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A considerable number of participants in German-as-a-Second-Language courses show insufficient familiarity with the Latin writing system. However, for the acquisition of general or vocational language skills, which are necessary for participation in the target society or for taking up a job, full literacy is obviously a necessary prerequisite. In order to reliably identify course participants with literacy needs and to be able to make targeted support decisions based on this, the Amt für Wirtschaft und Arbeit of the Canton of Zurich commissioned a diagnostic instrument as an optional subtest of the German Assessment for Foreign-Language Job Seekers, which records different degrees of literacy as well as the causes of a lack of or insufficiently developed literacy. This article first outlines some general conditions of the test development such as the target group. Furthermore, the overall objective of the test is explained, namely to collect reliable information about the professional language competence of the target group. In this context, some special features of occupational language use are also discussed. Subsequently, the procedure for creating the test is described on the basis of concrete examples from the „Alpha" part of the test. In this respect, the test construct is described, which is based on the description of different levels of alpha competence of the LEA project. Furthermore, it is shown how this construct was operationalized in concrete tasks and assessment criteria. With regard to the validation of the examination part „Alpha", the procedural steps of piloting and mass validation are explained. A short summary concludes this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kant's notion of (what I will call) rational sympathy solves a problem about how we can voluntarily fulfill our imperfect duty to adopt those ends of others which have value only because they have been set by rational agents, ends which I will refer to as merely permissible ends (MPEs). Others' MPEs are individuated in terms of their own concepts of their MPEs, and we can only adopt their MPEs in terms of their concepts, since to adopt them in terms of different concepts would be to adopt different ends. Others' concepts of their MPEs may contain marks of the first person, and should contain no marks of law apart from permissibility. Rational sympathy allows us to adopt ends individuated in terms of concepts with marks of these kinds because rational sympathy allows us to voluntarily adopt others' first‐person perspectives in imagination, and to voluntarily shape our contingent feelings so that such concepts motivate us despite their underdetermination by law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of studies suggest a link between musical training and both specific and general cognitive abilities, but despite some positive results, there is disagreement about which abilities are improved. This study aims to investigate the effects of a music education program both on a domain-specific competence (meta-musical awareness), and on general domain competences, that is, cognitive abilities (logical-mathematical) and symbolic-linguistic abilities (notational). Twenty 4- to 6-year-old children participated in the research, divided into two groups (experimental and control) and the measures were administered at two different times, before and after a 6-month music program (for the experimental group) and after a sports training program (for the control group). Children performed meta-musical awareness tasks, logical-mathematical tasks, and emergent-alphabetization tasks. Non-parametric statistics show that a music program significantly improves the development of notational skills and meta-musical awareness while not the development of logical-mathematical skills. These results show that a musical program increases children's meta-musical awareness, and their ability to acquire the notational ability involved in the invented writing of words and numbers. On the contrary, it does not affect the development of logical skills. The results are discussed in terms of transfer of knowledge processes and of specific versus general domain effects of a musical program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning English pronunciation without learning the sounds of the language is as impossible as accomplishing a herculean task(Ahmadi, 2011). Segmental study of words satiates the need of seeking the rubrics of syllables. A syllable is a basic unit of pronunciation(Lasi, 2020). The present study aimed at exploring English Syllable and syllabic Structure to have a predominant comprehension of English pronunciation. The analysis of the present study was conducted on twenty-six words in alphabetical order and was taken from Soanes' Compact Oxford Dictionary of Current English (2008). The study investigated words with ambiguous syllabic boundaries through the lens of conceptual theories of the Optimal Onset Principle and Phonotactic constraints. The process of syllabification provided evidence that set rules are, sometimes violated to split the words into appropriate constituents. The correct syllabification produces correct pronunciation. Otherwise, words might be been mispronounced, hence meaningless, and sometimes preposterous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on how dictionary is a universe in alphabetical order. It mentions work of the lexicographer is constantly shifting between freedoms and constraints to be located in order to avoid being trapped by them. It also mentions search of the secret of words, to free them from their prison and thaws them out, to open up their meaning and power.

