bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Emerging scientific discourse in the late seventeenth century
Authors: Banks David
Published: September 2007

This study concerns two scientific texts of the late seventeenth century. One is Newton’s Opticks, written in English; the other, written in French, is Traité de la lumière by Huygens. It is argued that the two writers have different ideologies, in the sense that Newton is working in an empirical framework, whereas Huygens is a Cartesian. This has an effect on the semantics and lexicogrammar of the two texts. The percentage of Material process passives, the type of personal pronouns and the process types with which they are used, and the types of processes which are nominalized are all features which reflect the empirical stance of Newton as opposed to the Cartesian position adopted by Huygens. The contexts of the two texts are virtually identical, measured in terms of Field, Tenor and Mode. This has implications for SFL theory, and allows for the hypothesis that ideology affects the semantic metafunctions directly.
Speaking, telling and assertion
Authors: Davies Eirian C.
Published: September 2007

This paper distinguishes between speaking, telling and assertion. Speaking is approached in ‘mechanical’ terms, as the production of linguistic forms. Telling is defined in terms of the degree of the speaker’s commitment to what s/he says, and, therefore, as operative both with respect to constructions of knowledge and of decision. That is, telling is said to apply to constructions both in the indicative and imperative moods, to those with ‘wish’ as well as those with ‘thought’ subjunctives, and to both those with epistemic, and those with deontic, modal verbs. Assertion is defined as full telling of full knowledge. This definition leads to the establishment of three broad categories of non-assertive constructions, which are nevertheless ‘told’.

Four telling operators are proposed, defined in terms of degrees of commitment. The discussion builds on an earlier analysis of knowledge constructions in terms of propositional attitudes, by applying telling operators to four of the categories established there. From this it emerges that an account of knowledge constructions in terms of epistemic operators alone cannot be adequate, since telling operators sometimes act to modify epistemic modalities.

Other than full telling is seen as introducing a further kind of modality. This telling modality is realized in the knowledge component by the interrogative sentence type in sentences containing either a finite lexical verb or an epistemic auxiliary, and by subjunctive mood in the former and ‘past tense’ forms of the latter.
Ditransitive alignment splits and inverse alignment
Authors: Haspelmath Martin
Published: September 2007

This paper argues that language-particular restrictions on ditransitive constructions are best understood as instantiations of easily falsifiable implicational universals that can be explained functionally, rather than as falling out from a restrictive formal metalanguage. Well-known restrictions on ditransitives in English (*She gave Kim it) and French (*Elle donna Kim le livre) are shown to be instantiations of inverse patterns that are completely parallel to inverse patterns in monotransitive constructions. Moreover, ditransitive constructions are parallel to monotransitives in that they exhibit differential recipient marking and differential theme marking, analogous to differential object and subject marking.
On the encoding of transitivity-related features on the indirect object
Authors: Kittilä Seppo
Published: September 2007

The present article examines the effects of transitivity on the encoding of indirect object. The examined features comprise affectedness, aspect and animacy. In addition, differences between what will be labelled as neutral vs. purposeful transfer will be discussed. The article shows that effects of transitivity are not confined to direct objects only, but transitivity has consequences for indirect object coding too. In addition, the article also shows that there are good reasons for coding the examined features on the indirect object. The most important of these reasons is represented by the fact that features of the referents of the indirect object are responsible for coding the relevant features. For example, an event of transfer is conceived of as completed, when the Recipient has received the transferred entity.
Propositional attitudes
Authors: Davies Eirian C.
Published: September 2007

This paper attempts to outline a model for the semantic interpretation of mood and modality in constructions of knowledge or belief, as realized in the finite verb in English. It does so in terms of the attitude(s) which the speaker is seen as presenting him/herself to hold towards the proposition expressed in the clause. The account of such attitudes is based on an epistemic logic, extended to take probabilities into account, and is presented in terms of set theory.The approach takes epistemic mood to be realized either by marking (overt or covert) on the stem of the lexical verb or by the choice of an auxiliary verb. Semantic distinctions between different modal auxiliaries of knowledge/belief are analysed in the same terms as the contrast between the epistemic subjunctive and indicative moods of the finite full verb. One effect of this approach is that the semantics of epistemic mood and epistemic modality is treated as an integrated continuum. Some benefits are claimed to derive from this approach in the conclusion, including that of establishing different types, as well as degrees, of certainty.
“Surely you knew!”
Authors: Downing Angela
Published: September 2007

A broad view of evidentiality is adopted, based on Chafe (1986) and Haviland (1987) which goes beyond the grammatical marking of the speaker’s or writer’s perceived sources of knowledge and reliability of these sources to encode, not only what the speaker knows and how s/he knows it, but also what can be taken to be an addressee’s state of knowledge. According to this view, evidentials are contemplated as interactive devices or resources for redefining common ground between interlocutors. They go beyond referential content to signal such meanings as confrontation and contradictory assumptions. They are necessarily situated in social contexts and have an indexical function. They may also overlap with epistemic stances and with affect, ranging in the case of surely from surprise, disbelief, doubt and disapproval to persuasion and an invitation to share beliefs or to agree on future courses of action. Using data from the British National Corpus, I analyse a sample of concordances of surely with subject personal pronouns, with the aim of providing a preliminary characterisation of the range of interpersonal attitudes expressed by surely and the determining factors which trigger these apparently contradictory stances.
English locative constructions
Authors: Laffut An , Davidse Kristin
Published: September 2007

