6): 589–602. doi:10.1080/17408989.2015.1048212]. Purpose: Two research questions were developed for this exploration: (i) What are the realities of enacting a pedagogical model for OAE?; and (ii) When facilitating a programme for OAE, what affective learning experiences emerge and what are the processes involved in their facilitation? Method: A self-study methodology was used for this research and was guided by LaBoskey’s [2004. “The Methodology of Self-Study and Its Theoretical Underpinnings.” In International Handbook of Self-Study, of Teaching and Teacher Education Practices, edited by J. Loughran, M. L. Hamilton, V. K. LaBoskey, and T. Russell, 817–869. Dordrecht: Springer] approach to self-study. Ciaran (first author)–a facilitator of OAE programmes–conducted a self-study of their enactment of the pedagogical model for OAE in facilitating affective learning outcomes/experiences. Data sources included reflective journal entries and micro (a co-instructor of OAE) and macro (Dylan [second author]) critical friend meetings. Data was analysed following Charmaz’s [2014. Constructing Grounded Theory. Sage] approach to data analysis. Findings: The findings are captured in three categories: (i) Handing over the control to the students: realities of enacting a pedagogical model for OAE; (ii) The importance of creating an environment where affective learning can occur; and (iii) The potential of the pedagogical model for the creation of an environment where affective learning can be facilitated. Discussion: Throughout the findings, examples and considerations are given where the ‘non-negotiables’ of the pedagogical model for OAE can support and/or enhance and/ or facilitate affective learning outcomes/experiences of motivation, emotional responses, self-concept, and resilience [Teraoka, E., H. J. Ferreira, D. Kirk, and F. Bardid. 2021. “Affective Learning in Physical Education: A Systematic Review.” Journal of Teaching in Physical Education 40 (3): 460–473. doi:10.1123/jtpe.2019-0164]. Conclusion: This research highlights the possibilities and potentialities of a pedagogical model for OAE [Williams, A., and N. Wainwright. 2016a. “A New Pedagogical Model for Adventure in the Curriculum: Part One–Advocating for the Model.” Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy 21 (5): 481–500. doi:10.1080/17408989.2015.1048211; Williams, A., and N. Wainwright. 2016b. “A New Pedagogical Model for Adventure in the Curriculum: Part Two–Outlining the Model.” Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy 21 (6): 589–602. doi:10.1080/17408989.2015.1048212] in facilitating affective learning experiences/outcomes. We strongly encourage and advocate OAE facilitators/teachers to adopt, adapt, and enact the model to benefit the students’ affective learning development in OAE settings
Women favour dyadic relationships, but men prefer clubs : cross-cultural evidence from social networking
No full textThe ability to create lasting, trust-based friendships makes it possible for humans to form large and coherent groups. The recent literature on the evolution of sociality and on the net- work dynamics of human societies suggests that large human groups have a layered struc- ture generated by emotionally supported social relationships. There are also gender differences in adult social style which may involve different trade-offs between the quantity and quality of friendships. Although many have suggested that females tend to focus on inti- mate relations with a few other females, while males build larger, more hierarchical coali- tions, the existence of such gender differences is disputed and data from adults is scarce. Here, we present cross-cultural evidence for gender differences in the preference for close friendships. We use a sample of *112,000 profile pictures from nine world regions posted on a popular social networking site to show that, in self-selected displays of social relation- ships, women favour dyadic relations, whereas men favour larger, all-male cliques. These apparently different solutions to quality-quantity trade-offs suggest a universal and funda- mental difference in the function of close friendships for the two sexes
The effect of daily temperature variability on microbial and plant processes in a Chihuahuan Desert ecosystem
No full textWorldwide, the daily temperature range of air (DTRair = Tmax – Tmin) has decreased by 0.07 °C per decade, with a 43% stronger decline for arid and semiarid regions. Although the daily temperature range of soil (DTRsoil) has not been widely measured, it is reasonable to assume that it has decreased at a similar rate and magnitude as DTRair. The role of temperature on plant and soil processes has been extensively studied, but the role of temperature variability on these processes has been largely ignored. In arid systems where DTRsoil is characteristically high, projected additional reductions in DTRsoil may have significant impacts on ecosystem functioning.
My dissertation focuses on elucidating the role of high temperature variability on microbial and plant processes in an arid ecosystem, both intra- (i.e. seasonal) and inter-annually. Using a passive temperature manipulation experiment that successfully reduced DTRsoil in a Chihuahuan Desert soil at Big Bend National Park, my field study evaluated the biomass and activity responses of microorganisms in response to year-round reductions in DTRsoil, and subsequent changes to soil nutrient levels. In addition, changes to leaf-level physiology, leaf N content and leaf xylem water status of the dominant and representative plant species of arid landscapes, Larrea tridentata (creosotebush), were measured in response to reduced DTRsoil. To better link below-ground processes to plant responses, I conducted all measurements on the same day.
High temperature variability was an important stressor to microbial growth as soil microbial biomass C and N increased in response to reductions in DTRsoil. Reduced DTRsoil benefited both dormant and active microbial populations through increased biomass C and N relative to control plots in both dry (spring) and wet (summer) seasons. In contrast, microbial activity, measured as CO2 evolution from soil in inter-shrub spaces, was more sensitive to soil water content and less sensitive to temperature variability than microbial biomass. Therefore, reductions in DTRsoil generated the largest effects on CO2 evolution in summer, which is the wettest season in Big Bend National Park.
Increased microbial biomass reduced soil exchangeable N, most likely because extra N was required for biomass construction. However, soil exchangeable N levels did not always decrease in response to increased microbial biomass, suggesting that mineralization of N from a more stable pool of soil organic matter functioned to replenish depleting levels of soil exchangeable N. Although, I observed changes to belowground dynamics, including soil nutrient status and soil CO2 efflux rates, reductions in leaf [N] in Larrea tridentata did not alter photosynthetic rates in response to reductions in DTRsoil.
Lastly, I compared different multiple regression models that utilized daily insolation and air temperature data to predict daily maximum and minimum soil temperatures at two soil depths (0 and 15 cm). Using a weighted average of current and past insolation (to incorporate a “heat” storage effect) in combination with air temperature provided the best fit for observed daily maximum and minimum soil temperature near the soil surface. An analytical solution can then be applied to use the predicted soil surface temperature data to estimate daily maximum and minimum soil temperatures deeper into the soil profile.
In summary, my research generated three major findings. First, deserts dominated by Larrea may function temporarily as a source of C, resulting in a positive feedback to rising global temperatures. This imbalance will be sustained as long as the C and energy source (i.e. soil organic matter) continue to fuel higher levels of microbial activity. Second, if additional N incorporated into microbial biomass (labile pool) was derived from a more stable pool, this could increase volatile losses of N and further limit N in this N-limited system, and in turn, affect future primary productivity. Third, my dissertation produced promising results for predicting the soil thermal environment from above-surface conditions in a desert system. Using the same variables, this approach could be used in other arid systems with limited soil temperature data. Predicting future soil thermal regime is necessary to anticipate impacts on ecosystem function.Embargo status: Restricted until 06/2162. To request the author grant access, click on the PDF link to the left
The Booster/Delta nexus : Henry Miller and his friends in the literary world of Paris and London on the eve of the Second World War.
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