Procedural meanings of well in a corpus of Xhosa English
- Authors: De Klerk, Vivian A
- Date: 2005
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6128 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011579
- Description: This article explores the use of the pragmatic marker well in a large corpus of the discourse of non-mother tongue speakers of Xhosa English, which is a sub-variety of Black South African English. A brief overview of discourse markers in general and of well in particular is provided, and the problems they pose to linguists in terms of difficulties in defining their syntactic, semantic and pragmatic properties are examined. After a brief description of the nature of the corpus of Xhosa English on which the study is based, and of the methodological approach which was followed, the rest of the article focuses on a fairly detailed exposition of the overall trends in contextualised uses and procedural meanings of well in the corpus, along with examples. Some (limited) parallels are drawn between the use of well in XE and other English corpora, in order to highlight the problems experienced by L2 learners in acquiring discourse markers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: De Klerk, Vivian A
- Date: 2005
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6128 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011579
- Description: This article explores the use of the pragmatic marker well in a large corpus of the discourse of non-mother tongue speakers of Xhosa English, which is a sub-variety of Black South African English. A brief overview of discourse markers in general and of well in particular is provided, and the problems they pose to linguists in terms of difficulties in defining their syntactic, semantic and pragmatic properties are examined. After a brief description of the nature of the corpus of Xhosa English on which the study is based, and of the methodological approach which was followed, the rest of the article focuses on a fairly detailed exposition of the overall trends in contextualised uses and procedural meanings of well in the corpus, along with examples. Some (limited) parallels are drawn between the use of well in XE and other English corpora, in order to highlight the problems experienced by L2 learners in acquiring discourse markers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Contrasting spatial heterogeneity of sessile organisms within mussel (Perna perna L.) beds in relation to topographic variability
- Erlandsson, J, McQuaid, Christopher D, Kostylev, V E
- Authors: Erlandsson, J , McQuaid, Christopher D , Kostylev, V E
- Date: 2005
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6949 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011979
- Description: We examined the spatial heterogeneity in three sessile rocky shore organisms, the mussel Perna perna, the barnacle Octomeris angulosa (Sowerby) and the red alga Gelidium pristoides (Turn.) at a range of continuous local scales along horizontal transects within mid- and upper mussel beds of South African shores. We also examined the relationships between variability of organisms and topographic features (rock depressions, slope, aspect), and between mussel, barnacle and algal variability over the same scales. To estimate spatial heterogeneity, we analyzed scaling properties of semivariograms using a fractal approach. Relationships between different variables at the different scales were examined by cross-semivariograms. Spatial dependence of P. perna variability increased with spatial dependence of topographic variability, so that scaling regions of mussel and topographic distributions corresponded well. This relationship often improved with larger local scales (mussel cover increased with depressions, steeper slope and aspect towards waves), while at smaller spatial scales, variability in mussel cover was less well explained by variability in topography. The variability of the barnacle O. angulosa exhibited spatial dependence, even on topographically unstructured shores. In contrast, the distribution of the alga G. pristoides revealed high fractal dimensions, showing spatial independence on topographically unstructured shores. Algae also showed a very strong negative relationship with mussels at most local scales, and a negative relationship with barnacles in upper zones, especially at larger local scales. Barnacles may show clear spatial dependence because of hydrodynamics (at larger local scales) and the need to find a future mate in close proximity (at smaller local scales), while algae may show a strong negative relationship with mussels because of competition for space.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Erlandsson, J , McQuaid, Christopher D , Kostylev, V E
- Date: 2005
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6949 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011979
- Description: We examined the spatial heterogeneity in three sessile rocky shore organisms, the mussel Perna perna, the barnacle Octomeris angulosa (Sowerby) and the red alga Gelidium pristoides (Turn.) at a range of continuous local scales along horizontal transects within mid- and upper mussel beds of South African shores. We also examined the relationships between variability of organisms and topographic features (rock depressions, slope, aspect), and between mussel, barnacle and algal variability over the same scales. To estimate spatial heterogeneity, we analyzed scaling properties of semivariograms using a fractal approach. Relationships between different variables at the different scales were examined by cross-semivariograms. Spatial dependence of P. perna variability increased with spatial dependence of topographic variability, so that scaling regions of mussel and topographic distributions corresponded well. This relationship often improved with larger local scales (mussel cover increased with depressions, steeper slope and aspect towards waves), while at smaller spatial scales, variability in mussel cover was less well explained by variability in topography. The variability of the barnacle O. angulosa exhibited spatial dependence, even on topographically unstructured shores. In contrast, the distribution of the alga G. pristoides revealed high fractal dimensions, showing spatial independence on topographically unstructured shores. Algae also showed a very strong negative relationship with mussels at most local scales, and a negative relationship with barnacles in upper zones, especially at larger local scales. Barnacles may show clear spatial dependence because of hydrodynamics (at larger local scales) and the need to find a future mate in close proximity (at smaller local scales), while algae may show a strong negative relationship with mussels because of competition for space.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- «
- ‹
- 1
- ›
- »