In this article, we set out to describe the general ‘lexicogrammar’ of English locative constructions within a broadly neo-Firthian theoretical frame. First, we look at the question of how the verb and its participants — nominal and prepositional — are structurally integrated with each other. To characterize the representational semantics of locative constructions, we develop Fawcett’s (1987) proposal that they express caused ‘circumstantial relations’. Both diachronic and synchronic data impose, we show, that English locative constructions also manifest a semantic extension into caused possessive relations, associated mainly with the statal passive of locative constructions with ‘container’-verbs. We then turn to the question of the main variants of the locative construction: the into/onto-variant versus the with-variant, and examples with container- versus content-verbs. Interesting but partly divergent claims about the relative markedness of these variants were made by Levin and Rappaport, and Pinker. We confront these with two corpus-based neo-Firthian descriptive heuristics: Halliday’s quantitative weighing of the terms in a system, and Sinclair’s collocational analysis of items in grammatical environments. The result is a pluridimensional characterization of the markedness of the variants. The with-variant is overall the most common and semantically more general variant because it subsumes a large number of statal passives, which attract meaning extensions into the possessive domain. With strict ‘action and event’ construals, however, the into/onto-variant is the unmarked one. Cross-classifying this dimension of variation is the semantic opposition between examples with content-verbs and examples with container-verbs, which are characterized by collocational orientation on the Locatum and the Location respectively.
Clause-final negation
Authors: Reesink Ger P.
Published: September 2007

Negation in a number of Austronesian and Papuan languages with SVO order is expressed by a rather rigid clause-final position of the negative adverb. Some typological generalizations for negation are reviewed and the distribution of this trait in languages of different stocks is discussed, arguing that it most likely originates in Papuan languages.

Some proposals for different types of negation, such as whether it is a verbal (or VP) operator, a constituent operator or a sentential operator are considered. The problem of determining the scope of negation is discussed, with the conclusion that hard and fast semantic meanings for NEG at different structural levels cannot be posited, suggesting that perhaps a solution can be found in the application of some universal pragmatic principles.
‘Lip-pointing’
Authors: Enfield N.J.
Published: September 2007

‘Lip-pointing’ is a widespread but little-documented form of deictic gesture, which may involve not just protruding one or both lips, but also raising the head, sticking out the chin, lifting the eyebrows, among other things. This paper discusses form and function of lip-pointing with reference to a set of examples collected on video in Laos. There are various parameters with respect to which the conventional form of a lip-pointing gesture may vary. There is also a range of ways in which lip-pointing gestures can be coordinated with other kinds of deictic gesture such as various forms of hand pointing. The attested coordinating/sequencing possibilities can be related to specific functional properties of lip-pointing among Lao speakers, particularly in the context of other forms of deictic gesture, which have different functional properties. It is argued that the ‘vector’ of lip-pointing is in fact defined by gaze, and that the lip-pointing action itself (like other kinds of ‘pointing’ involving the head area) is a ‘gaze-switch’, i.e. it indicates that the speaker is now pointing out something with his or her gaze. Finally, I consider the position of lip-pointing in the broader deictic gesture system of Lao speakers, firstly as a ‘lower register’ form, and secondly as a form of deictic gesture which may contrast with forms of hand pointing.
Gesture and Speech
Authors: Copple Mary M.
Published: September 2007

The role of gesture in Leroi-Gourhan’s theory of the origin of language is portrayed in its historical context and in view of recent research to allow a balanced appraisal of his contribution to the debate. Written in the mid-1960s, his Gesture and Speech offers a vivid contrast to Chomsky’s contemporary mentalist view of language that espoused Cartesian rationalism with its barriers between man and beast, and between body and mind. On the contrary, Leroi-Gourhan takes an integrated approach to human evolution: gesture (conceived of as ‘material action’) and speech are seen as twin products of an embodied mind that engendered our technical and social achievements. His explanation of the evolutionary association between the hand and the face provides a biological basis for cognitive as well as communicative aspects of gesture, with culture emerging as an extension of our zoological foundation. He asserts that the liberating of the hand from locomotion led to the liberating of the face from prehension, thus creating the duality of instrument and symbol whereby human beings physically and mentally grasp the world in which they live.
Requesting gestures in captive monkeys and apes
Authors: Gómez Juan-Carlos
Published: September 2007