The purpose of this article is to identify the most important factors and features in the evolution of thesauri and ontologies through a dialectic model. This model relies on a dialectic process or idea which could be discovered via a dialectic method. This method has focused on identifying the logical relationship between a beginning proposition, or an idea called a thesis, a negation of that idea called the antithesis, and the result of the conflict between the two ideas, called a synthesis. During the creation of knowledge organization systems (KOSs), the identification of logical relations between different ideas has been made possible through the consideration and use of the most influential methods and tools such as dictionaries, Roget's Thesaurus, thesaurus, micro-, macro- and metathesauri, ontology, lower, middle and upper level ontologies. The analysis process has adapted a historical methodology, more specifically a dialectic method and documentary method as the reasoning process. This supports our arguments and synthesizes a method for the analysis of research results. Confirmed by the research results, the principle of unity has shown to be the most important factor in the development and evolution of the structure of knowledge organization systems and their types. There are various types of unity when considering the analysis of logical relations. These include the principle of unity of alphabetical order, unity of science, semantic unity, structural unity and conceptual unity. The results have clearly demonstrated a movement from plurality to unity in the assembling of the complex structure of knowledge organization systems to increase information and knowledge storage and retrieval performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to show the process of construction and discovery allowing determining the characteristics of an alphabetizing method capable to assure an efficient learning of the written language from working with integrating realities, mediated by reflection which teachers can use in classrooms to develop literacy. The learning of the written language through integrating realities is presented as a result of a research-action process from which derives a proposal that approaches literacy as an alternative to alphabetization that allows the learning experience to be continuous, dynamic, playful and linked to the child's reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Filologija is the property of Croatian Academy of Sciences & Arts (HAZU) 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.)

»Gesundheit, Bildung und Allgemeine Wehrpflicht: Chilenische Sozialpolitik und das Militär in der zweiten Hälfte des 19. und frühen 20. Jahrhunderts «. The following article argues that young physicians working as army doctors played an important role in the development of public health and social policy ideas in Chile, proposing a number of social policy measures. Their experience in the armed forces provided them with deep insights into the health conditions and education of the less privileged Chileans, some of which raised serious concerns. The War of the Pacific served to heighten the doctor's awareness that inertia on part of the Chilean state in all matters concerning health and education set the Chilean army, and by extension the country, at a great disadvantage. Here, the examples of Imperial Germany as well as other European countries were also important. Finally, the article revises some of the arguments used in Chile in favor of universal military service that were closely connected to social policy issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Functional alphabetization has become a growing need in education in several countries of Latin America. The present investigation details the results obtained from a functional literacy process aimed at parents of a school in Chile. The research base had a foundation focused on the interpretive paradigm, then, it was sought to create a closeness to the realities of the subjects in a holistic and natural way, thus understanding the sensitivity of each proxy from the experience of being literate. A diagnosis was applied to identify the level of learning that each subject had. With these data we proceeded to the elaboration of a didactic proposal, considering the diversity of ages that were in the group and the strategies that should be used to make them more dynamic. The results revealed that after one year the attorneys showed an 80% improvement in their alphabetization level compared to the initial situation. It is concluded that the group of alphabetized parents improved theirself-confidence and became a subject that communicates and shares their life experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Lexikos is the property of Bureau of the Woordeboek van die Afrikaanse Taal 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.)

