bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Crystallographic and magnetic properties of Cu2X, Co2X, and Ni2X hexaferrites
Authors: Kamishima Kenji , Hosaka Nobuyuki , Kakizaki Koichi , Hiratsuka Nobuyuki
Published: January 2011

We have investigated the synthesis conditions and the magnetic properties of X-type hexagonal ferrites. It is found that Ba2Cu2Fe28O46 (Cu2X), Ba2Co2Fe28O46 (Co2X), and Ba2Ni2Fe28O46 (Ni2X) ferrites can be synthesized at a sintering temperature of 1250 °C. The x-ray diffraction patterns for Cu2X, Co2X, and Ni2X samples are in good agreement with the pattern calculated from the atomic coordinates for Ba2Fe30O46 (Fe2X), where two diffraction peaks at Q=2.24 and 2.30 Å−1 are clearly observed in contrast with other M-, W-, Y-, and Z-types hexagonal ferrites. It is also found that the low-temperature spontaneous magnetizations of Cu2X, Co2X, and Ni2X ferrites are 47.5 μB/f.u., 43.4 μB/f.u., and 43.2 μB/f.u., respectively. The cation distributions for Cu2X, Co2X, and Ni2X are discussed within the model of a Néel-type collinear ferrimagnetic structure.
Communication: Critical dynamics and nuclear relaxation in lipid bilayers
Authors: McConnell Harden
Published: January 2011

Membrane composition fluctuations affect deuterium nuclear magnetic relaxation in lipid bilayers. The time dependence of the fluctuations depends on lipid diffusion. Near a miscibility critical point this diffusion involves an advective hydrodynamic coupling to the aqueous phase. The corresponding diffusion coefficient depends on both the critical length and the fluctuation wavelength. We calculate the effects of these dynamics on transverse deuterium nuclear relaxation in the 0.1o–10o range above the critical temperature.
A new integrable two-component system with cubic nonlinearity
Authors: Song Junfeng , Qu Changzheng , Qiao Zhijun
Published: January 2011

In this paper, a new integrable two-component system, \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}$m_t=[m(u_xv_x-uv+uv_x\break -u_x v)]_x, n_t=[n(u_xv_x\,{-}\,uv\,{+}\,uv_x\,{-}\,u_x v)]_x,$\end{document}mt=[m(uxvx−uv+uvx−uxv)]x,nt=[n(uxvx−uv+uvx−uxv)]x, where \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}$m\,{=}\,u\,{-}\,u_{xx}$\end{document}m=u−uxx and \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}$n=v-v_{xx}$\end{document}n=v−vxx, is proposed. Our system is a generalized version of the integrable system \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}$m_t=[m(u_x^2\break-u^2)]_x,$\end{document}mt=[m(ux2−u2)]x, which was shown having cusped solution (cuspon) and W/M-shape soliton solutions by Qiao [J. Math. Phys. 47, 112701 (2006). The new system is proven integrable not only in the sense of Lax-pair but also in the sense of geometry, namely, it describes pseudospherical surfaces. Accordingly, infinitely many conservation laws are derived through recursion relations. Furthermore, exact solutions such as cuspons and W/M-shape solitons are also obtained.
Gain dynamics of an InAs/InGaAsP quantum dot semiconductor optical amplifier operating at 1.5 μm
Authors: Park J. , Kim N. J. , Jang Y. D. , Lee E. G. , Lee J. M. , Baek J. S. , Kim J. H. , Lee H. S. , Yee K. J. , Lee D. , Pyun S. H. , Jeong W. G. , Kim J.
Published: January 2011

The gain and phase dynamics of a high quality quantum dot semiconductor optical amplifier were measured at various wavelengths. In the ground state (GS), the amplitude of the slow component was negligible and the fast dominant gain recovery time was 0.7 ps. In the excited state (ES), the slow component was not negligible although small. The time required to recover from 90% to 10% was 2.0 ps in the GS but gradually increased to 31 ps in the ES. This finding predicts no pattern effects in the GS, but finite pattern effects in the ES.
Charge-controlled assembling of bacteriorhodopsin and semiconductor quantum dots for fluorescence resonance energy transfer-based nanophotonic applications
Authors: Bouchonville Nicolas , Molinari Michael , Sukhanova Alyona , Artemyev Mikhail , Oleinikov Vladimir A. , Troyon Michel , Nabiev Igor
Published: January 2011

The fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between quantum dots (QDs) and photochromic protein bacteriorhodopsin within its natural purple membrane (PM) is explored to monitor their assembling. It is shown that the efficiency of FRET may be controlled by variation of the surface charge and thickness of QD organic coating. Atomic force microscopy imaging revealed correlation between the surface charge of QDs and degree of their ordering on the surface of PM. The most FRET-efficient QD-PM complexes have the highest level of QDs ordering, and their assembling design may be further optimized to engineer hybrid materials with advanced biophotonic and photovoltaic properties.
Influence of composition and bottom electrode properties on the local conductivity of TiN/HfTiO2 and TiN/Ru/HfTiO2 stacks
Authors: Martin Dominik , Grube Matthias , Reinig Peter , Oberbeck Lars , Heitmann Johannes , Weber Walter M. , Mikolajick Thomas , Riechert Henning
Published: January 2011