Captive monkeys and apes almost inevitably develop gestures to request food and objects from humans. One possibility is that these gestures are just conditioned responses without any understanding of the socio-cognitive causality underlying their efficacy. A second possibility is that they do involve some understanding of how they are (or fail to be) effective upon the behaviour of others. Observational evidence suggest that most apes and some monkeys coordinate their request gestures with joint attention behaviours — a criterion for early referential communication in human infants. However, experimental evidence about apes and monkeys‘ understanding of the causal role of joint attention in gestural communication is equivocal, with test pass and failure patterns that can be due to cognitive and/or motivational factors. Current evidence suggests that the gestures of apes and monkeys can neither be dismissed as simple conditioned responses nor be uncritically accepted as fully equivalent to human gestures.
A cross-cultural comparison of communicative gestures in human infants during the transition to language
Authors: Blake Joanna , Vitale Grace , Osborne Patricia , Olshansky Esther
Published: September 2007

The entire bodily gestural repertoire of four different infant groups was coded over the age period of 9 to 15 months. Two small samples of English-Canadian and Parisian-French infants were filmed every two weeks at home. A larger sample of Japanese infants was visited for 7 sessions and of Italian-Canadian infants for 4 sessions at 9 months and 15 months and again at 3 years. Language measures were collected for the last two groups. Increases in Comment gestures, particularly pointing, in Object exchange gestures, and in Agency gestures were found across almost all groups. Decreases in Reach-request and in Emotive gestures were also found for most groups. The increasing group of gestures was positively related to vocabulary acquisition, particularly to receptive vocabulary. Reach-request and Protest gestures at 15 months were negative related to different aspects of language at 3 years. The importance of examining the entire nonverbal communicative repertoire across cultures is discussed in terms of assessing the relationship of gestures to language acquisition. Changes in the gestural repertoire appear to be universal across infants of different cultures, at least those examined.
Gestures in human and nonhuman primates
Authors: Müller Cornelia
Published: September 2007

The present article offers a condensed overview, of why a comparative view on gestures in human and nonhuman primates may offer important insights to both: researchers of human as well as of nonhuman primates. It is argued that a comparative view may further contribute to the debate over the evolution of language but that in addition it may also enhance understanding of the relation of language and gesture in humans. The article sketches programmatic issues, which are summarized in the list of framing questions for the workshop and this special issue on “Gestural communication in nonhuman and human primates”; it is aimed to clarify conceptual and methodological prerequisites and to offer points of departure for future comparative research.
On gestural mimicry
Authors: Kimbara Irene
Published: September 2007

Despite various theories about the exact origin of gestures in speech production, researchers generally accept that gesture and speech constitute the product of a single unit of thought within the speaker. On the other hand, what I call gestural mimicry requires consideration of factors outside such speaker-internal coupling of gesture and speech. Through detailed analysis of a joint narration task and casual conversation in a dyad, I will show that, once perceived and decoded by a partner, the form–meaning relationship of a speaker’s gesture can become part of the common ground of understanding between the participants. In gestural mimicry, communicativity is observed in the way a speaker’s spontaneous gesture shapes the subsequent gestural move of the interlocutor. With a recurrence of gestural features across speakers, image construal through gesture becomes an interactional phenomenon. That is, gesture as well as speech provides an interactional resource for co-constructing talk.
Accuracy in detecting referents of pointing gestures unaccompanied by language
Authors: Bangerter Adrian , Oppenheimer Daniel M.
Published: September 2007

It has been claimed that the perceptual accuracy with which people comprehend distal pointing gestures is low. But this claim is at odds with research showing that detection of other indexical signals, e.g., eye gaze, is very accurate. We conducted three experiments to assess people’s detection accuracy of targets of distal pointing gestures, using a paradigm adapted from the study of eye gaze. Pairs of people were seated next to each other. One person pointed at targets among 70 points arranged in a horizontal (Experiment 1) or vertical line (Experiment 2). The other person guessed the target. Bias in detection was substantially less than previously shown (approximately 3° in vertical and horizontal conditions), and comparable to levels of accuracy for eye gaze detection. Furthermore, and contrary to previous research, detection accuracy was lower for peripheral targets than for central ones. Experiment 3 replicated Experiments 1 and 2 within one study and further demonstrated that partial occlusion of the pointing arm (from shoulder to elbow) did not adversely affect accuracy.
Aspects of rhythm in gesture and speech
Authors: Loehr Daniel
Published: September 2007

This article investigates the rhythmic relationship between gesture and speech. Four subjects were filmed in natural conversations with friends. From the resulting videos, several thousand time-stamped annotations pertaining to rhythm were manually recorded in a digital annotation tool, and exported for statistical analysis. They revealed a rich rhythmic relationship between the hands, head, and voice. Each articulator produced pikes (a general term for short, distinctive expressions, regardless of the modality) in complex synchrony with other articulators. Even eyeblinks were synchronized, with eyelids held closed until reopening on the rhythmic beat, akin to a pre-stroke hold before a gestural stroke. Average tempos similar to previously reported natural human tempos — e.g. Fraisse’s (1982) 600 ms figure — were found in hands, head, and speech, although hands tended to move most quickly and speech most slowly. All three also shared a common tempo of around a third of a second, perhaps to synchronize inter-articulator meeting points. These findings lend empirical weight to earlier observations of a rhythmic relationship between gesture and speech, providing support for the theory of a common cognitive origin of the two modalities.
Saussurisme et structuralisme dans les années 60–70 en France
Authors: Chiss Jean-Louis , Puech Christian
Published: September 2007

