Search

Mandarin tone 3 sandhi refers to the phenomenon whereby a tone 3 syllable changes to a tone 2 when followed by another tone 3. This phonological process creates a deviation between the tonal forms realized at morphemic (/tone3—tone3/) and word ([tone2—tone3]) levels, posing questions in terms of how disyllabic tone 3 sandhi words are represented and accessed. The current study conducted three cross-modal lexical decision priming experiments to investigate this issue. Experiment 1 manipulated the frequencies of the initial morpheme and whole word, showing that the higher initial-character frequency against the whole word gives stronger activation to the underlying representation and the lower frequency of the initial character leads to stronger activation of the surface tone. Experiments 2 and 3 operationalized the relative frequency of the initial tone 3 morpheme's realization as a sandhi tone, finding that the competition between the two tonal realizations also influences how T3 sandhi words are accessed. Specifically, the more frequently the T3 morpheme surfaces as a T2 allomorph, the less activated the underlying representation becomes in the mental lexicon. Our results indicate a complex interplay between morpheme, word, and the associated tonal representations in the mental lexicon and that these factors co-determine the lexical access of tone 3 sandhi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When a picture is repeatedly named in the context of semantically related pictures (homogeneous context), responses are slower than when the picture is repeatedly named in the context of unrelated pictures (heterogeneous context). This semantic interference effect in blocked-cyclic naming plays an important role in devising theories of word production. Wöhner, Mädebach, and Jescheniak [Wöhner, S., Mädebach, A., & Jescheniak, J. D. Naming pictures and sounds: Stimulus type affects semantic context effects. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 47, 716–730, 2021] have shown that the effect is substantially larger when participants name environmental sounds than when they name pictures. We investigated possible reasons for this difference, using EEG and pupillometry. The behavioral data replicated Wöhner and colleagues. ERPs were more positive in the homogeneous compared with the heterogeneous context over central electrode locations between 140–180 msec and 250–350 msec for picture naming and between 250 and 350 msec for sound naming, presumably reflecting semantic interference during semantic and lexical processing. The later component was of similar size for pictures and sounds. ERPs were more negative in the homogeneous compared with the heterogeneous context over frontal electrode locations between 400 and 600 msec only for sounds. The pupillometric data showed a stronger pupil dilation in the homogeneous compared with the heterogeneous context only for sounds. The amplitudes of the late ERP negativity and pupil dilation predicted naming latencies for sounds in the homogeneous context. The latency of the effects indicates that the difference in semantic interference between picture and sound naming arises at later, presumably postlexical processing stages closer to articulation. We suggest that the processing of the auditory stimuli interferes with phonological response preparation and self-monitoring, leading to enhanced semantic interference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Anomic aphasia, characterized by difficulty in word finding, is a subtype without impairments in fluent speech, comprehension, reading, writing, and repetition. Recognizing pure anomic aphasia in this group is crucial for a comprehensive understanding of localization and brain functions. Case report: We present the case of an 11-year-old girl with transient ischemic attack and anomic aphasia. Neuroimaging identified abnormalities in the cingulate gyrus and temporo-occipital regions. No focal neurological findings were observed without aphasia. In terms of etiology, an MTHFR mutation was detected, and aside from this, no hematological or systemic cause could be identified. Conclusion: This case marks the first demonstration of posterior cingulate gyrus involvement in pure anomic aphasia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Robert Frost is very good at using metaphors in his poems. The employment of metaphors endows his poems with rich emotions and thought, which is probably what Frost calls "emotion has found thought and thought has found words". The loss of a child, in "Home Burial", brings about the vastly different views of the husband and wife towards family, love, and children. The half-shut and half-open door is often taken as an example by scholars to symbolize the deadlock the couple is in. In fact, that flight of stairs is also symbolic of the separation and isolation of this couple. The setting of the poem is the staircase of the house, which will show how the position of the husband and wife in relation to the stairs influences their right of speech. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the complex relationship between false-belief (FB) understanding, structural language and pragmatic communication in typically developing children. A total of 78 Finnish children, aged from 4 to 6 years, including an equal number of boys and girls, participated in this study. In the first instance, the study explored the relationship between children's structural language skills and their understanding in FB tasks. The children's structural language was evaluated using the Token Test for Children, German's Test of Word Finding and the structural language scales (Speech, Syntax, Semantics and Coherence) of the Children's Communication Checklist (CCC-2). Subsequently, the study examined the relationship between FB understanding and pragmatic communication skills, as measured by the pragmatic communication scales of the CCC-2 (Inappropriate Initiation, Stereotyped Language, Use of Context and Non-verbal Communication). In addition, the study investigated the effect of sex on these skills. A significant effect was found between the ability to understand verbal instructions and FB reasoning. However, no significant effect was found for naming and word retrieval abilities, nor for linguistic abilities as assessed by the CCC-2's structural linguistic scales. Furthermore, children who demonstrated higher skills in understanding the mental states of others also exhibited better pragmatic communication skills using the CCC-2's pragmatic scales. Although girls outperformed boys in the FB task, sex did not significantly predict pragmatic communication skills. The result suggests interrelatedness of language comprehension and FB understanding, as well as between FB and pragmatic communication abilities in typically developing preschool children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This corpus-based study investigates lexical richness in English writing by Chinese senior high school students. Lexical uses in 303 compositions were compared across three grades in terms of lexical sophistication, variation, density and errors. Timed compositions were sampled from Writing Corpus of English Learners, and the sample sizes of three grades remained almost the same. The data were analysed through Range and Lexical Complexity Analyser to compute the four measures. In general, it is found that these students used a limited range of vocabulary and committed a number of lexical errors. In particular, one-way ANOVAs, Kruskal-Wallis tests, and post-hoc analyses showed that the growth of sophisticated word ratio accelerated in the first two years but decelerated in the third year. Lexical variation gained a significant increase across grade levels. Lexical word ratio decreased remarkably but increased slightly during the three-year learning. There were non-significant decreases in lexical errors between adjacent grade levels. These lexical features can be largely attributed to students' insufficient mastery of cohesive devices, improper English instruction in classes and pressure