LINGUIST List 8.1452

Thu Oct 9 1997

Qs: Ranking, Spanish, Historical Ling

Editor for this issue: Martin Jacobsen <martylinguistlist.org>

Directory

1. Lua Kim Teng, On ranking of journals/conferences
2. Tamara Al-Kasey, mandarin learners of Spanish
3. Rebecca Larche Moreton, Historical linguistics quotation

Dear Colleagues,

We are attempting to compile a list of journals and conferences for
our research group. I shall be most appreciative if you can kindly
return this email with the following suggestions:

1. Good international peer review journals in the research areas:
 (i) AI in general
 (ii) Natural Language Processing/Computational Linguistics
 (iii) Chinese computing/Processing of Oriental Languages

2. International Conferences in the following areas:
 (i) AI in general
 (ii) Natural Language Processing/Computational Linguistics
 (iii) Chinese computing/Processing of Oriental Languages
	
If possible, please rank them.

Thank you very much.

A/Professor Lua Kim Teng
Head, Computational Linguistic Lab, NUS

Can anyone guide me to a (US-accessable) source for pedogogical
materials regarding the phonetics of Spanish for speakers of MANDARIN?

I am dealing with an interesting student of Spanish whose native
language is Mandarin but is fluent (L2) in English. Lacking the trill
(vibrante multiple) and flap (vibrante simple) in both her L1 and L2,
she is transfering a single phoneme, alternatively realized as /r/ or
/l/ for the Spanish phonemes /r/ and /rr/ (or /l/). I am not sure what
role the L2 might be playing here.

All of the tricks that I know of for producing the trill on command
are for English Speakers and have not helped her to actually produce
the sound. (these are imitative tasks and approximation by using /t/
or /d/ in medial position.) How is the articulation coached for
Mandarin speakers? How is the contrast between the three Spanish
phonemes taught/learned?

Tamara Al-Kasey
Carnegie Mellon University 

Y'all: 

Who, in reference to the study of historical linguistics, said that
this was a field in which "the consonants count for little, and the
vowels for nothing at all", or words to that effect? Thanks.

Rebecca Larche Moreton