On se propose d’évoquer ici un aspect du curieux destin du Cours de linguistique générale. Censée contenir le germe de développements multiformes identifiés sous le nom de saussurisme et de structuralisme, l’þuvre du savant genevois apparaît plutôt comme un catalyseur culturel de grande ampleur. On a projeté sur elle, pour un temps au moins, de grands espoirs et des aspirations souvent contradictoires. Si l’on ne prend pas à la lettre ces tentatives et prétentions souvent exorbitantes, il reste que l’imbroglio linguistico-philosophique des années 60–70, noué momentanément autour d’elle, fournit, à travers les références à Saussure, une trame historique complexe dont la pensée saussurienne est à la fois absente et omniprésente. C’est dire l’importance de la connaissance des sources pour une histoire différenciée du structuralisme et du saussurisme qui reste à faire.
Are we all saussureans now?
Authors: Wolf George
Published: September 2007

This paper addresses the question whether all of the most important linguistic theories of the 20th century are Saussurean. Beginning with Engler’s observation that there are so many interpretive possibilities in the Saussurean material which has appeared that it is even possible for opposing viewpoints to be Saussurean, the discussion ranges over European and American theorists from Bloomfield to Roy Harris, and questions to what extent each followed the Genevan master.
Seven grammarians on the ‘ablativus absolutus’
Authors: Sluiter Ineke
Published: September 2007

In this article, the history of the so-called ablative absolute as a descriptive category is traced from the 3rd to the 20th century. Texts by Sacerdos, Diomedes, Priscian, Alberic of Montecassino, Kühner & Stegmann and Harm Pinkster illustrate how the ablative absolute is recognized long before it get its name, and how its role in grammatical description is invented, changes, and disappears again in accordance with the grammatical systems adopted by the respective grammarians. The ablative absolute starts as a kind of appendix to the doctrine of the parts of speech, is moved from the description of the noun to that of the participle, and eventually just fades away as a descriptive label in its own right in the context of Functional Grammar. Its history cannot, of course, prove that the ‘God’s Truth’ metaphysics of grammar is wrong, but it certainly looks like a series of manifestations of grammatical ‘Hocus Pocus’.
El tratamiento del orden de palabras en algunas gramáticas Españoles de los siglos XIX y XX
Authors: Casielles Suárez Eugenia
Published: September 2007

This paper examines the treatment of word order in some of the most influential grammars of Spanish from the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century, with special attention given to the interpretation they offer of displaced elements, particularly subjects and objects. Although there was not much in the grammatical tradition about this topic that these authors could build upon, a careful reading of their works reveals an awareness of the difficulties involved in explaining word order variation. Furthermore, we find very valuable suggestions regarding the topical nature of some displacements, and the emphatic or focal interpretation of others.
Die Linguistische Erfassung des Hebräischen, Chinesischen und Finnischen am Beginn der Neuzeit
Authors: Klein Wolf Peter
Published: September 2007

Der Aufsatz setzt sich mit der Problematik auseinander, wie in der früh-neuzeitlichen Sprachwissenschaft nicht-indoeuropäische Sprachen erfasst wurden. Im einzelnen werden die frühen linguistischen Darstellungen des Hebräischen, Chinesischen und Finnischen untersucht. Von besonderem Interesse ist dabei die Klärung der Frage, ob und, wenn ja, auf welche Art und Weise die jeweiligen typologischen Spezifika dieser Sprachen im Rahmen der grammatischen Überlieferung begriffen und dargestellt wurden. Dabei zeigt sich, dass die traditionelle Grammatik und das damit verbundene Denken die Erfassung und Deskription der fremden Sprachen in unterschiedlichen Formen beeinflusst haben. Ebenso wird deutlich, wie die Wahrnehmung der fremden Sprachen zum Zuwachs des linguistischen Wissens beigetragen hat und zum Ausbau der traditionellen grammatischen Terminologie führte, da sprachliche Eigenschaften in Worte gefasst werden mussten, für die bis dato keine Fachwörter existierten.
‘Articulatory settings’
Authors: Jenner Bryan
Published: September 2007

The term ‘articulatory setting’ first appeared in English phonetic literature in a much-cited article by Beatrice Honikman (1964). The link between this term and a set of synonyms used by a range of 19th century European scholars was amply demonstrated by Laver (1978). By examining a few of the many sources available, this article seeks to show, as Laver’s article did not, that the phenomenon that Honikman discusses has been almost continuously present in German phonetic literature from Sievers (1876) onward, and that British scholars in the 20th century failed to take account of this. As a result, the concept was entirely absent from British phonetic literature from about 1909 until 1964. Against this background the article also seeks to establish possible direct sources for Honikman’s ideas.
Une traduction arabe de la grammaire de Lhomond (1857)
Authors: Bechraoui Mohamed-Fadhel
Published: September 2007