of the National College Entrance Examination. Based on these findings, we provide suggestions for foreign language teaching in senior high schools in China and other educational contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundAimsMethods & ProceduresOutcomes & ResultsConclusionsAnomia has been extensively researched within the aphasia literature and a dissociation in naming nouns and verbs has been used in diagnostic classifications and related to lesion location. However, there is evidence that action naming is more difficult for many clinical populations as well as for healthy speakers. Confrontation naming tests have often been used to evaluate anomia, but static depiction has been considered a potential source of error in evaluations of verb naming, since actions are dynamic.The first aim of this study was to examine the ability to name objects and actions in a stroke population and non-brain damaged controls and to explore naming ability in relation to lesion location and aphasia type (fluent or non-fluent). A second aim was to determine if action naming is facilitated by using dynamic rather than static stimuli.A cross-sectional study was carried out, where 19 participants with aphasia after stroke and 19 matched controls were included. Type of aphasia was based on connected speech samples. Naming performance was compared on two Swedish naming tests consisting of line drawings of high frequency nouns and verbs respectively, and a subset of action pictures was compared to a test using video depictions of actions as verb stimuli.There was a significant difference between nouns and verbs in 11 of 19 participants with aphasia. Only one participant, with a temporo-occipital lesion, had a substantial noun-verb difference (≥30%). Individual results showed some agreement with the fluent-nonfluent classification. However, at group level, there was no significant difference between scores on action and object naming for participants with aphasia. While only the control group achieved significantly higher scores on object than action naming, response latencies were longer for action than object naming for both groups. There was no difference in action naming performance that could be related to the use of dynamic or static stimuli.The results suggest that a dissociation in naming nouns and verbs is common in aphasia. This finding underscores the importance of testing action as well as object naming. Even though there was some agreement with aphasia type, the relationship between noun-verb dissociation, lesion location and aphasia type is not straight forward. The study adds to previous findings suggesting that action naming is more difficult than object naming. The question whether action naming is facilitated by using dynamic stimuli needs to be further investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurately encoding word positions plays a critical role in fluent reading, allowing readers to facilitate efficient comprehension. However, whether word position information can be encoded parafoveally remains unknown, particularly in unspaced languages like Chinese. This study investigated whether Chinese readers can extract word order information from parafoveal vision using the boundary paradigm and eye-tracking. Participants read sentences containing identical, transposed, or unrelated preview words, which were replaced by the target words upon the eyes crossing an invisible boundary. Results showed that reading times on the target words were longer for transposed compared to identical previews but shorter than unrelated previews. These findings suggest that word positional information can be encoded parafoveally during Chinese reading, but not in a strictly precise manner. The implications of the findings for the Chinese reading model are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Word frequency effect has always been of interest for reading research because of its critical role in exploring mental processing underlying reading behaviors. Access to word frequency information has long been considered an indicator of the beginning of lexical processing and the most sensitive marker for studying when the brain begins to extract semantic information Sereno & Rayner, Brain and Cognition, 42, 78–81, (2000), Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 7, 489–493, (2003). While the word frequency effect has been extensively studied in numerous eye-tracking and traditional EEG research using the RSVP paradigm, there is a lack of corresponding evidence in studies of natural reading. To find the neural correlates of the word frequency effect, we conducted a study of Chinese natural reading using EEG and eye-tracking coregistration to examine the time course of lexical processing. Our results reliably showed that the word frequency effect first appeared in the N200 time window and the bilateral occipitotemporal regions. Additionally, the word frequency effect was reflected in the N400 time window, spreading from the occipital region to the central parietal and frontal regions. Our current study provides the first neural correlates for word-frequency effect in natural Chinese reading so far, shedding new light on understanding lexical processing in natural reading and could serve as an important basis for further reading study when considering neural correlates in a realistic manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Readers are able to begin processing upcoming words before directly fixating them, and in some cases skip words altogether (i.e., never fixated). However, the exact mechanisms and recognition thresholds underlying skipping decisions are not entirely clear. In the current study, we test whether skipping decisions reflect instances of more extensive lexical processing by recording neural language processing (via electroencephalography; EEG) and eye movements simultaneously, and we split trials based on target word-skipping behavior. To test lexical processing of the words, we manipulated the orthographic and phonological relationship between upcoming preview words and a semantically correct (and in some cases, expected) target word using the gaze-contingent display change paradigm. We also manipulated the constraint of the sentences to investigate the extent to which the identification of sublexical features of words depends on a reader's expectations. We extracted fixation-related brain potentials (FRPs) during the fixation on the preceding word (i.e., in response to parafoveal viewing of the manipulated previews). We found that word skipping is associated with larger neural responses (i.e., N400 amplitudes) to semantically incongruous words that did not share a phonological representation with the correct word, and this effect was only observed in high-constraint sentences. These findings suggest that word skipping can be reflective of more extensive linguistic processing, but in the absence of expectations, word skipping may occur based on less fine-grained linguistic processing and be more reflective of identification of plausible or expected sublexical features rather than higher-level lexical processing (e.g., semantic access). