Review Notes 5

Question 1

A feature can be said to be active if:

Answer 1

It plays a role in phonological computation; if it is required to express phonological regularities in a language.

Question 2

Phonological activity implies:

Answer 2

Phonological contrast.

Question 3

What do we use Binarity for in Feature Emergence?

Answer 3

Markedness. A feature is either Marked (complex) or Unmarked (easy)

Question 4

A vowel system with 3 vowels has how many possible hierarchies and why?

Answer 4

4, because it needs at least two features to distinguish the vowels from each other, and the order of the vowels changes the hierarchy.

Question 5

What kind of feature underspecification takes place in Classical Manchu, and how do we find it?

Answer 5

[ATR] is underspecified for [i]. It is not (non-ATR) because it would trigger or undergo vowel harmony, and it does neither.

Question 6

What kind of feature hierarchy exists in Classical Manchu in order to achieve its particular underspecification?

Answer 6

Syllabic > [+low] (non-low). [+low] splits into [+labial] (non-labial). (non-low) splits into [+coronal] (non-coronal). Both (non-labial) and (non-coronal) split into [+ATR] and (non-ATR). /i/ is [+coronal].

Question 7

Phonological contrast is not the same as

Answer 7

phonetic contrast

Question 8

We learn features as we develop because

Answer 8

features are phonological, not phonetic.

Question 9

What are features?

Answer 9

Quantal (non-linear) relationships between articulatory configurations and regions of acoustic stability.

Question 10

Universal Grammar is not:
And is:

Answer 10

A repository of Inborn Knowledge
A Language Learning device

Question 11

Why might an early learner make phonetic mistakes, other than difficulty in pronounciation?

Answer 11

Because they haven’t identified certain contrasts.

Question 12

What does Generative Theory bring to the table regarding feature development?

Answer 12

It separates features into abstract categories with recognizable boundaries.

Question 13

What does Exemplarist Theory bring to the table regarding feature development?

Answer 13

It introduces sources of both linguistic and non-linguistic information. (Ambient Language, memory traces)

Question 14

What is an example of something that requires both Generative and Exemplar Theory to understand?

Answer 14

Syllables. Exemplar Theory = stress. Generative Theory tells us what triggers the stress.

Question 15

PRIMIR stands for

Answer 15

Processing Rich Information from Multi-dimensional Interactive Representations

Question 16

What does PRIMIR support?

Answer 16

A feedback loop between what we hear, what we understand about phonemes, and what we articulate.

Question 17

What are children doing when learning phonemic rules?

Answer 17

Mapping speech articulations onto target forms from their perceptual domain.

Question 18

How much do kids generalize?

Answer 18

Only as much as they need to, with the information that they have.

Question 19

What does kids’ generalization in language learning tell us about their language learning process?

Answer 19

That they have some level of abstraction available, between speech sounds and articulation. Abstraction is proof of phonology.

Question 20

A feature pattern may be:

Answer 20

Context Free or Context Dependant.