Le succès de la grammaire scolaire dans la France du XIXe siècle avait favorisé la traduction de certains de ses manuels, comme le Lhomond ou le Noël et Chapsal, pour servir de méthodes d’apprentissage aux étrangers. Le Lhomond tout particulièrement, après la traduction anglaise de Longfellow (1830) avait connu une traduction arabe, publiée à Paris en 1857 par un Tunisien du nom de Soliman al-Haraïri (1824–1877). Il y développe en fait, une double traduction: traduction libre et traduction littérale. Cette dernière, très paradoxalement, constitue le noyau d’une méthode présentée par l’auteur comme une invention didactique à laquelle il n’a jamais été précédé. L’effort de traduction y est considérable par rapport à ce que l’on trouve dans l’ouvrage anglais. La langue arabe, ainsi que la grammatisation autochtone qui s’y rapporte sont tellement éloignées du français et de sa grammatisation que le traducteur est amené à faire œuvre de linguiste et non de simple traducteur. La traduction de la terminologie, comme celle des exemples et des paradigmes, nécessite en effet une grande connaissance de l’arabe et de sa grammaire. Le recours au dialecte marque d’ailleurs l’épuisement des ressources de l’arabe classique. La transcription s’y ajoute pour faire encore reculer l’écart, au-delà de la grammaire et du système phonologique, jusqu’à l’écriture elle-même. Les éléments d’une recherche contrastive viennent, en outre, accompagner la traduction littérale comme pour en retracer les limites et révéler les irréductibles difficultés de l’apprentissage. Mais la correspondance entre les deux langues, incarnée dans cette traduction, a été expressément exagérée pour gagner plus de terrain dans le rapprochement du Lhomond, dans sa langue originale, à l’élève arabe. L’objectif étant de le mettre immédiatement en contact avec la langue française, via ce pré-texte qu’est la traduction littérale. Quant à la traduction libre, elle est considérée comme superflue, ne pouvant profiter qu’à l’élève français censé y trouver un ‘guide de bien traduire’.
Some notes on the life and work of John Minsheu (1560–1627)
Authors: Salmon Vivian
Published: September 2007

John Minsheu (1560–1627) has long been known to historians of lexicography as the author of an impressive comparative and etymological dictionary,Ductor in Linguas(1617). Less well known is his grammar of Spanish (1599), which is unusual for its time in displaying interest in socio-linguistic issues. This paper is intended to stimulate interest in the neglected grammar and to propose a solution to the mystery of Minsheu’s biography – a topic likewise overlooked in the literature. The paper ends with a set of proposals for further research.
La dérivation délocutive
Authors: Larcher Pierre
Published: September 2007

The notion ‘delocutive derivation’ was introduced by Emile Benveniste (1902–1976) in a paper published in 1958. It appears to have gone unnoticed at the time. However, when the article was reissued in Benveniste’s Problèmes de linguistique générale (1966), things seem to have changed dramatically, in particular in 1972, when Ducrot made a connection between ‘delocutivity’ and ‘performativity’ (e.g., promettre = dire je promets), leading in 1975 delocutivity back to the side of a semantic reinterpretation (e.g., je trouve que). Subsequently, Cornulier (1976) introduced the concept of ‘autodelocutivity’ and Anscombre, in a series of articles from the late 1970s and early 1980s, attempted a theorization of this notion. Since then, the subject fell into oblivion. The object of the present paper is twofold: (1) It tries to understand the cometic rise of a notion on the linguistic horizon; (2) to demonstrate that notion ‘delocutive derivation’ is a fundamental mechanism that linguistics, both synchronic and diachronic, would make a mistake in ignoring, to the effect that its ‘enunciative’ specificity does not mask a much more general mechanism, namely, that of natural metalanguage, and beyond, that of metonymy.
Tense, mood and aspect in the first grammar of Croatian (Kašić 1604)
Authors: Pandžić Zvonko
Published: September 2007

This paper deals with the first Croatian grammar published in 1604 by the Jesuit Bartul Kašić (1575–1650). Within the framework of a multi-level approach of historical hermeneutics, the author investigates both the linguistic and the philosophical presuppositions of this grammar. After having established Kašić’s humanistic sources (Manutius, Giambullari, Linacre, Álvares, Gretser), the paper sketches the historical background of the grammatization process of Slavic languages in general. It then analyses the verbal categories of tense, mood and aspect within this humanistic tradition as well as the immanent semantics of Kašić’s work. The focal point of the paper is Aristotle’s definition of time that Thomas Linacre (1524) had reintroduced into the description of verbs and which was taken over by Kašić through the work of Giambullari (1552). This notion of time, however, served not only to portray verbal tenses in vernacular grammars but also those of Greek and Latin (Apollonius Dyscolus, Diomedes, Augustine, Priscian, etc.). As the author tries to demonstrate, Kašić’s work constitutes the genuine crystallising point of the so-called onto-semantic view of language and grammar. Furthermore, Kašić’s analysis of verbal moods is shown to follow the humanistic tradition and that of the grammatization of Slavic moods. Kašić’s attempt to relate the eminently important category of aspect in Slavic to ‘Aristotelian’ and ‘Varronian’ aspects of Latin grammar may be regarded as pioneering in the history of Slavic linguistics.
Gender-specific communication in Graeco-Roman antiquity
Authors: Fögen Thorsten
Published: September 2007