HfTiO 2 layers of various stoichiometries where deposited by physical vapor depostion on TiN and TiN/Ru bottom electrodes (BE) in order to determine the influence of composition, conduction band offset, and BE morphology on the overall leakage current characteristics. Current-voltage spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, and conductive atomic force microscopy studies show increased leakage current and charge trapping with increased Ti content. The interplay of conduction band offset and trap density were studied. The influence of Ru bottom electrode roughness on the leakage current is higher than the influence of Ti content and low conduction band offset.
The effect of UV-assisted cleaning on the performance and stability of amorphous oxide semiconductor thin-film transistors under illumination
Authors: Park Joon Seok , Kim Tae Sang , Son Kyoung Seok , Maeng Wan-Joo , Kim Hyun-Suk , Ryu Myungkwan , Lee Sang Yoon
Published: January 2011

The effect of ultraviolet (UV) cleaning on the performance and stability of amorphous oxide transistors was evaluated. The application of UV cleaning at all process steps prior to the growth of the active layer induces relatively small threshold voltage (VT) shifts upon negative bias illumination stress (NBIS). On the other hand, additional UV cleaning right after the active growth engenders significant device degradation upon NBIS, which is manifested by severe negative VT shifts. It is suggested that the exposure of the oxide semiconductor to UV radiation is accompanied with the creation of defects that provide trapping sites for photogenerated holes.
Fano effect of metamaterial resonance in terahertz extraordinary transmission
Authors: Xiao Xiao , Wu Jinbo , Miyamaru Fumiaki , Zhang Mengying , Li Shunbo , Takeda Mitsuo W. , Wen Weijia , Sheng Ping
Published: January 2011

We show that the terahertz resonant transmission through metal hole array can be tailored by filling the holes with metamaterials. Experiment and finite difference time domain simulations show this type of resonant transmission to be induced by locally resonant modes, instead of the usual lateral surface grating mode. As the metamaterial’s local resonances can be manipulated by varying their geometric configurations, this type of resonant transmission can be tuned over a broad frequency regime that is subwavelength to the array periodicity, with a transmission profile that can also be tailored by the frequency location of the resonance. Such tunability of resonant transmission, with its attendant enhanced local field intensity in the vicinity of the aperture, may provide some potential applications.
Bacterial flagellum as a propeller and as a rudder for efficient chemotaxis
Authors: Xie Li , Altindal Tuba , Chattopadhyay Suddhashil , Wu Xiao-Lun
Published: January 2011

We investigate swimming and chemotactic behaviors of the polarly flagellated marine bacteria
Vibrio alginolyticus
in an aqueous medium. Our observations show that
V. alginolyticus
execute a cyclic, three-step (forward, reverse, and flick) swimming pattern that is distinctively different from the run–tumble pattern adopted by
Escherichia coli
. Specifically, the bacterium backtracks its forward swimming path when the motor reverses. However, upon resuming forward swimming, the flagellum flicks and a new swimming direction is selected at random. In a chemically homogeneous medium (no attractant or repellent), the consecutive forward
t

f

and backward
t

b

swimming times are uncorrelated. Interestingly, although
t

f

and
t

b

are not distributed in a Poissonian fashion, their difference Δ
t
 = |
t

f

 - 
t

b

| is. Near a point source of attractant, on the other hand,
t

f

and
t

b

are found to be strongly correlated, and Δ
t
obeys a bimodal distribution. These observations indicate that
V. alginolyticus
exploit the time-reversal symmetry of forward and backward swimming by using the time difference to regulate their chemotactic behavior. By adopting the three-step cycle, cells of
V. alginolyticus
are able to quickly respond to a chemical gradient as well as to localize near a point source of attractant.
Rare excitatory amino acid from flowers of zonal geranium responsible for paralyzing the Japanese beetle
Authors: Ranger Christopher M. , Winter Rudolph E. , Singh Ajay P. , Reding Michael E. , Frantz Jonathan M. , Locke James C. , Krause Charles R.
Published: January 2011

The Japanese beetle (JB),
Popillia japonica
, exhibits rapid paralysis after consuming flower petals of zonal geranium,
Pelargonium
x
hortorum
. Activity-guided fractionations were conducted with polar flower petal extracts from
P.
x
hortorum
cv. Nittany Lion Red, which led to the isolation of a paralysis-inducing compound. High-resolution–MS and NMR (
1
H,
13
C, COSY, heteronuclear sequential quantum correlation, heteronuclear multiple bond correlation) analysis identified the paralytic compound as quisqualic acid (C
5
H
7
N
3
O
5
), a known but rare agonist of excitatory amino acid receptors. Optical rotation measurements and chiral HPLC analysis determined an
l
-configuration. Geranium-derived and synthetic
l
-quisqualic acid demonstrated the same positive paralytic dose–response. Isolation of a neurotoxic, excitatory amino acid from zonal geranium establishes the phytochemical basis for induced paralysis of the JB, which had remained uncharacterized since the phenomenon was first described in 1920.
T-helper cell type 2 (Th2) memory T cell-potentiating cytokine IL-25 has the potential to promote angiogenesis in asthma
Authors: Corrigan Chris J. , Wang Wei , Meng Qiu , Fang Cailong , Wu Huifen , Reay Victoria , Lv Ze , Fan Yiqiang , An Yunqing , Wang Yui-Hsi , Liu Yong-Jun , Lee Tak H. , Ying Sun
Published: January 2011

