Examines the extent to which linguistic descriptions can adequately account for their reality for learners and provide a reference point for the design of language courses. Special concern is focused on second language learners as a particular kind of language user. (Author/VWL)

In recent decades, there has been a surge of interest in the origin of language across a wide range of disciplines. Emergentism provides a new perspective to integrate investigations from different areas of study. This paper discusses how the study of language acquisition can contribute to the inquiry, in particular when computer modeling is…

We show that Kempen and Harbusch's ("Cognition" (2003) "this issue") arguments against our claims cannot be upheld. On the one hand, their alternative account of our data that is based on the availability of constructions with object-experiencer verbs is not compatible with the literature on the processing of these types of sentences in German.…

Until now, teachers and learners of NZSL have not had access to information on the most frequently used signs in the Deaf community. This article describes the first study of the distribution of signs in New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL). We hope that it will help teachers of NZSL make decisions about which signs to teach first and suggest…

For the first time, the annual conference of the European Association for Computer-Assisted Language Learning (EUROCALL) took place in Sweden. The conference took place at the Faculty of Education on historic ground on the old fortification walls of Carolus Dux from the 17th century right in the centre of the city. This year's host comprised the…

Despite hopes and claims about benefits of computer-assisted language learning, few studies have documented actual cases about how American students learn elementary Chinese in a computer-equipped classroom. This paper deals with how to use computer as an educational tool to develop American students' Chinese language skills. The theoretical…

Drawing on the evidence of a growing body of corpus research over the past two decades, this article investigates the phenomenon of spoken grammar in conversational English and the extent to which our current knowledge of the area is reflected in contemporary textbooks for English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. The article reports on a…

Despite the problems presented by lexical errors in second language (L2) communication, most computer assisted language learning (CALL) programs tend to focus on the acquisition of grammar points rather than on the development of the L2 lexicon. In addition, CALL vocabulary tasks are typically limited in scope and mechanical in nature, covering…

This paper reports a corpus investigation of the Methods sections of research-reporting articles in academic journals. In published pedagogic materials, Swales and Feak [Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. (1994). Academic writing for graduate students. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. (2000). English in today's research…

An ecological approach to a psychological study of language is presented in this paper. Such an approach is based on the understanding that the process of perceiving an object or event is based neither in images or pictures nor in verbal or symbolic structures. In order for objects and events to become knowable, higher order cognitive processes…

Attempts to define the limitations of linguistic theory, and the possibilities of access at the discursive level, based on the hypothesis that there are two types of relatives. Examples are given in German; reference is made to the principles of machine discourse analysis. (Text is in French.) (Author/MSE)

This report comprises two documents which describe the state of the art of computer generation of natural language text. Both were prepared by a panel of individuals who are active in research on text generation. The first document assesses the techniques now available for use in systems design, covering all of the technical methods by which…

In spite of being very similar, the metaphorical models of anger in English and Spanish exhibit some differences too. These have been analyzed along a number of parameters: existence of the mapping in the language, degree of conceptual elaboration, degree of linguistic conventionalization and degree of linguistic exploitation. A number of examples…

This article describes a computer program, or package, that has been designed to allow a novice computer user to analyze natural language text by computer. The program can produce collocations, concordances, and word lists. The article also describes the package control language, which is designed to be easily used. Word extraction, word…

Reviews the history of SNOBOL4 and the reasons why it has been neglected by researchers in natural language. Shows its simplicity and its appropriateness for programing literary and linguistic research problems. Availability noted in FL 508 066. (TL)