It has been the main interest of numerous studies in modern linguistics, in particular since the 1980s, to analyse gender-specific language and modes of communication. However, the vast majority of these contributions completely ignores the fact that some ancient authors already raised the problem of gender-specific language and thus made at least a first step towards a diaphasic sketch of the linguistic levels and varieties of both Greek and Latin. The ancient sources on women’s language are admittedly not very ample and, moreover, rather scattered. It is the aim of this contribution to bring together relevant metalinguistic passages and provide a close reading in order to obtain a more differentiated impression of the ancients’ views on gender-specific language and style. It is highlighted that differences are pointed out by ancient authors not only in pragmatic respects, but also for the phonological, morphological and lexico-semantic levels. The focus is on excerpts from Plato, Aristophanes, Roman comedy and rhetorical writings, but further (sometimes indirect) sources are also included. The final part of this contribution considers the evidence on “women’s speech” in Giovanni Boccaccio’s treatiseDe mulieribus claris.
La linguistique des grammaires françaises publiées en Espagne dans la première moitié du XIXe siècle
Authors: Lépinette Brigitte
Published: September 2007

Dans cet article, nous examinons un corpus de 13 grammaires pour l’enseignement du français aux Espagnols, éditées dans la première moitié du XIXe siècle. Nous prenons en compte, dans une analyse de type transversal, (1) les sources citées par les auteurs ; (2) la nature de la définition de la grammaire et le nombre des parties du discours ; (3) la définition du nom (avec la présence ou non du schéma canonique de la déclinaison ou des classes spécifiques de cet élément) ; (4) la définition du verbe avec la présence ou non des catégories canoniques) ; et (5) la syntaxe. Notre objectif est de déterminer la linguistique explicite et implicite de ces grammaires scolaires, à une époque où la grammaire générale pénètre en Espagne dans les ouvrages de langue maternelle et où sont introduits les exercices d’analyses logique et grammaticale.
An Englishman’s Vindication of Scots
Authors: Häcker Martina
Published: September 2007

This article investigates the linguistic work of the English Jesuit James Adams (1737–1802). It places Adams’ work in the socio-cultural context of 18th-century linguistic writing, in particular with respect to two ongoing debates: (1) on a monogenetic vs. a polygenetic origin of language and (2) on the origins of Scots. Both of these were highly ideological debates, in the first case between a biblical and a scientific world view, and in the latter between those who were content with the political state of affairs (the Union of Scotland and England), and those who would rather have had an independent Scotland. Adams manages to reconcile linguistic evidence with monogenism, while his views on language and dialects are guided by ‘Christian phil­anthropy’. They contrast sharply with those of many of his contemporaries. In his “Vindication of the Dialect of Scotland”, which is the central part of the “Appendix” of his Pronunciation of the English Language (published in 1799), Adams strongly votes for Scottish linguistic independence, though not for political independence, even advocating a separate Scots spelling. The analysis of this work shows that his attitude to dialects is informed by his education and life as a Jesuit in the 18th century, his belief that all people are created as equals, his didactic concerns as a teacher, and the personal experience of an extended stay in Scotland.
William Perry’sThe Royal Standard English Dictionary(1775)
Authors: Sturiale Massimo
Published: September 2007

This paper examines the role of William Perry (1747–post 1805), an active Scottish schoolteacher and lexicographer, in the prescription of norms for a ‘correct’ pronunciation of standard English, being perfectly in line with the language guardians of the time. Although Perry shares a few characteristics with Thomas Sheridan (1719–1788) and James Buchanan (fl. 1753–1773), as he himself maintains in the Preface to hisThe Royal Standard English Dictionary, first published in Edinburgh in 1775, he also reveals a certain dissatisfaction with the way ‘the sounds of words are expressed’ by the other two 18th-century scholars. Therefore, the paper examines the ‘more rational method’ proposed in his attempt to better represent the sounds of the English language.
Marginalia as evidence
Authors: Navest Karlijn
Published: September 2007