IL-25 (IL-17E) is a T-helper cell type 2 (Th2) cytokine best described as a potentiator of Th2 memory responses. Reports of expression of its receptor, IL-25R, on airways structural cells suggest a wider role for IL-25 in remodeling. We hypothesized that IL-25 stimulates local angiogenesis in the asthmatic bronchial mucosa. Immunoreactive IL-25
+
, IL-25R
+
, and CD31
+
(endothelial) cells in sections of bronchial biopsies from asthmatics and controls were detected by immunohistochemistry. The effect of IL-25 on angiogenesis was examined using an in vitro assay. Real-time PCR was used to detect expression of IL-25R and VEGF mRNA in cultured human vascular endothelial cells (HUVEC), and a cell proliferation kit (WST-8) was used to measure the effect of IL-25 on HUVEC proliferation. Immunostaining showed that IL-25
+
, IL-25R
+
, and CD31
+
/IL-25R
+
cells were significantly elevated in the bronchial mucosa of asthmatics compared with controls (
P
< 0.003). In asthmatics, the numbers of IL-25
+
cells correlated inversely with the forced expiratory volume in 1 s (
r
= −0.639;
P
= 0.01). In vitro, HUVEC constitutively expressed IL-25R, which was up-regulated further by TNF-α. IL-25 and TNF-α also increased expression of VEGF and VEGF receptors. IL-25 increased HUVEC proliferation and the number, length, and area of microvessel structures in a concentration-dependent manner in vitro. VEGF blockade, the PI3K-specific inhibitor LY294002, and the MAPK/ERK1/2 (MEK1/2)-specific inhibitor U0126 all markedly attenuated IL-25–induced angiogenesis, and the inhibitors also reduced IL-25–induced proliferation and VEGF expression. Our findings suggest that IL-25 is elevated in asthma and contributes to angiogenesis, at least partly by increasing endothelial cell VEGF/VEGF receptor expression through PI3K/Akt and Erk/MAPK pathways.
Brusatol enhances the efficacy of chemotherapy by inhibiting the Nrf2-mediated defense mechanism
Authors: Ren Dongmei , Villeneuve Nicole F. , Jiang Tao , Wu Tongde , Lau Alexandria , Toppin Henry A. , Zhang Donna D.
Published: January 2011

The major obstacle in cancer treatment is the resistance of cancer cells to therapies. Nrf2 is a transcription factor that regulates a cellular defense response and is ubiquitously expressed at low basal levels in normal tissues due to Keap1-dependent ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation. Recently, Nrf2 has emerged as an important contributor to chemoresistance. High constitutive expression of Nrf2 was found in many types of cancers, creating an environment conducive for cancer cell survival. Here, we report the identification of brusatol as a unique inhibitor of the Nrf2 pathway that sensitizes a broad spectrum of cancer cells and A549 xenografts to cisplatin and other chemotherapeutic drugs. Mechanistically, brusatol selectively reduces the protein level of Nrf2 through enhanced ubiquitination and degradation of Nrf2. Consequently, expression of Nrf2-downstream genes is reduced and the Nrf2-dependent protective response is suppressed. In A549 xenografts, brusatol and cisplatin cotreatment induced apoptosis, reduced cell proliferation, and inhibited tumor growth more substantially when compared with cisplatin treatment alone. Additionally, A549-K xenografts, in which Nrf2 is expressed at very low levels due to ectopic expression of Keap1, do not respond to brusatol treatment, demonstrating that brusatol-mediated sensitization to cisplatin is Nrf2 dependent. Moreover, a decrease in drug detoxification and impairment in drug removal may be the primary mechanisms by which brusatol enhances the efficacy of chemotherapeutic drugs. Taken together, these results clearly demonstrate the effectiveness of using brusatol to combat chemoresistance and suggest that brusatol can be developed into an adjuvant chemotherapeutic drug.
Impaired hippocampal spinogenesis and neurogenesis and altered affective behavior in mice lacking heat shock factor 1
Authors: Uchida Shusaku , Hara Kumiko , Kobayashi Ayumi , Fujimoto Mitsuaki , Otsuki Koji , Yamagata Hirotaka , Hobara Teruyuki , Abe Naoko , Higuchi Fumihiro , Shibata Tomohiko , Hasegawa Shunsuke , Kida Satoshi , Nakai Akira , Watanabe Yoshifumi
Published: January 2011