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Science popularization discourse offers valuable reading materials for second language (L2) learners in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) contexts. However, the lexical demands of these materials remain largely unexplored. To address this gap, this study examines the lexical profile of Scientific American (SA), one of the most widely read popular science publications. Based on a corpus of popular science news collected from the SA website, we analyzed its lexical demand in terms of Nation's (2018) BNC/COCA word frequency lists and West's (1953) General Service List of English Words (GSL) plus Coxhead's (2000) Academic Word List (AWL). Our results indicate that to achieve minimal comprehension of popular science news published in SA, learners should be familiar with approximately 5,000 word families, while optimal comprehension requires knowledge of around 10,000 word families, including proper nouns, marginal words, transparent compounds, and acronyms. Notably, the GSL covers 77.55% and the AWL covers 7.08% coverage of the SA corpus, suggesting that our SA corpus has a higher coverage of general English words and a lower coverage of academic English words than university-level academic written texts. These findings highlight the potential value of popular science news in supporting academic reading, particularly for beginning EAP learners who may find these materials less lexically demanding than research articles. Pedagogical implications for incorporating popular science news into EAP courses are also provided. • Learners need 5,000–10,000 word families for minimal to optimal comprehension. • Popular science news is lexically similar to pre-university texts. • Soft sciences texts are lexically less demanding than hard sciences texts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a rich tradition of research on the neuroanatomical correlates of spoken language production in aphasia using constrained tasks (e.g. picture naming), which offer controlled insights into the distinct processes that govern speech and language (i.e. lexical-semantic access, morphosyntactic construction, phonological encoding, speech motor programming/execution). Yet these tasks do not necessarily reflect everyday language use. In contrast, naturalistic language production (also referred to as 'connected speech' or 'discourse') more closely approximates typical processing demands, requiring the dynamic integration of all aspects of speech and language. The brain bases of naturalistic language production remain relatively unknown, however, in part because of the difficulty in deriving features that are salient, quantifiable and interpretable relative to both speech-language processes and the extant literature. The present cross-sectional observational study seeks to address these challenges by leveraging a validated and comprehensive auditory-perceptual measurement system that yields four explanatory dimensions of performance—Paraphasia (misselection of words and sounds), Logopenia (paucity of words), Agrammatism (grammatical omissions) and Motor speech (impaired speech motor programming/execution). We used this system to characterize naturalistic language production in a large and representative sample of individuals with acute post-stroke aphasia (n = 118). Scores on each of the four dimensions were correlated with lesion metrics, and multivariate associations among the dimensions and brain regions were then explored. Our findings revealed distinct yet overlapping neuroanatomical correlates throughout the left-hemisphere language network. Paraphasia and logopenia were associated primarily with posterior regions, spanning both dorsal and ventral streams, which are critical for lexical-semantic access and phonological encoding. In contrast, agrammatism and motor speech were associated primarily with anterior regions of the dorsal stream that are involved in morphosyntactic construction and speech motor planning/execution, respectively. Collectively, we view these results as constituting a brain–behaviour model of naturalistic language production in aphasia, aligning with both historical and contemporary accounts of the neurobiology of spoken language production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the relationship between working memory (WM), semantic-encoding (SE) ability, and reading comprehension (RC) within the domain of second language acquisition (L2). 120 L1-Persian EFL learners were placed in three proficiency groups (beginning, intermediate, and advanced) based on their scores on the IELTS test. The participants engaged in a battery of cognitive tasks, including a reading span task, two semantic encoding (SE) tasks (sentence verification task and lexical access task), an L1-recall task, and a reading test. The scores and reaction times obtained from these measures were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA, a correlational analysis, and single regression analyses. The findings revealed significant differences in reading performance and semantic encoding skills across proficiency groups, with large effect sizes. Correlational analyses indicated a significant positive relationship between WM and RC, specifically in the beginner group. Moreover, WM was shown to correlate with the speed of SE in the beginner group, but not with its accuracy. Notably, SE speed correlated with RC performance, particularly under time-constrained conditions at lower proficiency levels. In the intermediate and advanced groups, working memory (WM) showed no correlation with reading comprehension (RC) or semantic encoding (SE). Conversely, both WM and SE speed were identified as strong predictors of L2 reading performance among learners with lower English proficiency. However, the study is not without its limitations, including a relatively small sample size, the absence of qualitative measures, and the potential influence of unassessed reading subskills such as grammar and vocabulary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The present study investigated whether semantic processing of word and object primes can bias visual attention using top-down influences, even within an exogenous cueing framework. We hypothesized that real words and familiar objects would more effectively bias attentional engagement and target detection than pseudowords or pseudo-objects, as they can trigger prior knowledge to influence attention orienting and target detection. Methods: To examine this, we conducted two web-based eye-tracking experiments that ensured participants maintained central fixation on the screen during remote data collection. In Experiment 1, participants viewed a central prime—either a real word or pseudo-word—followed by a spatial cue directing them to a target on the left or right, which they located by pressing a key. Experiment 2 presented participants with real objects or pseudo-objects as primes, with primes and targets that either matched or did not match in identity. Importantly, primes in both experiments conveyed no information about target location. Results: Results from Experiment 1 indicated that real word primes were associated with faster target detection than pseudo-words. In Experiment 2, participants detected targets more quickly when primed with real objects and when prime-target identity matched. Comparisons across both experiments suggest an automatic influence of semantic knowledge on target detection and spatial attention. Discussion: These findings indicate that words can contribute to attentional capture, potentially through top-down processes, even within an exogenous cueing paradigm in which semantic processing is task-irrelevant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The processing literature provides some evidence that heritage Spanish speakers process gender like monolinguals, since gender-marking in definite articles facilitates their lexical access to nouns, albeit these effects may be reduced relative to speakers who learned the language as majority language. However, previous studies rely on slowed-down speech, which leaves open the question of how processing occurs under normal conditions. Using naturalistic speech, our study tests bilingual processing of gender in determiners, and in word-final gender vowels. Participants were 17 adult heritage speakers of Spanish (HSSs) and 21 adult Spanish-speaking immigrants (ASIs). We presented these bilinguals with questions containing either a definite article or an unmarked possessive (¿Dónde está la/mi pala? 