title: The nature and scope of student search strategies in using a web derived corpus for writing

authors: Franken, Margaret

subjects: online language corpus

abstract: The use of online language corpora in L2 teaching and learning is gaining momentum largely because corpora are an easily accessed source of language input that potentially provide rich and authentic lexico-grammatical data. This can be of particular use for students' writing as its incorporation can enhance the appearance of native-like fluency. We describe a particular online web-derived corpus constructed by means of digital library software, and we describe the nature of the concordancer that services it. This is a system we have named FLAX (Flexible Language Acquisition). Because the system incorporates not only a useful and authentic corpus but also linked databases, we maintain that it meets the need for an easily accessible online resource that gives explicit information about typical lexical and syntactic collocations. While online corpus-based resources are becoming more readily available, and their effective incorporation into language teaching is being documented, we seem to know little about how learners access them and make use of the results they generate. This paper reports on an exploratory investigation of the search strategies used by learners in a university general English course as they make use of FLAX, tracking the way they exploit the search results in their texts, and presenting their relevant comments about the system. In such a way, we seek to explain variation in students' use and effectiveness of search strategies to support their writing. This type of research, although exploratory, is critical if we are to acknowledge the need for students to become ‘research workers’.

text: The nature and scope of student search strategies in using a web derived corpus for writing The use of online language corpora in L2 teaching and learning is gaining momentum largely because corpora are an easily accessed source of language input that potentially provide rich and authentic lexico-grammatical data. This can be of particular use for students' writing as its incorporation can enhance the appearance of native-like fluency. We describe a particular online web-derived corpus constructed by means of digital library software, and we describe the nature of the concordancer that services it. This is a system we have named FLAX (Flexible Language Acquisition). Because the system incorporates not only a useful and authentic corpus but also linked databases, we maintain that it meets the need for an easily accessible online resource that gives explicit information about typical lexical and syntactic collocations. While online corpus-based resources are becoming more readily available, and their effective incorporation into language teaching is being documented, we seem to know little about how learners access them and make use of the results they generate. This paper reports on an exploratory investigation of the search strategies used by learners in a university general English course as they make use of FLAX, tracking the way they exploit the search results in their texts, and presenting their relevant comments about the system. In such a way, we seek to explain variation in students' use and effectiveness of search strategies to support their writing. This type of research, although exploratory, is critical if we are to acknowledge the need for students to become ‘research workers’.

year: 2012

title: The CLIMPACTS synthesis report: An assessment of the effects of climate change and variation in New Zealand using the CLIMPACTS system

authors: Warrick, Richard A.

subjects: climate change

abstract: In the late 1980s, New Zealand undertook the first national assessment of climate change and its possible impacts on the country.The landmark report, reflecting the judgement of scores of national experts, called for greater efforts in building the national research capacity in order to better quantify the range of impacts that could occur in New Zealand from climate change and variability. In response, the collaborative CLIMPACTS Programme was established to provide this capacity. Ten years on from the first national assessment, the present synthesis offers some results from, as well as a demonstration of, the capacity developed by the CLIMPACTS Programme. The purpose of the present document is to provide a summary report from the CLIMPACTS Programme on climate change and its effects on New Zealand.The chapters and their contents are not comprehensive. Rather, they are focused on a specific set of questions, which conform to the particular expertise of the CLIMPACTS Programme members and which employ a limited set of the wide range of tools available within the CLIMPACTS Model. Other important areas such as forests, indigenous ecosystems and pests and diseases are not yet covered.

text: The CLIMPACTS synthesis report: An assessment of the effects of climate change and variation in New Zealand using the CLIMPACTS system In the late 1980s, New Zealand undertook the first national assessment of climate change and its possible impacts on the country.The landmark report, reflecting the judgement of scores of national experts, called for greater efforts in building the national research capacity in order to better quantify the range of impacts that could occur in New Zealand from climate change and variability. In response, the collaborative CLIMPACTS Programme was established to provide this capacity. Ten years on from the first national assessment, the present synthesis offers some results from, as well as a demonstration of, the capacity developed by the CLIMPACTS Programme. The purpose of the present document is to provide a summary report from the CLIMPACTS Programme on climate change and its effects on New Zealand.The chapters and their contents are not comprehensive. Rather, they are focused on a specific set of questions, which conform to the particular expertise of the CLIMPACTS Programme members and which employ a limited set of the wide range of tools available within the CLIMPACTS Model. Other important areas such as forests, indigenous ecosystems and pests and diseases are not yet covered.

year: 2001-06

title: Comparative fish abundance in the shallow Waikato lakes Whangape and Hakanoa

authors: Hicks, Brendan J.