Aberrant transcriptional regulation in the brain is thought to be one of the key components of the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of neuropsychiatric disorders. Heat shock factors (HSFs) modulate cellular homeostasis through the control of gene expression. However, the roles of HSFs in brain function have yet to be elucidated fully. In the present study, we attempted to clarify the role of HSF1-mediated gene regulation in neuronal and behavioral development using HSF1-deficient (HSF1
−/−
) mice. We found granule neurons of aberrant morphology and impaired neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus of HSF1
−/−
mice. In addition, HSF1
−/−
mice showed aberrant affective behavior, including reduced anxiety and sociability but increased depression-like behavior and aggression. Furthermore, HSF1 deficiency enhanced behavioral vulnerability to repeated exposure to restraint stress. Importantly, rescuing the HSF1 deficiency in the neonatal but not the adult hippocampus reversed the aberrant anxiety and depression-like behaviors. These results indicate a crucial role for hippocampal HSF1 in neuronal and behavioral development. Analysis of the molecular mechanisms revealed that HSF1 directly modulates the expression of polysialyltransferase genes, which then modulate polysialic acid–neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM) levels in the hippocampus. Enzymatic removal of PSA from the neonatal hippocampus resulted in aberrant behavior during adulthood, similar to that observed in HSF1
−/−
mice. Thus, these results suggest that one role of HSF1 is to control hippocampal PSA-NCAM levels through the transcriptional regulation of polysialyltransferases, a process that might be involved in neuronal and behavioral development in mice.
Ligand binding to protein-binding pockets with wet and dry regions
Authors: Wang Lingle , Berne B. J. , Friesner R. A.
Published: January 2011

Biological processes often depend on protein–ligand binding events, yet accurate calculation of the associated energetics remains as a significant challenge of central importance to structure-based drug design. Recently, we have proposed that the displacement of unfavorable waters by the ligand, replacing them with groups complementary to the protein surface, is the principal driving force for protein–ligand binding, and we have introduced the WaterMap method to account this effect. However, in spite of the adage “nature abhors vacuum,” one can occasionally observe situations in which a portion of the receptor active site is so unfavorable for water molecules that a void is formed there. In this paper, we demonstrate that the presence of dry regions in the receptor has a nontrivial effect on ligand binding affinity, and suggest that such regions may represent a general motif for molecular recognition between the dry region in the receptor and the hydrophobic groups in the ligands. With the introduction of a term attributable to the occupation of the dry regions by ligand atoms, combined with the WaterMap calculation, we obtain excellent agreement with experiment for the prediction of relative binding affinities for a number of congeneric ligand series binding to the major urinary protein receptor. In addition, WaterMap when combined with the cavity contribution is more predictive than at least one specific implementation [Abel R, Young T, Farid R, Berne BJ, Friesner RA (2008)J Am Chem Soc130:2817–2831] of the popular MM-GBSA approach to binding affinity calculation.
T-cell receptor ligation induces distinct signaling pathways in naïve vs. antigen-experienced T cells
Authors: Adachi Keishi , Davis Mark M.
Published: January 2011

Naïve T lymphocytes display weaker and slower responses than antigen-experienced cells for reasons that are not well understood. Here we show that T-cell receptor (TCR) stimulation induces distinct ERK and p38 phosphorylation patterns in naïve and antigen-experienced human T cells, and that these contribute to the differential responses shown by these cells. Specifically, TCR ligation triggers the activation of the ERK pathway in naïve cells. This phosphorylation of ERK attenuates subsequent calcium influx and accelerates the degradation of the signalsome. In contrast, anti-CD3 stimulation of experienced cells results in the phosphorylation of p38 via an association with Discs large (Dlg). Thus, there are distinct signaling pathways triggered by TCR ligation that impair signaling in naïve cells and facilitate it in antigen-experienced cells.
MicroRNA-15a and -16-1 act via MYB to elevate fetal hemoglobin expression in human trisomy 13
Authors: Sankaran Vijay G. , Menne Tobias F. , Šćepanović Danilo , Vergilio Jo-Anne , Ji Peng , Kim Jinkuk , Thiru Prathapan , Orkin Stuart H. , Lander Eric S. , Lodish Harvey F.
Published: January 2011

Many human aneuploidy syndromes have unique phenotypic consequences, but in most instances it is unclear whether these phenotypes are attributable to alterations in the dosage of specific genes. In human trisomy 13, there is delayed switching and persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HbF) and elevation of embryonic hemoglobin in newborns. Using partial trisomy cases, we mapped this trait to chromosomal band 13q14; by examining the genes in this region, two microRNAs, miR-15a and -16-1, appear as top candidates for the elevated HbF levels. Indeed, increased expression of these microRNAs in primary human erythroid progenitor cells results in elevated fetal and embryonic hemoglobin gene expression. Moreover, we show that a direct target of these microRNAs,
MYB
, plays an important role in silencing the fetal and embryonic hemoglobin genes. Thus we demonstrate how the developmental regulation of a clinically important human trait can be better understood through the genetic and functional study of aneuploidy syndromes and suggest that miR-15a, -16-1, and MYB may be important therapeutic targets to increase HbF levels in patients with sickle cell disease and β-thalassemia.
The combinatorial-connectionist debate and the pragmatics of adjectives
Authors: Lahav Ran
Published: January 2011

Within the controversy between the combinatorial and the connectionist approaches to cognition it has been argued that our semantic and syntactic capacities provide evidence for the combinatorial approach. In this paper I offer a counter-weight to this argument by pointing out that the same type of considerations, when applied to the pragmatics of adjectives, provide evidence for connectionism.
Sapir, Reichenbach, and the syntax of tense in Pirahã
Authors: Everett Daniel L.
Published: January 2011