'Where is the/my shovel?') in a three-object display. Gaze fixations were recorded during determiner, noun and post speech processing. Nouns were controlled for gender, morphological transparency, gender alternation, and animacy. Individually, heritage speakers tend to fall within the performance range of adult immigrants, but statistical analyses show that ASIs have more fixations to targets for definite articles compared to HSSs. For HSSs the advantage of gender-marking appears later, during noun processing. In contexts where the noun-final vowels were the only cue to lexical selection, HSS had less looks to targets with alternating nouns, and with feminine nouns. When presented with natural speech, despite the great overlap between adult immigrant and heritage speakers, there are quantitative differences in how HSS process gender both for syntactic agreement (gender in articles) and noun morphophonology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the research field of bilingual lexical representation and organization, much attention has been given to whether two languages share a conceptual system and what factors modulate the connection between this conceptual system and the lexical systems of a bilingual's L1 and L2. One of the most valid ways in the psycholinguistics domain to explore these doubts is to examine the masked translation priming effect and the priming asymmetry through cross-language priming experiments. In this study, a masked priming lexical decision task was conducted with unbalanced English-Chinese bilinguals to investigate whether the masked translation priming effect exists in both translation directions, and to further reveal how the number of translations, which can be categorized into one-translation pair and more-than-one-translation pair conditions, affects the priming effects and modulates translation priming asymmetry. It was demonstrated that both translation direction and the number of translations influence the priming effect. Specifically, the priming effect was observable from L1 to L2 but not from L2 to L1, and the priming for one-translation pairs was significantly greater when compared to that for more-than-one-translation pairs. Moreover, the impacts of translation direction on the priming effect differed between the one-translation pair and more-than-one-translation pair conditions: under the former condition, substantial priming occurred in both directions, whereas for the latter condition, it was observed only in the L1–L2 direction. Several models of the bilingual mental lexicon, mainly the Revised Hierarchical Model and the Distributed Conceptual Feature Model, were used to elucidate the above results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: It is known that co-speech hand gestures increase and supplement speech in individuals with language impairment after brain injury, e.g., post-stroke aphasia. Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) provides a unique avenue to evaluate gestures as TBI often presents with both anomia (word-finding impairments) and cognitive impairments, resulting in a cognitive-communicative disorder. However, there is a great need for evaluation of gestures in TBI during typical spontaneous speech and across the recovery trajectory (from sub-acute to chronic stages). In a large population (N = 54) of persons with moderate-severe TBI, who were examined at 3 months post-TBI whilst telling a procedural narrative ("how to make a sandwich"), we examined three aims: (1) characterize the extent to which adults with moderate-severe TBI produce iconic gestures; (2) identify the extent to which language impairment relates to iconic gesturing in TBI; and (3) characterize the extent to which iconic gesturing changes across TBI recovery. Methods: In a subpopulation (Group 1, N = 14) who were examined at three- and 24-months (sub-acute and substantially chronic), and in a smaller subpopulation (Group 2, N = 6) who had data for five timepoints (three-, six-, nine-, 12-, and 24-months), we used paired tests to examine and characterize longitudinal changes in iconic gesturing. Results: The large group analysis suggested that individuals with TBI use iconic gesture during narrative, which take several different iconic forms (e.g., enacting use of an object), and that a minority employed gestures that supplemented (added to, disambiguated, or replaced) speech. The subpopulation analyses suggested that participants did not produce iconic gestures significantly differently across the 2-year recovery timeframe. Case examination of a participant with moderate-severe aphasia suggested a relationship between language impairment and gesture, with this individual producing the highest proportion of supplemental gesturing of the entire group. This finding aligns with research from the post-stroke aphasia field. Discussion: Broadly, this study significantly extends prior research on the relationship between gesturing, language, and brain injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Participants judged whether a letter-string created a word when a single letter was added to the end indicated by a hyphen. Unique final fragments were easier to reconstruct when corresponding to the body of a word, having no onset (e.g. laugh from –augh) than when the second consonant of a two-letter onset was also included (e.g. blind from –lind). Conversely, unique initial fragments were easier to reconstruct when including the first consonant of a two-letter coda (e.g. drink from drin–) than when corresponding to an "antibody", having no coda (e.g. claim from clai–). Such results cannot be explained by any account of orthographic processing based purely on the identity and position of the component letters while ignoring their function as an onset, coda, or vowel. Instead, the results are compatible with a model such as the proposed Subsyllabic Processing (SSP) account where subsyllabic structures are hierarchically represented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the phenomenon of unstressed vowel syncope in Maybalay Atayal, an Austronesian language spoken in Taiwan. The study identifies the factors influencing vowel syncope in the language, showing that it is governed by metrical structure and the need to maintain a heavy word-initial syllable. The analysis suggests that syncope targets the second vowel in longer words, creating nonfinal closed syllables in the initial position. The article also explores an alternative epenthesis/metathesis approach to explain the vowel-zero alternations but concludes that syncope remains a crucial aspect of Maybalay phonology. [Extracted from the article]

This systematic review and synthesis summarizes intervention research for Grade K-12 students with a reading difficulty and co-occurring inattention to identify (a) the relevant intervention literature base, (b) the student, study, and intervention characteristics of these studies, (c) the effects of these interventions on reading and behavior outcomes, and (d) the collateral impact of reading interventions and behavior interventions on behavior outcomes and reading outcomes, respectively. Our search process yielded 14 eligible studies. Findings suggest that word reading instruction is associated with improved word reading outcomes and self-monitoring and function-based interventions are associated with improved student behavior. No study measured a collateral effect for reading or behavior interventions. Future reading intervention research is needed to better understand how to improve the reading and behavior outcomes for Grade K-12 students with a reading difficulty and co-occurring inattention. A PRISMA-compliant abstract can be found at https://osf.io/5v8ke/?view_only=d78b4cdc7eb946ae997df91e08fe2809. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the past 10 years, we have seen an enormous increase in the interest in Philippine English (PhilE) vocabulary. This is especially documented by the new entries of distinctive PhilE words in the Oxford English dictionary. Thanks to the rise of electronic mega‐corpora, such as GloWbE and the NOW Corpus, it has become possible to discover even more lexical innovations in PhilE. In this article, I compare nominal and adjectival suffixes across the following varieties of English: India, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Philippines, the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Great Britain. The comparisons were carried out on a quantitative and qualitative level, based on the findings in GloWbE, NOW and ICE. Apart from suffixes, the article also discusses less frequent and productive types of word‐formation, such as synthetic compounds and splinters (budgetarian). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Turkish Culture & Haci Bektas Veli Research Quarterly is the property of Turkish Cultur & Haci Bektas Veli Research Quarterly and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Over the past decades, bilingualism researchers have come to a consensus around a fairly strong view of nonselectivity in bilingual speakers, often citing Van Hell and Dijkstra (2002) as a critical piece of support for this position. Given the study's continuing relevance to bilingualism and its strong test of the influence of a bilingual's second language on their first language, we conducted an approximate replication of the lexical decision experiments in the original study (Experiments 2 and 3) using the same tasks and—to the extent possible—the same stimuli. Unlike the original study, our replication was conducted online with Dutch–English bilinguals (rather than in a lab with Dutch–English–French trilinguals). Despite these differences, results overall closely replicated the pattern of cognate facilitation effects observed in the original study. We discuss the replication of outcomes and possible interpretations of subtle differences in outcomes and make recommendations for future extensions of this line of research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have shown that language learners' auditory word recognition behavior provides evidence for independent contributions of perceptual and phonolexical representations, and learners' patterns of auditory word recognition have been characterized as resulting from "fuzziness" or "imprecision" associated with these representations. More recently, it has been argued that representational "fuzziness" may in fact take various forms (e.g., neutralized, precise, ambiguous). The purpose of the present study is to further build on this line of work by elaborating additional logically possible scenarios by crossing larger sets of logically possible types of perceptual and phonolexical representational precision/imprecision, as an exercise in exploring the empirical and theoretical implications of our characterizations of representational fuzziness in language learners. We collect new empirical data for the purpose of demonstrating how we might evaluate auditory word recognition performance relative to this fuller set of predicted scenarios. We computed the set of hypothesized scenarios by crossing possible perceptual and lexical representations. We crossed four possible perceptual representations (NeutralizedC + NeutralizedV, NeutralizedC + PreciseV, PreciseC + NeutralizedV, or PreciseC + PreciseV) and six possible phonolexical representations (Neutralized, Ambiguous, Not X, Precise, Fuzzy Word, or Word Length), for a total of 24 scenarios, each accompanied by a set of predictions with respect to accuracy on an auditory word–picture matching test. We interpret the group and individual performance relative to these scenarios with the ultimate aim of better understanding the implications of our assumptions about the nature of perceptual and phonolexical representations relative to observed patterns of learner behavior. Our hope is that in computing this factorial typology of logically possible scenarios and demonstrating a starting point for how we might empirically evaluate its predictions, we set the stage for future research to refine the hypothesis space through empirical studies of auditory word processing in language learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines cross-language structural priming between Korean and English in highly proficient Korean-English bilinguals. A self-paced reading experiment was conducted to investigate whether structural priming occurs in passive constructions from L1 Korean to L2 English. Results revealed no significant difference in reading times for English passives between passive and unrelated prime conditions, suggesting an absence of structural priming from Korean passives to English passives. Notably, however, reading times for English passive targets were significantly longer following Korean active primes than after either passive or unrelated primes. This is likely due to interference between the syntactic representations of the two languages. These findings support the connected-syntax model, suggesting that while syntactic representations in Korean-English bilinguals are distinct, they interact during sentence processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Standard models of lexical production assume that speakers access representations of meaning, grammar, and different aspects of sound in a roughly sequential manner (whether or not they admit cascading or interactivity). In contrast, we review evidence for a parallel activation model in which these representations are accessed in parallel. According to this account, word learning involves the binding of the meaning, grammar, and sound of a word into a single representation. This representation is then activated as a whole during production, and so all linguistic components are available simultaneously. We then note that language comprehension involves extensive use of prediction and argue that comprehenders use production mechanisms to determine (roughly) what they would say next if they were speaking. So far, theories of prediction‐by‐production have assumed sequential lexical production. We therefore reinterpret such evidence in terms of parallel lexical production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Backgrounds: Segments and tone are important sub-syllabic units that play large roles in lexical processing in tonal languages. However, their roles in lexical processing remain unclear, and the event-related potential (ERP) technique will benefit the exploration of the cognitive mechanism in lexical processing. Methods: The high temporal resolution of ERP enables the technique to interpret rapidly changing spoken language performances. The present ERP study examined the different roles of segments and tone in Mandarin Chinese lexical processing. An auditory priming experiment was designed that included five types of priming stimuli: consonant mismatch, vowel mismatch, tone mismatch, unrelated mismatch, and identity. Participants were asked to judge whether the target of the prime-target pair was a real Mandarin disyllabic word or not. Results: Behavioral results including reaction time and response accuracy and ERP results were collected. Results were different from those of previous studies that showed the dominant role of consonants in lexical access in mainly non-tonal languages like English. Our results showed that consonants and vowels play comparable roles, whereas tone plays a less important role than do consonants and vowels in lexical processing in Mandarin. Conclusions: These results have implications for understanding the brain mechanisms in lexical processing of tonal languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sleep associated memory consolidation and reactivation play an important role in language acquisition and learning of new words. However, it is unclear to what extent properties of word learning difficulty impact sleep associated memory reactivation. To address this gap, we investigated in 22 young healthy adults the effectiveness of auditory targeted memory reactivation (TMR) during non-rapid eye movement sleep of artificial words with easy and difficult to learn phonotactical properties. Here, we found that TMR of the easy words improved their overnight memory performance, whereas TMR of the difficult words had no effect. By comparing EEG activities after TMR presentations, we found an increase in slow wave density independent of word difficulty, whereas the spindle-band power nested during the slow wave up-states – as an assumed underlying activity of memory reactivation – was significantly higher in the easy/effective compared to the difficult/ineffective condition. Our findings indicate that word