abstract: The Waikato-Tainui College for Research and Development contracted the University of Waikato to conduct boat electrofishing estimates of the fish abundance in lakes Whangape and Hakanoa; both are shallow, riverine lakes in the lower Waikato River floodplain and are about 2,000 years old. Lake Whangape (latitude 37.46853°S, longitude 175.05120°W) is a large (1,450 ha), shallow (maximum depth 2.7 m) lake to the west of the Waikato River; Lake Hakanoa (latitude 37.55258°S, longitude 175.16859°W) is a 52-ha lake in suburban Huntly with a maximum depth of 2.5 m.
We fished 10 sites for 10 mins in both lakes Whangape and Lake Hakanoa; sites fished were 253-609 m long (1,012-2,436 m² in area) in Lake Whangape and 125-276 m long (500-1,104 m² in area) in Lake Hakanoa.
No submerged aquatic macrophytes were seen in either lake. Fishing was conducted close to the water's edge in Lake Hakanoa, but the shallow margins in Lake Whangape restricted fishing at most sites to 30-70 m from the shoreline. The shoreline was much more accessible in Lake Hakanoa, and was dominated by raupo (Typha orientalis) with willows (Salix spp.) in places. Submerged tree trunks and logs in Lake Hakanoa made navigation difficult in parts of the lake margins.
We caught a total of 118 fish in Lake Whangape, where shortfin eels (Anguilla australis) were the most abundant fish, and 594 fish in Lake Hakanoa, where gambusia (Gambusia affinis) the most abundant species. In Lake Whangape, shortfin eels comprised the greatest total biomass (12.4 kg), with koi carp (Cyprinus carpio) almost equally abundant (11.4 kg). In Lake Hakanoa, koi carp were most abundant (74.4 kg), followed by shortfin eels (22.1 kg).
Fish were unevenly spread among sites in Lake Whangape and koi carp were relatively sparsely among sites. In Lake Hakanoa, in contrast, fish were more evenly spread among sites, but with higher concentrations of catfish (Ameiurus nebulosus) and goldfish (Carassius auratus) at a few sites. Biomass of fish caught in each of the ten 10-min fishing shots reflected the numerical distributions, with some wide variations between sites. Fish densities were generally lower in Lake Whangape than in Lake Hakanoa; however, common smelt (Retropinna retropinna) and grey mullet (Mugil cephalus) occurred in Whangape but not in Hakanoa. Areal fish biomass was dominated by shortfin eels and koi carp in Lake Whangape, but koi carp dominated the fish biomass in Lake Hakanoa, despite the smaller number of carp than eels. This was because of the large mean weight of koi carp (about 1,000 g) compared to the smaller shortfin eels (mean weight about 200 g in both lakes).

text: Comparative fish abundance in the shallow Waikato lakes Whangape and Hakanoa The Waikato-Tainui College for Research and Development contracted the University of Waikato to conduct boat electrofishing estimates of the fish abundance in lakes Whangape and Hakanoa; both are shallow, riverine lakes in the lower Waikato River floodplain and are about 2,000 years old. Lake Whangape (latitude 37.46853°S, longitude 175.05120°W) is a large (1,450 ha), shallow (maximum depth 2.7 m) lake to the west of the Waikato River; Lake Hakanoa (latitude 37.55258°S, longitude 175.16859°W) is a 52-ha lake in suburban Huntly with a maximum depth of 2.5 m.
We fished 10 sites for 10 mins in both lakes Whangape and Lake Hakanoa; sites fished were 253-609 m long (1,012-2,436 m² in area) in Lake Whangape and 125-276 m long (500-1,104 m² in area) in Lake Hakanoa.
No submerged aquatic macrophytes were seen in either lake. Fishing was conducted close to the water's edge in Lake Hakanoa, but the shallow margins in Lake Whangape restricted fishing at most sites to 30-70 m from the shoreline. The shoreline was much more accessible in Lake Hakanoa, and was dominated by raupo (Typha orientalis) with willows (Salix spp.) in places. Submerged tree trunks and logs in Lake Hakanoa made navigation difficult in parts of the lake margins.
We caught a total of 118 fish in Lake Whangape, where shortfin eels (Anguilla australis) were the most abundant fish, and 594 fish in Lake Hakanoa, where gambusia (Gambusia affinis) the most abundant species. In Lake Whangape, shortfin eels comprised the greatest total biomass (12.4 kg), with koi carp (Cyprinus carpio) almost equally abundant (11.4 kg). In Lake Hakanoa, koi carp were most abundant (74.4 kg), followed by shortfin eels (22.1 kg).
Fish were unevenly spread among sites in Lake Whangape and koi carp were relatively sparsely among sites. In Lake Hakanoa, in contrast, fish were more evenly spread among sites, but with higher concentrations of catfish (Ameiurus nebulosus) and goldfish (Carassius auratus) at a few sites. Biomass of fish caught in each of the ten 10-min fishing shots reflected the numerical distributions, with some wide variations between sites. Fish densities were generally lower in Lake Whangape than in Lake Hakanoa; however, common smelt (Retropinna retropinna) and grey mullet (Mugil cephalus) occurred in Whangape but not in Hakanoa. Areal fish biomass was dominated by shortfin eels and koi carp in Lake Whangape, but koi carp dominated the fish biomass in Lake Hakanoa, despite the smaller number of carp than eels. This was because of the large mean weight of koi carp (about 1,000 g) compared to the smaller shortfin eels (mean weight about 200 g in both lakes).

year: 2016