This article provides a detailed study of the annotations in the two Winchester College copies of Robert Lowth’s (1710–1787)Short Introduction to English Grammar(1762) which R. C. Alston used for his facsimile edition (1968). Alston believed that one of the copies belonged to Lowth and that the other copy was used for the second edition of the grammar in 1763. My article, however, demonstrates that this was not the case. It present arguments that serve to identify the owner of the second copy, and it demonstrates that there is one feature in his language the historical development of which was very likely due to influence from Lowth’s grammar. From a wider perspective, this article will highlight the extent to which contemporary readers responded to books they owned by including annotations in them.
Designing Information Design
Authors: Karabeg Dino
Published: September 2007

By designing information design we arrive at a completely new approach to information. Within this new approach we are able to create new information formats, find new uses for the new media, give information new purposes, create new kinds of information and develop new methods for creating information. The Polyscopic Modeling methodology is proposed as a prototype of a designed informing.
Designing documents for train operators
Authors: Torsi Silvia , Rizzo Antonio , Pozzi Simone , Save Luca
Published: September 2007

This paper addresses the issue of redesigning a train list. The train list is a paper document of few pages that provides train operators of the Italian railway company with basic information about the features of the railway line they are moving along, the means of traction and engine characteristics.

Methodologies borrowed from the fields of document design and human–computer interaction were applied to the analysis, redesign, and evaluation of a new train list following a first prototype developed by the railway company.

In all phases (analysis, redesign, evaluation) the study was guided by the theoretical framework of cultural-historical psychology, according to which artifacts historically shaped by human practice always mediate human cognition. The results of the evaluation provide empirical evidence to support the added value of combining document design techniques with the heuristic role of the historical analysis of an artifact, especially in a safety-critical context, so as to properly improve tools and instruments used in human activity and thus reduce the risk of breakdowns.
An overview of the unified modeling language and diagrammatic modeling language design in software engineering
Authors: Akkøk M. Naci
Published: September 2007

The need to manage the immense complexity in software engineering makes tools and methods essential, and requires that they be designed in accordance with well-defined principles. Surprisingly, there is yet no explicit body of knowledge for designing diagrammatic modeling languages (DMLs), despite the fact that they are used extensively as the primary conceptual modeling tools in software engineering. This paper provides an overview of the new and growing field of DML design that aims at compiling such a body of knowledge. The paper starts with relevant definitions and a brief introduction of the current de-facto standard DML of software engineering called the Unified Modeling Language (UML), and offers a short account of efforts and directions in DML design.
Technical communication or information design
Authors: Reynolds Alison
Published: September 2007

The impact of technological and scientific innovations combined with consumer demands for clear, usable product information have changed the core competencies that technical communicators now need. In short, the job title, ‘technical communicator’ does not reflect what contemporary practitioners do. Despite the debate over the various meanings and ‘ownership’ of information design, the title, ‘information designer,’ appears to be the ‘best fit’ to describe the new profile of technical communicators. A study of contemporary New Zealand technical communicators reveals a shift similar to that of practitioners in the United States to redefine their roles as information designers.
Storytelling and the personalization of information
Authors: Moldenhauer Judith
Published: September 2007

Students often initially encounter the idea of information design with the preconceived notion that information design is dry and impersonal. To counter this attitude, the author stressed to students that information design is about making information personal (and thus accessible) and instructed students to approach their information design tasks from the point of view of storytelling. Through examples of student projects – forms, maps, and instructions – the author describes how students combined their own reactions to the forms, maps and instructions (i.e., their own stories of encountering the material) with analyses of the visual and verbal characteristics of those information documents (the information’s story) as the basis for developing creating user-based designs.
Birth/Death of information as art
Authors: Marcus Aaron
Published: September 2007

Birth/Death of information as art: ‘BodyWorlds’
The author comments on the notorious exhibit of anatomical art, ‘BodyWorlds’ by Dr. Gunther von Hagens when it was on view in London (March 21st 2002 – February 9th 2003).
'I have been here before'
Authors: Hooijdonk Charlotte van , Maes Fons , Ummelen Nicole
Published: September 2007

We conducted an explorative study to investigate whether hypertext users use spatial expressions to conceptualize cognitive actions they are involved in, and how these expressions relate to the type of actions (executions versus evaluations) and the level of actions (syntactic vs. semantic vs. pragmatic). As a method, we used ten thinking aloud protocols of hypertext users who were navigating a website. The results of the protocol analysis indicate that spatial expressions were most frequent when users describe executions on the syntactic action level. The exploration allows us to critically assess the value of the thinking aloud method to shed light on the cognitive actions and processing involved in using hypertext.
Drawing out information - lines of communication in technical illustration
Authors: Richards Clive James
Published: September 2007

The main graphical modes of information presentation, used in technical illustrations to show hidden detail, are identified and some historical precedents for them in the work of Leonardo Da Vinci are reviewed. Research into one particular aspect of graphic representation used in technical illustrations is reported. This concerns the deployment in hand-drawn images of different line thicknesses and their contribution to enhancing the interpretation of what is depicted. Whilst the use of varying line thicknesses has been formally incorporated into some documentation standards, it is not always observed in relevant domains. The case for and the process of replicating this line thickness code in computer-generated imagery, for use in multimedia technical documentation, are introduced.
Medical communications and information design
Authors: Frascara Jorge , Ruecker Stan
Published: September 2007

