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Date
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Topics
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Readings and relevant links
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Assignments, events & other links
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Sept 12
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What is linguistics about?
The nature of human language and linguistic knowledge: "Design features"
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Chapter 1
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Questionnaire: Please fill in the questionnaire and send it to me by e-mail before Wednesday's class.
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Sept 14
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"Design features" cont.: Human language vs. animal communication systems
The innateness hypothesis.
The poverty of the stimulus argument.
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Sept 19
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The biological basis of language
Language and the brain
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Read the general Guidelines for answering questions on homework assignments HERE.
HW1 assigned: .pdf
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Sept 21
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What is grammar? Prescriptivism vs. descriptivism
The three main questions of linguistic theory
Main subfields in linguistics
Articulartory phonetics: Consonants
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Chapter 6, pp. 230-245
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Sept 26
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Chapter 6 cont. pp. 246-251
Some useful links
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HW1 due
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Sept 28
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Coarticulation
Syllable structure
Prosodic features (aka Suprasegmentals)
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Prosodic features (Chapter 6, pp. 252-255). Also the section on Prosodic Phonology in Chapter 7, pp. 296-302.
Transcription. Have a look at the following exercises from the textbook (pp. 261-262): Exercises 1, 2, 3, and 5.
Start reading Chapter 7, pp. 272-282
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Oct 3
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Phonology: Phonemes and allophones
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Oct 5
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Phonology problems
Phonological rules
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Look at the phonology problems I gave out in class in preparation for in-class discussion.
Finish Chapter 7 (read the section on phonological rules, if you haven't done that already)
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HW2 due
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Oct 10
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Intro to Morphology: Morphemes and Allomorphs
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Chapter 3 pp. 76-99
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Oct 12
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Morphological analysis: English, Swedish, Cebuano, Turkish
Rules of word formation
Morphological typology: Isolating vs. synthetic; agglutinative vs. fusional
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Oct 17
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Morphological typology cont.
Some visual and linguistics puzzles
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Chapter 4, pp. 117-129
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Oct 19
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Syntax: Constituency
Phrase structure grammar
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Chapter 4 cont., pp. 129-148
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HW3 due
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Oct 24
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Midterm Recess
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Have fun!
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Oct 26
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Chapter 4, pp. 149-167
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Oct 31
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Syntax cont.: UG: Principles and Parameters
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Stard reading Chapter 8
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Nov 2
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Universal principles of grammar: Islands and Binding
Evidence from Language acquisition by children
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Read the section on wh-movement in Chapter 4
Read the short section on pronouns in Chapter 5
Finish reading Chapter 8
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MIDTERM due on Thursday Nov 3rd by 12noon
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Nov 7
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Discussion of Readings from Language Myths:
- Myth 9: In the Appalachians they speak like Shakespeare
- Myth 12: Bad grammar is slovenly
- Myth 17: They speak really bad English down south and in NYC
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LAP one-page proposal due
HW4 assigned: .pdf
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Tuesday Nov 8
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Screening of The Linguists at the Davis Library, Room 230 at 7-8pm |
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Nov 9
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Sociolinguistics: Language and society
The language-dialect distinction (or lack thereof)
Regional dialects of American English
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Chapter 10, pp. 430-452
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Nov 14
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Discussion of Readings from Language Myths:
- Myth 2: Some languages are just not good enough
- Myth 4: French is a logical language
- Myth 11: Italian is beautiful; German is ugly
- Myth 6: Women talk too much
Lecture slides
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HW4 due
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Nov 16
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Language and ethnicity (African American English)
Language attitudes
The standard vs. nonstandard
Lecture slides
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Chapter 10 cont.
Reading from Language Myths:
- Myth 1: The Meanings of words should not be allowed to change.
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Nov 21
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Sociolinguistic variation cont.
Language attitudes in educational systems: A case in Ann Arbor, MI
The Academic English Mastery program in CA
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Nov 23
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Thanksgiving Break
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Eat Turkey!
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Nov 28
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Language Change: Lexical, semantic, morphological change
syntactic, and phonological
Lecture slides
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Chapter 11, pp. 488-509
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Nov 30
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Historical linguistics: reconstruction and the comparative method
Lecture slides
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Chapter 11 cont., pp. 510-518
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HW5 due
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Dec 5
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Creating language out of thin air: Pidgins and Creoles
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Dec 7
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Dec 10
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Final Exam posted
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Dec 12
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LAP report due by 9am (extended deadline)
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Dec 15
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Final Exam due by 12noon (no extensions will be given)
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