This paper investigates temporal interpretations in Pirahâ, a Muran language spoken in the Brazilian Amazon basin. The analysis assumes the neoReichen-bachian model of tense syntax proposed in Hornstein (1990) and argues that this model provides an elegant account of tense-related facts in Pirahâ, iff it is parametrized. Whereas Hornstein predicts that all tense systems will have a temporal reference point (R), this paper argues that languages may be parametrized as [+R] or [-R] and that this has important implications for their temporal syntax. Moreover, the paper also argues that it is no coincidence that the Pirahâ place little importance on precision time statements, or that the Pirahâ have difficulty translating such statements, since their language does not draw temporal distinctions based on R. The parametrization of R among the Pirahâ is argued to offer anew source of support for Sapir's linguistic relativity hypothesis.
Lenaťs creativity
Authors: Swann Andrew
Published: January 2011

Lenat has come to the conclusion that his celebrated computer programs, AM and Eurisko, despite impressive achievements, ultimately f ail as creative discovery systems. The paper discusses Lenaťs various attempts to model sustainable creative intelligence, primarily within the paradigm of symbolic processing. Lenaťs current approach requires a larger knowledge base than that of his previous efforts, and in fact Lenat hopes that his new system, Cyc, will have achieved a human breadth and depth of knowledge in the relatively near future. It is concluded that the Cyc project should be extremely important f or future A.I. research, making a significant contribution to the connectionist/symbolist debate.
The constitutive rule of a round table
Authors: Amel Rodica
Published: January 2011

'What is the dialogical way to episteme?' and 'What chances has a commentary to approach correctly this question? ' constitute the author's problems in presenting and discussing the collective volume (On) Searle on Conversation. The contributors — along with Searle and the author of this essay — are involved in a discussion about discussion, whose constitutive norms are examined. In order to reduce the 'staging' distance between the critical act and the object of criticism, some of the analyzed concepts are transformed into analytical instruments.
The intentional and the socio-cultural in language use
Authors: Nuyts Jan
Published: January 2011

This paper is a contribution to the recent debate between a number of anthropologists and philosophers concerning the role of intentions in a theory of verbal behavior. It reviews a number of arguments put forward by ethno- and anthro-polinguists against the intention-centered view of human behavior common in current cognitively oriented language research, and typically represented in John Searle's theory of intentionality and of speech acts. It is argued that these arguments do not affect the assumption that intentions are always and necessarily present in (verbal) behavior (they are based on a much too simplistic view of intentionality), but they do show that intentions as such are insufficient to understand (verbal) behavior. These matters are discussed against the background of Searle's theory of intentionality.
Look, Ma! No Frans!
Authors: Wreen Michael J.
Published: January 2011

This paper criticizes the pragma-dialectical conception of a fallacy, according to which a fallacy is an argumentative speech act which violates one or more of the rules of 'rational discussion'. That conception is found to be neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for committing a fallacy. It is also found wanting in several other respects.
Pragmatic considerations in semantic analyses
Authors: Manor Ruth
Published: January 2011

In this paper I argue against a sharp separation of semantics from pragmatics. While it may be useful to consider semantics independently of pragmatics, in some cases this strategy may lead us astray. First, I make a methodological point. Competing semantic analyses are often presented as supported by competing semantic intuitions of native speakers. Functional considerations are pragmatic considerations which should affect our choice of semantics. These are inferences from the linguistic goals the speakers actually achieve to the meanings their expressions must therefore have. Second, there are linguistic expressions whose semantic (literal) meaning is a function of their pragmatic uses.
I consider two examples. First, the logicians' debate over the universal analysis of conditionals in natural language. The participants in the debate all ignore conditional forms other than the assertoric and subjunctive. In particular they ignore the conditional speech-act reading. The meaning of the conditional is related to its function: to restrict the commitment of a given speech-act to special conditions. A functional proof of the existence of such conditionals (even in the assertoric mood) is given, thus showing that the different semantics account only for part of the relevant facts. The second example concerns vague terms. I claim that one of their main uses is to help us identify objects by reference not to their absolute properties but relative to their background. This function cannot be performed by the use of non-vague terms. Vague terms are context dependent and may in some contexts be used non-vaguely and refer to distinct objects in the discourse domain. In a way, what these terms end up denoting is a function of the use of predicates to partition a given domain.
On Wallace Chafe's "How consciousness shapes language"
Authors: Allwood Jens
Published: January 2011

It is argued that Wallace Chafe's approach of relating studies of mind and consciousness to studies of real spoken language interaction is precisely what is needed in linguistics and psycholinguistics. However, the way Chafe attempts to establish the link between spoken language and consciousness is, in several respects, in need of clarification. The paper critically examines several of Chafe's claims and points to areas — e.g., the notions of 'consciousness', 'intonation unit', and 'new idea' — where clarification or possible revision is needed.
Unconscious gaps in Jackendoff 's "How language helps us think"?
Authors: Barnden John A.
Published: January 2011

