Lexical typology, a new integrated approach to semantics: a reciprocal case study. This proposal will bring out Professor Leila Behrens (U. Cologne), one of the co-founders of a new approach to linguistics, Lexical Typology, which looks at how all of a language's expressive components interact, instead of just focussing on one element such as grammar or vocabulary. With the CI she will develop this theory further, with respect to the expression of reciprocal relationships in English, German, Hun ....Lexical typology, a new integrated approach to semantics: a reciprocal case study. This proposal will bring out Professor Leila Behrens (U. Cologne), one of the co-founders of a new approach to linguistics, Lexical Typology, which looks at how all of a language's expressive components interact, instead of just focussing on one element such as grammar or vocabulary. With the CI she will develop this theory further, with respect to the expression of reciprocal relationships in English, German, Hungarian, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Indonesian, and the Australian Aboriginal languages Kayardild, Bininj Gun-wok and Dalabon.Read moreRead less
Exploring the nature of lexical representation. In order to comprehend and produce the words that we know, whether in speech or in writing, we must possess mental representations of each of those words (i.e., "lexical" representations). The aim of the proposed research is to elaborate on the nature of these representations in an attempt to understand more fully the cognitive mechanisms involved in proficient language use. The central idea to be explored is that underlying all lexical functioning ....Exploring the nature of lexical representation. In order to comprehend and produce the words that we know, whether in speech or in writing, we must possess mental representations of each of those words (i.e., "lexical" representations). The aim of the proposed research is to elaborate on the nature of these representations in an attempt to understand more fully the cognitive mechanisms involved in proficient language use. The central idea to be explored is that underlying all lexical functioning is an abstract phonological representation that is influenced by orthography. Furthermore, the possibility will be examined that poorer readers possess less abstract representations than do better readers.Read moreRead less
Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM): formalisation, computation, referential semantics. Meaning is what links language with culture, communication and cognition but strangely enough, most linguists do not regard semantics (the systematic study of meaning) as a central part of their discipline. This project pursues basic research in the leading meaning-based theory of language: the natural semantic metalanguage (NSM) theory, which has been originated and developed primarily in Australia. It aims ....Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM): formalisation, computation, referential semantics. Meaning is what links language with culture, communication and cognition but strangely enough, most linguists do not regard semantics (the systematic study of meaning) as a central part of their discipline. This project pursues basic research in the leading meaning-based theory of language: the natural semantic metalanguage (NSM) theory, which has been originated and developed primarily in Australia. It aims to make this theory more precise, to work out how it can be used by computers, and to connect it with other, more mathematically inspired approaches to meaning.Read moreRead less
The effects of sentence structure on consonant and vowel articulations. Whilst machine-generated speech is generally of good quality at the level of the single word, it is noticeably less natural-sounding at the level of the sentence. This project examines an important aspect of the naturalness of human speech, namely, the effect that sentence structure has on individual consonants and vowels. A break-down of this naturalness is seen in some speakers who have suffered traumatic brain injury: suc ....The effects of sentence structure on consonant and vowel articulations. Whilst machine-generated speech is generally of good quality at the level of the single word, it is noticeably less natural-sounding at the level of the sentence. This project examines an important aspect of the naturalness of human speech, namely, the effect that sentence structure has on individual consonants and vowels. A break-down of this naturalness is seen in some speakers who have suffered traumatic brain injury: such speakers perform well when asked to utter a short word, but struggle when asked to produce a longer string of sounds. A better understanding of the interaction between speech sounds and sentence structure will lead to improvements in the treatment of speech disorders, and in the quality of human-machine communication.Read moreRead less
Language processing in children with high functioning autism: Evidence from eye tracking. The language abilities in people with autism predict their response to intervention and their cognitive outcome. Young children with autism with poor language abilities are severely disadvantaged. Yet we understand little about what impedes their language development and their interpretation of what others say. The research findings will make a significant contribution by enriching our understanding of why ....Language processing in children with high functioning autism: Evidence from eye tracking. The language abilities in people with autism predict their response to intervention and their cognitive outcome. Young children with autism with poor language abilities are severely disadvantaged. Yet we understand little about what impedes their language development and their interpretation of what others say. The research findings will make a significant contribution by enriching our understanding of why and how comprehension may go astray, as well as helping us to identify subgroups within the autism population.Read moreRead less