An organization of pharmacists requested our services to improve the design of their printed communications to medical doctors, concerning the use of pharmaceutical drugs. Departing from a design process model developed by the Communication Research Institute of Australia, we selected an existing document, interviewed users, defined the objectives of the document, established performance benchmarks, produced a new prototype, and tested it. Results indicated that memory of the contents had improved in accuracy, and that the time required for search-and-find tasks had been substantially cut. The article describes the process followed and outlines future research to be undertaken.
Reading images
Authors: Kress Gunther
Published: September 2007

In this paper I wish to point to what I see as the central issues in the linked shifts in representation and dissemination: that is, from the constellation of mode of writing and medium of book/page, to the constellation of mode of image and medium of screen. In particular I will draw attention to consequent shifts in authority, in changes in forms of reading, shifts in shapes of knowledge and in forms of human engagement with the social and natural world.
Visualizing complexity
Authors: Mirel Barbara , Allmendinger Leif
Published: September 2007

In this paper, we look at experienced problem solvers who are experts in their own domains and who visually model the processes people use when they solve complex problems. Our hope is that improved problem models can inform software development teams and lead to better problem solving software.

We discuss what to model – the interdependent data ordeals, wayfinding, and sense-making activities that make up patterns of inquiry. We propose a model, which describes how experts explore problem landscapes, putting information and their own conclusions together in different ways in order to satisfy contending goals and agendas.
The Representativeness of Czech corpora
Authors: Králík Jan , Šulc Michal
Published: September 2007

The attempt to balance corpora with respect to their future usage led to the introduction of the termexpectations(Králík 2001b). On the bases of several statistical inquiries of such expectations, the textual structure ofSYN2000,which is the synchronic part of the Czech National Corpus (CNC), was proposed and realised. The present article explains the original composition briefly and discusses two new inquiries concerning expectations(A-2001andC-2001).Important corrections for future work on the CNC are suggested. The expectations concerning newspapers changed radically during 1996–2001. Within the same period, an obvious rise of interest in fiction can be detected. The reasons for these developments can be traced to trends in Czech society. Thus, we have proposed a considerable reduction in the proportion of newspaper texts and a large increase in the proportion of fiction texts. According to new searches, more detailed percentages for specific subject areas are suggested.
The semantic variation of NEED TO in four recent British English corpora
Authors: Nokkonen Soili
Published: September 2007

This paper explores the various meanings/uses of NEED TO, a semi-modal of obligation and necessity, in two spoken and two written corpora of British English from the 1950s to the 1990s. Previous corpus-based studies indicate that its overall usage has increased, but there is clearly a gap in research on its semantics. This corpus-driven inductive investigation applies the traditional semantic concepts of root and epistemic meaning to the corpus data. The results suggest that NEED TO covers all the possible meanings/uses, both root and epistemic, of a modal of obligation and necessity. Consequently, it is a possible rival of MUST and HAVE TO in affirmative contexts. However, the traditional analysis leaves out the instances where NEED TO expresses internally motivated compulsion. This is accounted for in recent cross-linguistic studies which rearrange the non-epistemic field. Their insights are taken into consideration, and a synthesis concerning the semantic profile of NEED TO is suggested.
Indirect anaphora
Authors: Botley Simon Philip
Published: September 2007

This paper investigates indirect anaphora (IA) from a corpus-based linguistics (CBL) perspective. Indirect anaphora involves backward-pointing links between surface lexical items, such as demonstrative pronouns and objects, situations or concepts which are mentioned or hinted at in previous discourse, but which are not linguistically encoded as surface grammatical elements such as nouns or noun phrases. This paper reports an empirical study of three types of IA, namely labelling (Francis 1986, 1989, 1994), situation reference (Fraurud 1992, 1992a) and text/discourse deixis (Lyons 1977, Levinson 1983). Although the paper reveals some discernable patterns in the use of IA across different genres, the study ultimately points to the challenges of identifying hard and fast categories of IA in a corpus of real-life examples.
Coming to terms with conversational grammar
Authors: Rühlemann Christoph
Published: September 2007

“situationally defined varieties” (Biber et al. 1999:5) have advanced the study of conversational grammar considerably. This paper questions the use of writing-based conceptual frameworks and terminologies in the description of conversational grammar. It is argued that conversation as the major situationally defined variety of the spoken language requires for its adequate description concepts and terminologies that are based on the situational factors that determine the conversational situation. The paper attempts to demonstrate that, conversely, a descriptive apparatus derived from the written code, which by necessity fails to reflect the situational factors governing conversation and implicitly compares features of conversation to the norms of the written language, inevitably conveys negative evaluation of the conversational features observed. This claim will be illustrated by functional and terminological analyses of two conversational key features commonly labelled ‘dislocation’ and ‘dysfluency’. The analyses will be carried out using data from the BNC. Potential alternative concepts and terminologies will be discussed.