Jackendoff comes to some appealing overall conclusions, but several of his assumptions and arguments are questionable. The present commentary points out the following problems: oversimplifications in the translation-based argument for the independence of language and thought; a lack of consideration of the possibility of unconscious use of internalized natural languages; insufficient consideration of possible characteristics of languages of thought (as opposed to internalized natural languages); neglect of the possibility of thinking in example-oriented and metaphorical ways; unfair bias in contrasting visual to linguistic imagery; neglect of other types of imagery; and neglect of the possibility of unconscious attentional processes.
Ray Jackendoff's phenomenology of language as a refutation of the 'appendage' theory of consciousness
Authors: Ellis Ralph D.
Published: January 2011

Since Jackendoff has shown that language facilitates abstract and complex thought by making possible subtle manipulations of the focus of attention, and since the kind of attention relevant here is attention to aspects of intentional objects in conscious awareness, it follows that the abstract and complex thinking that language facilitates owes much to the working of a conscious process. This, however, conflicts with Jackendoff's view of consciousness as something which does not play a direct part in thinking, but is only a byproduct of a non-conscious computational process in the brain which does the real thinking. I argue that, since Jackendoff s phenomenology of language shows that attention plays such an important part in thinking, yet language can help us attend only to what we are conscious of consciousness does play an important part in thinking. Moreover, consciousness cannot be merely an epiphenomenal byproduct separable in principle from underlying physical mechanisms, because this would imply that consciousness itself is not physical, which would lead to dualism. But if consciousness is inseparable from its physiological substratum, then it also causes whatever effects the physiological substratum causes.
Language and the mind
Authors: Peeters Bert
Published: January 2011

The distinction between I- and E-concepts, derived from Chomsky's (1986) distinction between I- and E-language, has become an integral part of Jackendoff's conceptual semantics. Where, if at all, are they to be found in the model of the mind proposed in Jackendoff's core paper, i.e., in which of the three rings? How do they relate to the idea of I- and E-values, independently proposed by myself (but similarly inspired) in the framework of a theory of lexical semantics known as conceptual axiology? Where in the mind, if at all, are the latter to be found? I will argue that something is missing both in Jackendoff's conceptual semantics and in his picture of the mind: he fails to distinguish between meanings, values and concepts, and talks instead about "conceptual structure "—which presumably belongs to the conscious mind, and to it alone. In an attempt to bring values and concepts together in a comprehensive picture, I will point to the similarities between sensory and linguistic input, and provide details relating to the act of communication as I have come to see it throughout the years.
Utterance meaning and syntactic ellipsis
Authors: Stainton Robert J.
Published: January 2011

Speakers often use ordinary words and phrases, unembedded in any sentence, to perform speech acts—or so it appears. In some cases appearances are deceptive: The seemingly lexical/phrasal utterance may really be an utterance of a syntactically eplliptical sentence. I argue however that, at least sometimes, plain old words and phrases are used on their own. The use of both words/phrases and elliptical sentences leads to two consequences: 1. Context must contribute more to utterance meaning than is often supposed. Here's why: The semantic type of normal words and phrases is non-proppositional, even after the usual contextual features are added (e.g., reference assignment and disambiguation). Yet an utterance of a word/phrase can be fully propositional. 2. Often, a hearer does not need to know the exact identity of the expression uttered, to understand an utterance. The reason: Typically, words/phrases in context will sound the same, and mean the same, as some elliptical sentence token.
The availability of conventional and of literal meaning during the comprehension of proverbs
Authors: Turner Nigel E. , Katz Albert
Published: January 2011

The confusion between sentential figurativeness and conventionality found in many of the experiments on figurative language comprehension is here disentangled by factorially crossing the figurativeness of a proverb (determined by discourse context) with conventionality (determined by familiarity of use). Familiar proverbs are conventionally used in their figurative (and not literal) sense whereas for unfamiliar proverbs the literal meaning (and not the figurative sense) is more available. Multiple dependent measures were employed: the time taken to read the target (experiments 1, 2 and 3), incidental recognition tests of target (experiments 1 and 2), recognition errors (experiments 1 and 2), interpretation errors (experiment 2), and recall aided by context-appropriate or inappropriate cues (experiment 3). Reading time data indicated that unfamiliar proverbs used figuratively took longer to read than the same proverb used literally or literal paraphrase controls. Familiar proverbs were read equally fast, whether understood as a literal or figurative statement. The pattern of memory errors and cued-recall data indicate that conventional meaning and literal meaning are both available in context-appropriate and context-inappropriate conditions, whereas unconventional meaning is available only in context-appropriate conditions.
Children's evaluation of computer-generated punning riddles
Authors: Binsted Kim , Pain Helen , Ritchie Graeme D.
Published: January 2011

We have developed a formal model of certain types of riddles, and implemented it in a computer program, JAPE, which generates simple punning riddles. In order to test the model, we evaluated the behaviour of the program, by having 120 children aged eight to eleven years old rate JAPE-generated texts, human-generated texts, and non-joke texts for "jokiness" and funniness. This confirmed that JAPE's output texts are indeed jokes, and that there is no significant difference in funniness or jokiness between JAPE"s most comprehensible texts and published human-generated jokes.
What are referring expressions? How do we recognize them?
Authors: Jørgensen Stig W.
Published: January 2011