learning difficulty by phonotactics impacts the effectiveness of TMR and further emphasize the critical role of prior encoding depth in sleep associated memory reactivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Word-finding difficulty (WFD) is a common cognitive complaint in aging, manifesting both in natural speech and in controlled laboratory tests. Various theories of cognitive aging have addressed WFD, and understanding its underlying mechanisms can help to clarify whether it has diagnostic value for neurodegenerative disease. Two influential "information-universal" theories attribute it to rather broad changes in cognition. The processing speed theory posits a general slowdown of all cognitive processes, while the inhibitory deficit hypothesis (IDH) predicts a specific problem in suppressing irrelevant information. One "information specific" theory of language production, the transmission deficit hypothesis (TDH), posits a breakdown in retrieval of phonological word forms from a corresponding lemma. To adjudicate between these accounts, we administered an online gamified covert naming task featuring picture-word interference (PWI), previously validated to elicit similar semantic interference and phonological facilitation effects as overt naming tasks. 125 healthy adults aged 18 to 85 completed the task, along with a battery of executive function tasks and a naturalistic speech sample to quantify WFD in connected speech. PWI effects provided strong support for the TDH but limited support for IDH, in that semantic interference increased and phonological facilitation decreased across the lifespan. However, neither of these effects on single-word retrieval associated with WFD measured in connected speech. Rather, overall reaction time for word retrieval (controlling for psychomotor slowing) was the best predictor of spontaneous WFD and executive function decline, suggesting processing speed as the key factor, and that verbal reaction time may be an important clinical measure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Semitic languages, the consonantal root is central to morphology, linking form and meaning. While psycholinguistic studies highlight its importance in language processing, the role of meaning in early lexical access and its representation remain unclear. This study investigates when meaning becomes accessible during the processing of Maltese verb forms, using a computational model based on the Discriminative Lexicon framework. Our model effectively comprehends and produces Maltese verbs, while also predicting response times in a masked auditory priming experiment. Results show that meaning is accessible early in lexical access and becomes more prominent after the target word is fully processed. This suggests that semantic information plays a critical role from the initial stages of lexical access, refining our understanding of real‐time language comprehension. Our findings contribute to theories of lexical access and offer valuable insights for designing priming studies in psycholinguistics. Additionally, this study demonstrates the potential of computational models in investigating the relationship between form and meaning in language processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contribution of consonants and vowels in spoken word processing has been widely investigated, and studies have found a phenomenon of a Consonantal bias (C-bias), indicating that consonants carry more weight than vowels. However, across languages, various patterns have been documented, including that of no preference or a reverse pattern of Vowel bias. A central question is how the manifestation of the C-bias is modulated by language-specific factors. This question can be addressed by cross-linguistic studies. Comparing native Hebrew and native English speakers, this study examines the relative importance of transitional probabilities between non-adjacent consonants as opposed to vowels during auditory statistical learning (SL) of an artificial language. Hebrew is interesting because its complex Semitic morphological structure has been found to play a central role in lexical access, allowing us to examine whether morphological properties can modulate the C-bias in early phases of speech perception, namely, word segmentation. As predicted, we found a significant interaction between language and consonant/vowel manipulation, with a higher performance in the consonantal condition than in the vowel condition for Hebrew speakers, namely, C-bias, and no consonant/vowel asymmetry among English speakers. We suggest that the observed interaction is morphologically anchored, indicating that phonological and morphological processes interact during early phases of auditory word perception. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integration of multisensory in lexical processing has garnered significant interest in cognitive linguistics and psycholinguistics. This study investigates the predictive power of cross-modal capability (CMC) on word recognition, focusing on how sensory integration influences cognitive processing and lexical decisionmaking. By collecting five-sense ratings for synesthetic adjectives, we computed the cross-modal capability for each word. We then conducted regression analyses to examine the relationship between these indices and reaction time in lexical decision tasks. Our findings reveal that words with higher cross-modal capabilities, as measured by CMC, are recognized and processed more quickly. This superior predictive power of CMC underscores the importance of sensory associations in lexical processing and highlights the need for comprehensive indices that account for multiple sensory inputs. These results provide deeper insights into the cognitive mechanisms underlying word recognition and processing speed, suggesting that CMC is a better independent variable for partially predict lexical cognition and recognition. This research contributes to our understanding of multisensory integration in lexical processing and has implications for models of word recognition and cognitive linguistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Direito e Práxis is the property of Editora da Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (EdUERJ) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Past research suggests that Working Memory plays a role in determining relative clause attachment bias. Disambiguation preferences may further depend on Processing Speed and explicit memory demands in linguistic tasks. Given that Working Memory and Processing Speed decline with age, older adults offer a way of investigating the factors underlying disambiguation preferences. Additionally, older adults might be subject to more severe similarity‐based memory interference given their larger vocabularies and slower lexical access. Nevertheless, memory interference and sentence disambiguation have not been combined in studies on older adults before. We used a self‐paced reading paradigm under memory load interference conditions. Older (n = 30) and Younger (n = 35) readers took part in the study online; reading times were recorded and measures of comprehension accuracy and load recall were collected. This setup allowed for the implicit measurement of attachment biases and memory interference effects interactively. Results show that similarity‐based interference affected both age groups equally, but was more pronounced in NP2‐biased structures, which took participants generally longer to read. Attachment preferences did not differ by group and were unaffected by Working Memory span. However, accuracy on recall prompts was predicted by Working Memory span in both groups. Findings of greater interference in syntactically dispreferred structures support unified processing models where parsing constraints naturally interact. The lack of age differences on our measures further aligns with research finding age‐invariant implicit language processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beam search is a commonly used algorithm in image captioning to improve the accuracy