This study reports the effects of using word clouds to support students' knowledge integration from online inquiry as demonstrated by blog posts, tags and concept maps. Fifty-four undergraduate students from a medium-sized university in the northwestern United States were randomly assigned into two groups and blogged for five weeks. To support students' online searching activity, the treatment group was provided a list of concepts in the format of a word cloud. The control group received the same list of concepts in an alphabetic order. Data analyses included comparing participant-attached tags and individual concept maps to the instructor's keyword list. Results revealed that the word clouds facilitated the construction of schema in a top-down deductive approach, which could be a meaningful and efficient way of learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides definitions of alphabetization and related concepts and traces its historical development and challenges, covering analog as well as digital media. It introduces basic principles as well as standards, norms, and guidelines. The function of alphabetization is considered and related to alternatives such as systematic arrangement or classification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we define the concept of the general prenucleolus minimizing the player complaint vector in the lexicographic order over the preimputation set for the cooperative games with fuzzy coalitions. For the general prenucleolus, we get a sufficient condition that the complaints of all players are in equal amount under the case of linear complaint functions concluding the proposed player excess (Sakawa and Nishizaki (1994) [15] ). As a result, we can obtain the proposed fuzzy solutions with the corresponding linear complaint functions, such as the equalizer solution (Molina and Tejada (2002) [5] ) and Shapley function etc. We prove that the least square general prenucleolus minimizing the variance of the resulting player complaints, is the general prenucleolus. Thus, an optimal solution considered from two aspects of the lexicographic order and the least square criterion, is obtained. In addition, several general prenucleoli are proposed in terms of specific situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay introduces a project that uses data mapping and digital visualisation to gain new insights into nineteenth-century travel writing. It focuses on the case study of a bibliography of 3000 titles of travel works published in Britain between 1800 and 1900 and outlines the process of applying digital analysis to that dataset. The essay proposes that scholarly engagement with travel writing can benefit from the use of "distant reading" in two regards. First, by visualising data that has previously only been available in textual formats and in alphabetical order, the project could make apparent patterns across time and with regard to travel destinations. Second, the project is an attempt to automate the "reading" of titles in a bibliography of travel writing as a test case for adding a comparative component to examining nineteenth-century travel writing across diverse national publishing practices. By allowing scholars to see trends and differences visually, this mapping project complements literary modes of analysis and textual interpretation of travel writing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Each time researchers jointly write an article, a decision must be made about the order in which the authors are listed. There are two main norms for doing so. The vast majority of scientific disciplines use a contribution-based norm, according to which authors who contributed the most are listed first. Very few disciplines, most notably economics, instead resort primarily to the norm of listing authors in alphabetical order. It has been argued that (1) this alphabetical norm gives an unfair advantage to researchers with last name initials early in the alphabet and that (2) researchers are aware of this 'alphabetical discrimination' and react strategically to it, for example by avoiding collaborations with multiple authors. This article reviews the empirical literature and finds convincing evidence that alphabetical discrimination exists and that researchers react to it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the US Senate, roll calls are held in alphabetical order. We document that senators early in the order are less likely to vote with the majority of their own party than those whose last name places them at the end of the alphabet. To speak to the mechanism behind this result, we develop a simple model of sequential voting, in which forward-looking senators rely on backward induction in order to free ride on their colleagues. Estimating our model structurally, we find that this form of strategic behavior is an important part of equilibrium play. We also consider, but ultimately dismiss, alternative explanations related to learning about common values and vote buying. (JEL D72, D82, D83) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Τhe purpose of this study was to examine the relationships of parents’ expectations, family’s socioeconomic status (SES) and home literacy environment (formal and informal literacy experiences and literacy resources at home) with emergent literacy skills (phonological awareness, vocabulary) and word reading in Chinese. One hundred and forty third-year kindergarten Chinese children (71 girls and 69 boys; mean age = 70.54 months) were assessed on nonverbal IQ, phonological awareness, vocabulary, and word reading. Parents also filled out a questionnaire on their educational level and income, the frequency of engaging in different home literacy-related activities with their child, and their expectations about their child’s reading/school performance. Results of path analysis showed that formal literacy activities predicted phonological awareness and literacy resources at home predicted vocabulary. In addition, family’s