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一、Explain-the-fllowing-terms

1． IPA

【答案】 IPA is the abbreviation of International Phonetic Alphabet , which is devised by the International Phonetic Association in 1888. IPA is a set of symbols which can be used to represent the phones and phonemes of natural languages.

2． Category

Category refers to a group of linguistic items which fulfill the same or similar functions in 【答案】

a particular language such as a sentence, a noun phrase or a verb.

3． MT

【答案】 It refers to machine translation, the use of machine （usually computers） to translate texts from one natural language to another

4． Achievement test

【答案】 Achievement test is a test which measures how much of a language someone has learned with reference to a particular course of study or program of instruction.

5． Cognition

【答案】 Cognition is, in psychology, used to refer to the mental processes of an individual, with particular relation to a concept which argues that the mind has internal mental states （such as beliefs, desires and intentions ） and can be understood as information processing , especially when much abstraction or concretization is involved , or processes such as involving knowledge , expertise or learning for example are at work. Another definition of “cognition” is the mental process or faculty of knowing , including aspects such as awareness, perception, reasoning, and judgment.

6． Applied linguistics

【答案】 It is a branch of linguistics which studies the application of linguistics in reality. For example , there are studies on multilingualism, language acquisition, first and second language teaching and learning.

7． Duality

【答案】Duality refers to the fact that in all languages so far investigated there are two levels of structure or patterning. At the first , higher level , language is analyzed in terms of combinations of meaningful units ; at the second, lower level, it is seen as a sequence （such as morphemes, words etc.）

of segments which lack any meaning in themselves, but which combine to form units of meaning. For example , a syllable is the smallest unit that is normally spoken by itself, and scores of syllables become the carriers of hundreds of meaningful segments of words that are called morphemes.

8． Prefix

【答案】 In linguistics, a prefix is a type of affix that precedes the morphemes to which it can attach. Prefixes are bound morphemes （they cannot occur as independent words ） . While most languages employ both prefixes and suffixes, prefixes are less common. Some languages employ mostly suffixes and almost no prefixes at all. The use of prefixes has been found to correlate statistically with other linguistic features, such as a verb-object word order and the use of prepositions.

二、Essay-question

9． How much does our language influence the way we think? How deeply do language and culture interpenetrate and influence one another? These questions about language have fascinated thinkers throughout the ages. For example, Johann Gottfried Herder and Wilhelm von Humboldt in the German Romantic tradition regarded language as a prisma or grid spread over things in the world so that each language reflects a different worldview. Write a short essay to explain your position on this view.

【答案】 Humans have a unique linguistic system for communication that serves as the primary vehicle for expressing thoughts. Language and thought may be viewed as two independent circles that develop along two different routes but overlap in some parts, where language and thought are consistent with each other. But language is not the only means of expressing thought. As for the relationship between language and the thought , we think that language does not determine the way we think but influence the way we perceive the world and recall things, and affects the ease with which we perform mental tasks. That is, language may be used to provide new ideas, bring about a change in beliefs and values , solve problems，and keep track of things in memory. For example, a well-developed vocabulary may well assist us in learning the concepts the lexis covers. We recall things more easily when they correspond to readily available words or phrases. It is certainly easier for us to make a conceptual distinction if it neatly corresponds to a particular lexical item available in our language. When we label our experience with linguistic symbols, our language will influence how we remember and think about those experiences ; otherwise the relationship between language and perception , memory or thinking will be greatly reduced.

In terms of relationship between language and culture , we can infer that a language not only expresses facts, ideas, or events that represent similar world knowledge by its people, but also reflects the people‟s attitudes, beliefs， world outlooks, and etc. Language expresses cultural reality. On the other hand, as peopled language uses express their culture represented by its social conventions, norms and social appropriateness, the culture both emancipates and constrains people socially, historically and metaphorically. Sharing a same community culture, people have acquired common ways of viewing the world through their speech interactions with other members of the same group. Although language and culture are inextricably intertwined , culture is a wider system that completely includes language as a subsystem. The knowledge and beliefs that constitute a people‟s culture are habitually encoded and transmitted in the language of the people. Language as an integral part of human being, permeates his thinking and way of viewing the world, language both expresses and embodies cultural reality.

As for the relationship between language and world views , the language system does not necessarily provide specifics of one‟s world view. All humans share a general conceptualizing capacity; Speakers of different languages are capable of distinguishing and recognizing experiences according to their respectively different linguistic coding systems for the same objective world. On the one hand , people speaking the same language may have different world views , including political , social , religious , scientific and philosophical views. On the other hand , people speaking different languages may share similar world views on above aspects. Moreover, one language can describe many different

worldviews , as is evident in the case of successful translation.

According to the theories shown above, we can infer that Johann Gottfried Herder and Wilhelm von Humboldt^ view has both merits and limitations. First , they see clearly that there exists a relationship between language and thoughts. Second, they assume that language influences so much the way people think that people who think in different ways will have different world views. Based on the theoretical views above we think this view is not rational in this aspect.

10．Krashen ’s Input Hypothesis and Language Learning.

【答案】 Input hypothesis claims that “Human acquire language in only one way~~by understanding messages or by receiving 'comprehensible input,, ?. According to Krashen, input that is useful for L2 acquisition must be neither too difficult nor too easy to understand and ought to be tuned just right to learner 9s current level , represented as i. In the course of acquiring the L2, learners progress from one level to another. The next level is called +Y\ For i +1 to occur, the input has to be slightly beyond the level at which learners are well proficient. The gap between i and / +1 is bridged by comprehensible input , which is the information drawn from the context and previous experience. Comprehensible input is considered both necessary and sufficient for L2 acquisition to occur and output plays little role. In other words, L2 learning takes place because the data to which learners are exposed contain comprehensible input.

According to Krashen's acquisition-learning hypothesis, there are two ways to approach language learning : acquisition and learning. Acquisition helps us produce natural , rapid , and fluent speech. Learning , which is a conscious study of form, helps us edit this speech. In other words, when we learn something it won't help us produce fluent communication , but it will help us monitor our communication and correct minor errors.

It can only occur if three conditions are fulfilled : The performer has to have enough time ; the performer has to be thinking about correctness and the performer has to know the rule. Learners will be most likely to use the Monitor in formal exam situations , where their attention has been drawn to linguistic form，and where they have enough time. If all these conditions are fulfilled, the Monitor may be used, but may be used inaccurately.

11．Read the following sentence and illustrate the ideas behind this statement : "'Register is the term used in linguistics to describe the relationship between a particular style of language and its context of use.99

【答案】 The register is what you are speaking at the time, depending on what you are doing and the nature of the activity in which the language is functioning. A register can be defined as a configuration of meanings that are typically associated with a particular situational configuration of field, mode , and tenor. Therefore, a register must also include the expressions, the lexico-grammatical and phonological features , which typically accompany or realize these meanings. Text can be seen as an instance of a register.

Register is seen as the linguistic consequence of interacting aspects of context , which Halliday calls “field, tenor, and mode.” Field refers to the topics and actions which language is used to express. Tenor denotes the language users, their relationships to each other, and their purposes. Mode refers to the channel through which communication is carried out. These three contextual variables are intended to help the linguist tie linguistic analysis to the relevant contextual variables. By understanding the semiotic properties of a situation （i.e. , the values for field, tenor, and mode） , language users can predict the meanings that are likely to be exchanged and the language likely to be used. And while people are communicating they make predictions by using the values of field , tenor and mode to understand register and that their assessment facilitates their own participation.