and robustness of generated captions by finding the optimal word sequence. However, it mainly focuses on the highest-scoring sequence at each step, often overlooking the broader image context, which can lead to suboptimal results. Additionally, beam search tends to select similar words across sequences, causing repetitive and less diverse output. These limitations suggest that, while effective, beam search can be further improved to better capture the richness and variety needed for high-quality captions. To address these issues, this paper presents meshed context-aware beam search (MCBS). In MCBS for image captioning, the generated caption context is dynamically used to influence the image attention mechanism at each decoding step, ensuring that the model focuses on different regions of the image to produce more coherent and contextually appropriate captions. Furthermore, a penalty coefficient is introduced to discourage the generation of repeated words. Through extensive testing and ablation studies across various models, our results show that MCBS significantly enhances overall model performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Measuring lexical diversity in texts that have different lengths is problematic because length has a significant effect on the number of types a text contains, thus hampering any comparison. Treffers-Daller et al. (2018) recommended a simple solution, namely counting the number of types in a section of a given length that was extracted from the middle of each of the texts to be analysed. By applying this approach to second language essays, the authors observed that using the number of types was slightly more effective for differentiating amongst the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) levels than were the Type-Token Ratio (TTR) and the Guiraud index and that these three indices were more effective than were mathematically more complex ones. However, their conclusions regarding these two points are incorrect, and a less basic approach should be used. The last section addresses two broader issues in applied linguistics that are highlighted by these problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mental lexicon is a complex cognitive system representing information about the words/concepts that one knows. Over decades psychological experiments have shown that conceptual associations across multiple, interactive cognitive levels can greatly influence word acquisition, storage, and processing. How can semantic, phonological, syntactic, and other types of conceptual associations be mapped within a coherent mathematical framework to study how the mental lexicon works? Here we review cognitive multilayer networks as a promising quantitative and interpretative framework for investigating the mental lexicon. Cognitive multilayer networks can map multiple types of information at once, thus capturing how different layers of associations might co-exist within the mental lexicon and influence cognitive processing. This review starts with a gentle introduction to the structure and formalism of multilayer networks. We then discuss quantitative mechanisms of psychological phenomena that could not be observed in single-layer networks and were only unveiled by combining multiple layers of the lexicon: (i) multiplex viability highlights language kernels and facilitative effects of knowledge processing in healthy and clinical populations; (ii) multilayer community detection enables contextual meaning reconstruction depending on psycholinguistic features; (iii) layer analysis can mediate latent interactions of mediation, suppression, and facilitation for lexical access. By outlining novel quantitative perspectives where multilayer networks can shed light on cognitive knowledge representations, including in next-generation brain/mind models, we discuss key limitations and promising directions for cutting-edge future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that contextual predictability facilitates word identification, but it is less clear whether the uncertainty associated with the current context (i.e., its lexical entropy) influences sentence processing. On the one hand, high entropy contexts may lead to interference due to greater number of lexical competitors. On the other hand, predicting multiple lexical competitors may facilitate processing through the preactivation of shared semantic features. In this study, we examined whether entropy measured at the trial level (i.e., for each participant, for each item) corresponds to facilitatory or inhibitory effects. Trial-level entropy captures each individual's knowledge about specific contexts and is therefore a more valid and sensitive measure of entropy (relative to the commonly employed item-level entropy). Participants (N = 112) completed two experimental sessions (with counterbalanced orders) that were separated by a 3- to 14-day interval. In one session, they produced up to 10 completions for sentence fragments (N = 647). In another session, they read the same sentences including a target word (whose entropy value was calculated based on the produced completions) while reading times were measured. We observed a facilitatory (not inhibitory) effect of trial-level entropy on lexical processing over and above item-level measures of lexical predictability (including cloze probability, surprisal, and semantic constraint). Extra analyses revealed that greater semantic overlap between the target and the produced responses facilitated target processing. Thus, the results lend support to theories of lexical prediction maintaining that prediction involves broad activation of semantic features rather than activation of full lexical forms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In contrast to language production, there are few comprehension models of the representation and use of grammatical gender in long-term memory. To bridge this gap, we conducted a systematic review of empirical studies on the role of gender-form regularities in the recognition of nouns in isolation and within sentences. The results of a final sample of 40 studies suggest that there are two routes for the retrieval of gender during real-time comprehension: a form-based route and a lexical-based route. Our review indicates that the use of these routes depends on the degree of gender transparency of the language and the degree of overtness of the experimental paradigm. To accommodate these findings, we incorporate a dual-route mechanism within a general model of lexical access in comprehension, the AUSTRAL (Activation Using Structurally Tiered Representations and Lemmas) model, and identify directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research evaluates a number of hybrid recurrent neural network (RNN) architectures for classifying sequential sentences in biomedical abstracts. The architectures include long short-term memory (LSTM), bidirectional LSTM (BI-LSTM), gated recurrent unit (GRU), and bidirectional GRU (BIGRU) models, all of which are combined with the universal sentence encoder (USE). The investigation assesses their efficacy in categorizing sentences into predefined classes: background, objective, method, result, and conclusion. Each RNN variant is used with the pre-trained USE as word embeddings to find complex sequential relationships in biomedical text. Results demonstrate the adaptability and effectiveness of these hybrid architectures in discerning diverse sentence functions. This research addresses the need for improved literature comprehension in biomedicine by employing automated sentence classification techniques, highlighting the significance of advanced hybrid algorithms in enhancing text classification methodologies within biomedical research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing scale and complexity of software, the advantages of using neural networks for static vulnerability detection are becoming increasingly prominent. Before inputting into a neural network, the source code needs to undergo word embedding, transforming discrete high-dimensional text data into