SES was a significant predictor of literacy resources at home and parents’ expectations was a significant predictor of all home literacy aspects and of word reading. Results of multiple mediation analysis further showed that the effects of parents’ expectations on word reading were partly mediated by formal literacy experiences and literacy resources at home. In contrast, the effects of literacy resources at home on word reading were fully mediated by the effects of vocabulary on phonological awareness. Taken together, these findings suggest that the links between home literacy environment (including the factors that shape the quantity and quality of the home literacy experiences) and reading in Chinese are not as straightforward as those previously reported in alphabetic languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tamil, one of the classical languages of India with a history over two thousand years, follows an alphabetic system based on a metaphysical theory. It follows a script evolved from the ancient Tamil Brahmi script, that dates back to 200 BC, to the current form. In this paper we undertake a deeper analysis of its alphabetic structural forms that leads to an understanding of why the structure of Tamil alphabets are just so. We adopt a teleological approach to analyze the script's alphabetic structural forms that show a continuous evolutionary behavior over its history. Starting with a structural grammar for the first alphabet 'A' based on the principles of Truth and Consciousness as expounded by Vallalar and Sri Aurobindo, the pioneers of Supramental evolution, we analyze the structural characteristics of all the vowels and consonants based on the significances associated with them. The vowel structural forms derive their significance from the triune Truth, Consciousness and Delight of Existence, and the consonants from the different states of Existence or planes of Consciousness following the metaphysical theory of involution and evolution. The significance of the peculiarly different structural forms among the vowels and consonants are also addressed and shown to be consistent with the Tamil metaphysical theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alphabetical name order is the norm for joint publications in economics. However, alphabetical order confers greater benefits on the first author. In a two-author model, we introduce and study certified random order: the uniform randomization of names made universally known by a commonly understood symbol. Certified random order (i) distributes the gain from first authorship evenly over the alphabet; (ii) allows either author to signal when contributions are extremely unequal; (iii) will invade an environment where alphabetical order is dominant; (iv) is robust to deviations; (v) may be ex ante more efficient than alphabetical order; and (vi) is no more complex than the existing alphabetical system modified by occasional reversal of name order. (JEL A14, Z13) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Cahiers du Dictionnaire is the property of Classiques Garnier 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.)

Neuroimaging studies have proposed specific brain regions for reading Chinese characters. For example, compared to alphabetic languages, Chinese reading has revealed more activation of the left Middle Frontal Gyrus (MFG) and null or deactivation at left posterior Superior Temporal Gyrus (pSTG). However, the model of specific regions for Chinese was contested by recent findings showing similar activities across languages under the same task demand. Thus, whether the engagement of the Chinese-specific regions was due to stimulus selectivity or to task demand was called into question. The current meta-analysis, using Activation Likelihood Estimation (ALE), summarized brain regions in previous fMRI studies from two types of contrast, stimulus contrasts (SC), in which more regions were activated for Chinese characters than for other visual stimuli (e.g., Korean words, faces) or for other types of characters (e.g., real > artificial characters), and task contrasts (TC), in which more regions were activated for one task than for another (e.g., lexical decision > symbol detection) in processing Chinese characters. ALE activation maps revealed a shared network for the two types of contrast, including the right Inferior Frontal Gyrus (IFG, BA47) and four clusters in the left hemisphere, the IFG (BA45/46), Superior Parietal Lobule, Superior Frontal Gyrus, and posterior Middle Temporal Gyrus (pMTG). The SC > TC comparison demonstrated the greater involvement of the left Angular Gyrus and left Fusiform Gyrus. The TC > SC comparison, in contrast, revealed the engagement of left-hemisphere regions in the IFG, MFG, pSTG, pMTG, and Medial Frontal Gyrus. These results suggest that the previously identified Chinese-specific areas (e.g., MFG, pSTG) might be task dependent rather than stimulus selective. This work shed light on the language-general neural network of visual word reading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We compared the ability of two legend designs on a soil-landscape map to efficiently and effectively support map reading tasks with the goal of better understanding how the design choices affect user performance. Developing such knowledge is essential to design effective interfaces for digital earth systems. One of the two legends contained an alphabetical ordering of categories, while the other used a perceptual grouping based on the Munsell color space. We tested the two legends for 4 tasks with 20 experts (in geography-related domains). We analyzed traditional usability metrics and participants’ eye movements to identify the possible reasons behind their success and failure in the experimental tasks. Surprisingly, an overwhelming majority of the participants failed to arrive at the correct responses for two of the four tasks, irrespective of the legend design. Furthermore, participants’ prior knowledge of soils