The term 'referring expression' is often used without definition, and models of referring usually ignore the question of how NP's are recognized as referring expressions in discourse. In this paper, I review some relevant distinctions from the research in generics and, on that basis, provide a definition of referring expressions as specific and non-kind-referring noun phrases. I discuss some complications to the definition. Using Kronfeld's model of referring as my framework, I discuss the interaction of the recognition of referring expressions and the recognition of relevant identification criteria. I propose that all present suggestions for identification constraints fall into three groups, and argue that the recognition of referring expressions always depends on the recognition of some identification constraints. On this basis, I extend the framework with procedural information.
Reference and definite referring expressions
Authors: Epstein Richard
Published: January 2011

Definite referring expressions have been studied almost exclusively with respect to their ability to uniquely identify objects. Based on examples of NPs with the drawn from naturally occurring texts, I argue that definite referring expressions serve other functions, as well — they indicate the prominence of a referent, the referent's status as a role function (rather than an individual) or the viewpoint from which the referent is presented. All of this information contributes to the construction of discourse referents and is therefore part of the speech act of referring. In general, speakers do not talk about objects in a neutral fashion, but rather attempt to induce addressees to accept them into the discourse under different guises. Thus, the notion of a successful reference cannot be restricted to cases in which an object is uniquely identified.
Reference
Authors: Knobloch Clemens
Published: January 2011

This paper investigates the gradual transformation of prelinguistic joint attention routines into resources of referential communication. It is argued that the child uses linguistic means of reference to recode and re-represent joint attention procedures in various ways. While semanticists stress the fact that pronouns, proper nouns, and definite descriptions may refer to the same entity, various modes of establishing, identifying and tracking discourse referents are considered here to be structural amplifications of joint attention routines, actively reorganized by the child in language acquisition.
Children's use of contextual cues to resolve referential ambiguity
Authors: Bezuidenhout Anne , Sroda Mary Sue
Published: January 2011

Researchers interested in children's understanding of mind have claimed that the ability to ascribe beliefs and intentions is a late development, occurring well after children have learned to speak and comprehend the speech of others. On the other hand, there are convincing arguments to show that verbal communication requires the ability to attribute beliefs and intentions. Hence if one accepts the findings from research into children's understanding of mind, one should predict that young children will have severe difficulties in verbal communication. Conversely, if this prediction fails, this casts doubt on the claim that young children lack meta-representational skills. Using insights from Relevance Theory, an experiment was designed to test children's ability to recover a speaker's intended referent in situations in which the speaker's words underdetermine the referent. Results suggest that children's skills are comparable to those of untutored adults in similar situations. Thus this study indirectly casts doubt on the claim that young children lack meta-representational skills.
Aesthetics and pragmatics
Authors: Mandoki Katya
Published: January 2011

Illocutionary force may be qualified according to Aristotle's classical triadic distinction of logos as a degree of verity, ethos as a degree of credibility or authority and pathos as eloquence or passional intensity. Jakobson 's model of linguistic functions can be understood as operating performatively with greater advantages to pragmatic theory than Searle and Vanderveken's taxonomy of illocutionary acts. Consequently, these three dimensions can also be found in the aesthetic as in other linguistic functions proposed by Jakobson when examined from a pragmatic viewpoint. By detecting the direction of fit and establishing a distinction between conversion and constitution, we may better understand not only the difference between the aesthetic and other functions but a variety of instances besides the artistic in which the aesthetic is displayed. Therefore, pathos can be clearly differentiated from the aesthetic as a dimension that may weigh, together with logos and ethos, upon the aesthetic function of an illocutionary act.
Lakoff's roads not taken
Authors: Tsur Reuven
Published: January 2011

This paper is a critique of George Lakoff's theory and practice as presented in his "Contemporary Theory of Metaphor" (Lakoff 1993). It addresses the issue on several planes, on each plane comparing Lakoff's approach to some alternative. The highest plane, affording the widest perspective, concerns two approaches to interpretation and scientific thinking: one that relies on a pre-established set of meanings, and one that assumes that "all the work remains to be done in each particular case ". The two approaches involve different cognitive strategies, rapid and delayed conceptualization. Another plane concerns the cognitive explanation for using spatial images in metaphoric and symbolic processes. Here the "embodied-mind hypothesis" is confronted with the "efficient-coding hypothesis". It is argued that the latter is more adequate, and can better account for the mental flexibility required for "delayed conceptualization ". On the third plane, Lakoff's "Contemporary Theory of Metaphor" is compared to Beardsley's "Controversion Theory of Metaphor". I will assert that precisely in those respects in which Lakoff claims superiority for his theory it is inferior to Beardsley's. On the most concrete plane, Lakoff's handling of three texts is considered, two literary and one nonliter-ary. It is argued that in two cases Lakoff's conceptual apparatus is less than adequate to handle the arising problems; in the third case it allows him to say about the text exactly what every critic would have said about it for the past seven hundred years.
Prelinguistic metaphors?
Authors: Bejarano Teresa
Published: January 2011