low-dimensional continuous vectors suitable for training in neural networks. However, analysis has revealed that different implementation ideas by code writers for the same functionality can lead to varied code implementation methods. Embedding different code texts into vectors results in distinctions that can reduce the robustness of a model. To address this issue, this paper explores the impact of converting source code into different forms on word embedding and finds that a TAC (Three-Address Code) can significantly eliminate noise caused by different code implementation approaches. Given the excellent capability of a GNN (Graph Neural Network) in handling non-Euclidean space data and complex features, this paper subsequently employs a GNN to learn and classify vulnerabilities by capturing the implicit syntactic structure information in a TAC. Based on this, this paper introduces TACSan, a novel static vulnerability detection system based on a GNN designed to detect vulnerabilities in C/C++ programs. TACSan transforms the preprocessed source code into a TAC representation, adds control and data edges to create a graph structure, and then inputs it into the GNN for training. Comparative testing and evaluation of TACSan against other renowned static analysis tools, such as VulDeePecker and Devign, demonstrate that TACSan's detection capabilities not only exceed those methods but also achieve substantial enhancements in accuracy and F1 score. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigated the effect of verbal working memory capacity (VWMC) on the processing of semantic information during on-line lexical ambiguity resolution of bilinguals. Seventeen Persian–English subordinate bilinguals of similar proficiency level were recruited to perform two experimental tasks: (1) a multi-load-level reading span task designed to measure their VWMC and (2) a cross-modal semantic priming task (CMPT), 24 h subsequent to the last encoding session, to assess their performance on semantic processing of L2 homographs whose subordinate readings were deemed "novel" for them. An overall 2 × 3 repeated-measures ANOVA revealed a statistically significant difference in the processing of the encoded semantic information between high and low WMC participants. The findings of the experiments lend support to the veracity of the assumptions made by Reordered Access Model in that biasing semantic context facilitates the ambiguity resolution of lexical items. Lastly, the pedagogical implications of the findings were expounded on. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Babylon Center for Humanities Studies is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The main challenge of "My Japanese Fan" is the gender ambiguity of an illustrated figure on a Japanese Fan, which stands at the center of the poem. Translating this ambiguity into Hebrew is particularly challenging due to the marked gender distinctions in Hebrew grammar. The present essay explains how I maintained the poem's inherent ambiguity by using a contextual approach, and how I managed to find an appropriate word for the blend "Eletelephony" in the Hebrew translation of the poem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Fluent sentence reading is widely acknowledged to depend on top-down contextual prediction, wherein sentential and contextual cues guide the pre-activation of linguistic representations before encountering stimuli, facilitating subsequent comprehension. The Prediction-by-Production hypothesis posits an explanation for predictive processes in language comprehension, suggesting that prediction during comprehension involves processes associated with language production. However, there is a lack of eye movement evidence supporting this hypothesis within sentence reading contexts. Thus, we manipulated reading mode and word predictability to examine the influence of language production on predictive processing. Methods: Participants engaged in silent or oral reading of sentences containing either high or low-predictable target words. Eye movements were recorded using the Eyelink1000 eye tracker. Results: The findings revealed a higher skipping rate and shorter fixation times for high-predictable words compared to low-predictable ones, and for silent compared to oral reading. Notably, interactive effects were observed in the time measures (FFD, SFD, GD) during first-pass reading, indicating that word predictability effects were more pronounced during oral reading than silent reading. Discussion: The observed pattern of results suggests that the activation of the production system enhances predictive processing during the early lexical access, providing empirical support for the Prediction-by-Production hypothesis in eye movement sentence reading situations, extending the current understanding of the timing and nature of predictions in reading comprehension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundAimsMethods and proceduresOutcomes and resultsConclusionsBilingual individuals with aphasia may exhibit unique patterns of language impairment and recovery. While code-switching (CS) is a common feature of bilingual speech, pathological CS following brain damage can provide insights into the neural mechanisms controlling bilingual language processing.This study aimed to examine language impairment and recovery patterns in IZ, an unbalanced Hebrew-English bilingual with non-fluent aphasia, focusing on the unusual CS behavior observed during his subacute phase of recovery.IZ underwent language and narrative assessments in both languages during the subacute and chronic phases of recovery. Ten cognitive tests were administered to assess various domains of cognitive function. Language performance was evaluated through naming and syntactic processing tasks in L1-Hebrew and L2-English. The frequency and type of CS were analyzed using the matrix language frame model.During the subacute phase, IZ displayed significant language deficits in both L1-Hebrew and L2-English, with more severe impairment in L1-Hebrew naming and L2-English syntactic processing. He exhibited frequent involuntary CS, primarily using L1-Hebrew as the matrix language while embedding L2-English content words. Cognitive testing revealed reduced performance across multiple domains. In the chronic phase, IZ showed parallel improvements in both languages, particularly in L1-Hebrew naming and L2-English syntactic processing, along with a marked reduction in CS frequency.IZ’s case demonstrates a double dissociation between lexical and syntactic processing across L1 and L2. The results suggest that matrix language selection in bilinguals may be governed by distinct neural mechanisms for each language, with specific brain regions responsible for activating lexical representations. Damage to these regions may lead to pathological CS, as observed in this case. This study underscores the importance of understanding bilingual language control mechanisms in aphasia rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most studies in the literature propose that new words should be presented in unrelated sets due to interfering effect of learning vocabulary in semantic sets. Semantically‐related words are suggested to be taught in different sessions to avoid this negative effect. However, that is implausible for most second language (L2) teachers owing to the restrictions from curricula or coursebooks, most of which serve new words in semantic fields. The literature does not shed light on how to tackle that problem. Accordingly, this study involves three sets of classroom research conducted with 58 young EFL learners to investigate the effects of mnemonics on minimizing the interference of semantic clustering of new vocabulary. Within 15‐week course, one intact class was taught target words through mnemonics while the control group received similar instruction with sentence‐context method. The study results demonstrated that mnemonically‐instructed L2 learners outperformed on both immediate and delayed recognition of target words. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]