and map interpretation abilities led to interesting performance differences between the two legend types. We discuss how participant background might have played a role in performance and why some tasks were particularly hard to solve despite participants’ relatively high levels of experience in map reading. Based on our observations, we caution soil cartographers to be aware of the perceptual complexity of soil-landscape maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mentalization defines the capacity to attribute mental states such as desires and beliefs to others and to understand that these can differ from our own. Such a capacity can be compromised in several psychiatric conditions and is the main target of many types of psychotherapy. Here we propose a theoretic model in which mentalization is achieved through a process we have termed “alphabetization” of the emotions. In this model, the patient–analyst relationship is observed within the analytic field so that all the communications of the patient and/or the analyst can be considered as “dreams” narrating the emotional “climate” of the field itself. Both the analyst and the patient contribute to the generation of the “climate,” and the analyst’s role is to promote the patient’s capacity to convert the unknown sensations into “dreams” or stories so as to make the emotional experience symbolized and meaningful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The market comprises investors with a broad range of expertise. As a result, investors may make decisions differently from one another. Research reveals that investors use name-based heuristics, or short-cuts, including alphabetical ordering (Itzkowitz, Itzkowitz, and Rothbort [2015]), name fluency (Anderson and Larkin [2012], Green and Jame [2013]), and name memorability (Grullon, Kanatas, and Weston [2004]) when trading stocks, resulting in irrational decisions. Because experts and novices process information differently, name-based biases may not affect all investors equally. The authors test and confirm the hypothesis that, compared to novices, expert investors are relatively immune to name-based biases. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Our paper discusses the implementation and field evaluation of a context-aware mobile contact retrieval application. We examine the performance of our underlying prediction algorithm in real world conditions and report on the suitability of our hybrid interface design, as a replacement for traditional contact retrieval interfaces (e.g. phonebook and recent call list). We find that users are best served by an alphabetical ordering of prediction matches and show that hybrid interface designs can provide a modest benefit in users’ ability to find a contact, in cases of non-successful predictions. We also discuss users’ alternative strategies for retrieval in such cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior investigations have offered contrasting results on a troubling question: whether the alphabetical ordering of bylines confers citation advantages on those authors whose surnames put them first in the list. The previous studies analyzed the surname effect at publication level, i.e. whether papers with the first author early in the alphabet trigger more citations than papers with a first author late in the alphabet. We adopt instead a different approach, by analyzing the surname effect on citability at the individual level, i.e. whether authors with alphabetically earlier surnames result as being more cited. Examining the question at both the overall and discipline levels, the analysis finds no evidence whatsoever that alphabetically earlier surnames gain advantage. The same lack of evidence occurs for the subpopulation of scientists with very high publication rates, where alphabetical advantage might gain more ground. The field of observation consists of 14,467 scientists in the sciences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of learning to write at an early age has been the subject of much research in recent years. We now know that in languages of alphabetic writing like ours, learning to write requires both alphabetical knowledge and the awareness of the phonological structure of speech, with the development of spoken language a necessary skill for learning written language. However, few studies have been conducted in order to understand the link between these skills and the initial learning to write. The purpose of this study was to examine whether programs that integrate the promotion of oral language along with the development of phonological processing skills and alphabetical knowledge favour effectiveness of the written learning process. A quasi-experimental comparison group design with pre-test and post-test measures was used. The study involved 403 students from different public and private schools aged between 5 and 6. The results weigh the potential value of the program and support the development of teaching models that provide access to alphabetic knowledge from new educational perspectives that facilitate the learning of the writing system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses Pelbartus of Themeswar's use of sources in the first volume of the Rosarium. In order to make the mapping of influences easier we have divided the works cited into two categories: medieval and ancient writings. The group of medieval works is also divided into two subcategories: scotist commentaries on the Sentences of Peter Lombard and alphabetical Summae and Encyclopedias. These are the two types of works that have inspired the form of the Rosarium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The JDC (Defence and Citizenship Day) has become an essential element in the fight against illiteracy in France. It not only furnishes annual statistics for national, regional and local policy evaluation, but also identifies those young adults within a entire cohort (mostly 17-19) who need help with their literacy skills, so