Is reading automatic?: Investigating hypnotic elimination of the Stroop effect. Reading in literate people is often characterised as automatic; it cannot be prevented. Recent findings indicate however that hypnotic suggestion may prevent reading. This project: (1) investigates hypnotic elimination/modulation of automatic reading, (2) determines whether these effects arise either because reading does not occur under hypnotic suggestion or because suggestion leads to rapid inhibition of the resul ....Is reading automatic?: Investigating hypnotic elimination of the Stroop effect. Reading in literate people is often characterised as automatic; it cannot be prevented. Recent findings indicate however that hypnotic suggestion may prevent reading. This project: (1) investigates hypnotic elimination/modulation of automatic reading, (2) determines whether these effects arise either because reading does not occur under hypnotic suggestion or because suggestion leads to rapid inhibition of the results of the reading process, and (3) determines which components of the cognitive system can and cannot be affected by hypnotic suggestion. This project provides fresh perspective on how literate people respond to printed stimuli and on the concept of automaticity in cognitive psychology.Read moreRead less
Investigation of the component distributions of pause duration in spontaneous speech: Constraints for models of language production. We have discovered that the distribution of pause durations in spontaneous speech of individual speakers can be decomposed into at least two log-normal distributions. Our project will investigate this finding and provide a foundation for new research relevant to language production models. This will be achieved by determining the semantic, lexical, psycholinguistic ....Investigation of the component distributions of pause duration in spontaneous speech: Constraints for models of language production. We have discovered that the distribution of pause durations in spontaneous speech of individual speakers can be decomposed into at least two log-normal distributions. Our project will investigate this finding and provide a foundation for new research relevant to language production models. This will be achieved by determining the semantic, lexical, psycholinguistic, physiological, and acoustic concomitants of each component distribution and by investigating the impact of selected variables on the shape and location of each. The project has important implications for models of language production and applied problems involving automatic speech recognition, forensic speaker identification, and human communication disorders.Read moreRead less
Language, belief formation and visual cognition: cognitive and neuropsychological investigations. I will direct a programme of research and research training in cognitive science and cognitive neuropsychology at macquarie universtiy, with international collaborative links to the USA, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Germany & New Zealand. This programme of research and research training will initially focus on
a)how people understand and produce language, and how these capabilities can break down ....Language, belief formation and visual cognition: cognitive and neuropsychological investigations. I will direct a programme of research and research training in cognitive science and cognitive neuropsychology at macquarie universtiy, with international collaborative links to the USA, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Germany & New Zealand. This programme of research and research training will initially focus on
a)how people understand and produce language, and how these capabilities can break down after brain damage;
b)The relationship between visual memory and reading; and
c)The nature of the delusions seen in schizophrenia and other disorders, and what causes these delusions.Read moreRead less
Papuan Descriptive Linguistics of the West Sepik Region. The New Guinea area has an exceptional, but very poorly understood linguistic diversity, over 1000 languages belonging to many unrelated families. This project will fill in gaps through on site fieldwork in Sandaun (West Sepik) Province, linguistically the most genetically diverse and least known province in all of Papua New Guinea. The grammatical descriptions resulting will enrich our understanding of linguistic variation, not only in ....Papuan Descriptive Linguistics of the West Sepik Region. The New Guinea area has an exceptional, but very poorly understood linguistic diversity, over 1000 languages belonging to many unrelated families. This project will fill in gaps through on site fieldwork in Sandaun (West Sepik) Province, linguistically the most genetically diverse and least known province in all of Papua New Guinea. The grammatical descriptions resulting will enrich our understanding of linguistic variation, not only in New Guinea, but in the world as a whole.Read moreRead less
How Strict is the Mother Tongue? Using Dialects to Probe Early Speech Perception and Word Recognition. This project will 1)advance knowledge of toddler word representations and their developmental precursors; 2) contribute to theories of phonological vs phonetic properties of spoken language; 3) explain how experience with the ambient language shapes children's phonological and lexical development. Moreover, the findings will 4) offer crucial new insights into sources of developmental disorders ....How Strict is the Mother Tongue? Using Dialects to Probe Early Speech Perception and Word Recognition. This project will 1)advance knowledge of toddler word representations and their developmental precursors; 2) contribute to theories of phonological vs phonetic properties of spoken language; 3) explain how experience with the ambient language shapes children's phonological and lexical development. Moreover, the findings will 4) offer crucial new insights into sources of developmental disorders (language delay, dyslexia) leading to improved early diagnosis and treatment; 5) bear on issues of second language learning; and by understanding the process by which young learners handle dialect variability, 6) provide insights into how automatic speech recognition systems can be made more robust to dialectal and foreign accent differences.
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