Phonology

Numerous studies conducted in the last three decades have shown that our ability to discriminate non-native phonemic contrasts can be improved thanks to specific laboratory training procedures (e.g., Bradlow et al., 1999; Bradlow et al., 1997; Jamieson and Morosan, 1986, 1989; Lively et al., 1994; Lively et al., 1993; Logan et al., 1991; Sadakata and McQueen, 2013). For example, Bradlow et al. (1997) showed that the forced-choice identification of /r/ and /l/ by Japanese speakers significantly…

Almost everything that a person does involves language at some point in their lives, from eating a restaurant, to conducting a meeting in the office, or even talking with a friend. Language is an essential part of human society and everything it involves. It is assumed that linguistics involves learning lots of different languages, however, it is actually focused on the workings of language. The study of linguistics involves answering the following questions: • Why is it that we have different…

In the 21st Century, being literate is pivotal—both in one’s personal and professional life. In fact, one’s daily life revolves around reading, writing, and verbal communication. For that reason, students must encounter effective teachers throughout his or her long life academic career, especially since literacy matters. In fact, I find it important for one to realize that he or she becomes a literate person because of his or her educators. John Dewey once said, “Education is not preparation for…

Adaptive Maneuvers Kamen, R. S., & Watson, B. C. (1991). Effects of long-term tracheostomy on spectral characteristics of vowel production. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 34(5), 1057-1065. Kamen and Watson (1991) completed a study on the effects long-term tracheostomy has on spectral characteristic of vowel production for children aged 39 to 60 months who underwent a tracheotomy in which they were cannulated between 15 to 42 months. Kamen and Watson (1991) examined 8…

Language is the most effective method of human communication. It is rich and complex. And it carries meaning. It enables one to express knowledge and thoughts. Animals also can communicate but in a very distinctive and different way. Some animals like birds, dogs and dolphins have their own inborn method of communicating. Their communication is different from human communication or language. As they react to triggers, stimuli or commands. Human language is unique and very different from animal…

For the past century, Standard English and Non-Standard English have controlled individuals and groups in a variety of settings. Language influences one’s decisions and forms countless ramifications, both effective and ineffective. Indeed, the main barriers such as unification in the workforce and education environments can alter the attitudes towards individuals (immigrants or international students) of Non-Standard English. The influence of language enables individuals to have an effect on…

Frank Guenther talked about his research on the DIVA (Directions Into Velocities of Articulators) model. He explained that it is a neural network model, which deals with the creation of speech and the attainment of speech motor skills. Using computers he explained the model is able to regulate the actions of a vocal tract to create speech sounds. Guenther revealed that the DIVA model’s neural mappings are adjusted in a “babbling phase.” In this instance audio feedback from speech sounds is…

Jason demonstrates proficiency in areas of letter recognition, phonemic awareness, reading and spelling. He’s able to identify word structures such as vowels, consonants, blends, digraphs, digraph blends and identifying parts of words such as syllables and suffixes. Jason is also able to write both capital and lower case letters and fill in the appropriate word in the sentence. In addition, he is able to read high frequency words and independently decode text at a level K. However, Jason…

Lucio Pozzi used his performance art, Patchameena, to articulate language barriers, and also let audiences to be personally on the scene and feel the barrier. Lucio Pozzi was also not born in America, but Milan, Italy, and he immigrated to the United States in 1962 as a guest of Kissinger’s Harvard International Summer Seminar. Patchameena was performed in th CR10 Contemporary Arts Center, where Lucio gave a speech using nonsensial gibberish and fake languages, attached with abundant body…

1) Genie lacked proper speech; her words were unorganized and distorted. She had trouble grouping words together in order to create grammatically correct sentences. Genie was successful in learning and understanding some words in English and in American Sign Language, but was not able to fully master a first language. In addition to her speech problems, Genie possessed inhuman behavior. When she was first found, she had a strange bunny-like walk. She spat, clawed, and made strange noises. Her…