that they can be referred to by support organisations. It is difficult to assess very precisely the impact of post-JDC actions carried out by JDC partners. Neither the JDC tests nor the post-JDC actions are perfect, but through growing cooperation between the numerous stakeholders federated with the JDC the efficiency of each partner increases, and the global effort becomes more productive. The JDC impact is far more than literacy test results. It is also the discovery of other partners, the exchange of points of view and practices, the research into coordination of action to increase global effectiveness. The JDC experience shows that it is possible to investigate literacy problems, and to identify instances of illiteracy in a nationwide programme that is not principally literacy-oriented. This is a way to make public investment more efficient and to create support for synergies between organizations working in the literacy field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholars (n = 580) from 69 countries who had contributed articles in the field of Economics during the year 2015 participated in a survey that gauged their perceptions of various aspects of co-authorship, including its benefits, motivations, working relationships, order of authorship and association preferences. Among the main findings, significant differences emerged in the proportion of co-authored papers based on age, gender and number of years the researchers had spent in their present institution. Female scholars had a greater proportion of co-authored papers than male scholars. Respondents considered improved quality of paper, contribution of mutual expertise, and division of labor as the biggest benefits of and motivation for co-authorship. Contrary to common perceptions that Economics researchers used a predominantly alphabetical order of authorship, our study found that a considerable percentage of respondents (34.5%) had practiced an order of authorship based on the significance of the authors’ contribution to the work. The relative importance of tasks differed significantly according to whether researchers co-authored as mentors or co-authored as colleagues. Lastly, researchers were found to associate, to varying degrees, with other researchers based on socio-academic parameters, such as nationality, ethnicity, gender, professional position and friendship. The study indicates that Economics authors perceive co-authorship as a rewarding endeavor. Nonetheless, the level of contribution and even the choice of association itself as a co-author depends to a great extent on the type of working relationship and socio-academic factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Lexikos is the property of Bureau of the Woordeboek van die Afrikaanse Taal 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 Ab Auro Prologue of Pelbartus of Themeswar's Theological Encyclopedia. Pelbartus of Themeswar is a 15th century observant Franciscan best known for his collections of model sermons. This article, however, treats one of the two prologues which accompany his work of systematic theology, the Aureum sacrae theologiae rosarium. The Ab auro prologue, which is discussed in detail in the present study, introduces the reader to the main intent of the work. It has a rich metaphoric style and is tacitly inspired by the "Primum principium" of William of Vaurouillon's commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Throughout antiquity memory played a central role in the production, publication, and transmission of texts. Greek mnemotechnics started developing as early as the 6th century BC and by the 2nd century BC memory established itself as a formal division of rhetoric. Techniques of memorization are described at length in ancient rhetorical or scientific works (such as Aristotle's De memoria), or alluded to in literary works. The theory of mnemotechnics was concerned with how to learn virtually any text by heart, but there is no systematic discussion of what makes a text intrinsically easy to memorize, nor of how to compose in a memory-friendly manner. However, passing remarks scattered throughout ancient Greek texts show that some awareness existed that certain stylistic and structural features improve the memorability of texts. A systematic study of these primary sources reveals that (a) memorization was not regarded as specifically functional to oral performance alone, and (b) the Greek literary and technical writers consciously looked at the mnemonic advantage of stylistic and structural features only when they wanted to favour the memory of the audience, not that of the performer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This early essay from German media theorist Friedrich Kittler examines a number of epistemic shifts occurring in late 18th-century Germany, anticipating in both methodology and content his groundbreaking 1985 work Aufschreibesysteme [Discourse Networks]. Of primary concern to Kittler here is the invention of what he calls (drawing upon Foucault) the ‘authorship-function’, product of a new constellation of medial, pedagogical and juridical forces. Alongside broader societal transformations (the transition from societies of the law to societies of the norm, the appearance of new sexualities), Kittler documents the emergence of the author in the late 18th century through analyses of new pedagogical practices (including the invention of hermeneutics), changes in childhood alphabetization, and new erotic relationships between authors and their readers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An essay is presented which explores British classicist Eric Havelock's alphabetic thesis and its implications. It cites reference to the Walter Ong's book "Orality and Literacy," in spreading Havelock's findings to the academic world and discusses problems with consonantal consonantal writing. It states that Havelock argued that the books "Iliad" and the "Odyssey," recorded alphabetically around the seventh century BC.