The gap between the prelinguistic and the linguistic levels cannot be bridged as easily as Lakoff's cognitive linguistics suggests. Lakoff's event structure metaphor is reviewed here. Compared with physical movement, the bringing together of separated elements which occurs in predication would not be metaphorical only because it departs from concrete physical experience, but, more significantly, because it relies on elements artificially separated by means of language. However, if we do not overlook this fundamental leap, the event structure metaphor is a good tool to understand how predication takes place, and its application is even wider than Lakoff suggests.
The Syntax of Cleft Sentences in Berber
Authors: Ennaji Moha , Sadiqi Fatima
Published: January 2011

This paper claims that the cleft sentence in Berber has many interesting aspects of both the simple and the complex sentences; however, this construction seems to derive from the basic simple sentence rather than from the complex sentence, since it involves just one main verb and behaves like an S, and not like an NP.
The pragmatic implications of the cleft sentence reveal that the clefted constituents are generally contrasted with other constituents of the same structural status in some previous discourse.
It is also argued that a WH-movement analysis of the cleft construction is intuitively plausible since clefting involves constituents being moved to the initial position of the sentence.
The aim of this paper is to give a syntactic description of the cleft sentence in Berber.1 The reason for undertaking this study is that clefts in Berber pose interesting problems in terms of their structural possibilities, their pragmatic effect and their possible derivation.
Discourse Pressure, Genre and Grammatical Alignment — After Du Bois
Authors: O'Dowd Elizabeth
Published: January 2011

This study adds a genre dimension to the findings of Du Bois (1987) concerning the discourse basis of grammatical patterns. Although Du Bois' and other studies have ascertained that a pressure toward ergative patterning exists even in nominative-accusative languages, I hypothesized that this pressure is a function of narrative discourse, which was the focus of those studies; and that a different genre may motivate a different grammatical alignment as new information is introduced. This study tests the hypothesis in the context of an orally-delivered paramedical training session.
Classifiers, Quantifiers and Class Nouns in Hmong
Authors: Bisang Walter
Published: January 2011

Four operations of nominal concretization are crucial for presenting a typology of classifier languages: individualization, classification, relationalization (possession), and referentialization. The first three of these operations are at work in the Hmong classifier system. The development of classifiers is described in connection with the degree of grammaticalization which will be measured by the three parameters of [± exact], [± entity], and cohesion. These parameters will be arranged in a three-dimensional continuum (cf. Fig. II.) which leads to the following evolutional steps of increasing grammaticalization: nouns, class nouns, quantifiers, intrinsic quantifiers (to be defined in the present article), and classifiers.
Peculiarities of Passives of Reflexives in German
Authors: Plank Frans
Published: January 2011

Cross-linguistically unusual though it is for active clauses with reflexive pronouns as objects to be passivizable, German does permit such passives. Passives with reflexives, widely neglected in German grammar, are examined against the backdrop of purportedly general constraints on the control of reflexive pronouns and on relational interchanges in passivization. As to control, reflexive pronouns in passives appear to be under split control, with semantic and morphosyntactic controllers (active subjects and passive dummy subjects, respectively) not coinciding. As to relational interchanges, passives with reflexive pronouns are prone to lack exemplary subjects despite the presence of potentially subjectivizable objects in corresponding active constructions, with case marking and verb-agreement not necessarily operating in tandem.
The Relationship of Inverse Voice and Head-Marking in Arizona Tewa and Other Tanoan Languages
Authors: Klaiman M.H.
Published: January 2011

The term 'inverse' has traditionally referred to voice systems characterized by alternations of verbal voice marking, alternations that depend on the relative ontologicai salience of the two core arguments of a transitive animate verb, the logical subject and logical object. In typical inverse languages, speech-act participant (SAP) arguments (1,2 person) ontologically outrank non-SAP arguments (3d person), a fact that is grammatically encoded by 1:3 and 2:3 predications assigning one verbal voice ('direct') while 3:1 and 3:2 predications assign the other voice ('inverse'). 3:3 predications are potentially ambiguous, a problem addressed in some inverse systems by 3d person arguments with relatively low ontologicai salience being assigned a special case, the obviative (4th person).
The present work addresses the question whether inverseness may be evinced through formal means other than alternations in verbal voice marking. It is argued that this occurs in a Tanoan (Kiowa-Tanoan) language, Arizona Tewa (AT). In AT transitive animate predications, an opposition in paradigms of person-marking verbal prefixes occurs such that one pronominal paradigm is assigned in case of a direct predication (logical subject ontologically outranks logical object), while the other paradigm is assigned in case of an inverse predication (logical object ontologically outranks logical subject). In effect, then, AT has separate direct and inverse pronominal paradigms; these encode the voice alternations, rather than oppositions of verbal voice marking per se. It is argued that an inverse analysis is both appropriate for AT and, in addition, applicable to at least some other Tanoan languages, such as Picurís and Southern Tiwa.
On Factivity, Emotivity and Choice of Conjunction in Yiddish
Authors: Taube Moshe
Published: January 2011

Modern Yiddish has two subordinating conjunctions introducing complement clauses, az and wos, the latter being an innovation, functionally inspired by Slavic. Our study deals with the distribution of the two conjunctions and with the factors influencing that distribution. We observe that wos is confined to a semantically marked subgroup of factive complement clauses, namely that of factives-emotives.