Les clitiques pronominaux en français parlé informel : une approche morphologique

Dans cet article, nous abordons l’étude des clitiques pronominaux du français parlé informel en assumant que statut morphologique et comportement morphosyntaxique sont deux dimensions indépendantes et qu’il est donc possible d’être un affixe sans pour autant fonctionner comme un marqueur d’accord. Le fait que nombre d’idiosyncrasies affectant les clitiques pronominaux ne puissent être générées par des règles phonologiques ou syntaxiques et que les règles syntaxiques ne puissent manipuler ces éléments nous amèneront à conclure que tous les clitiques pronominaux du français parlé informel sont des affixes qui doivent être attachés à la racine verbale dans une composante morphologique. Mais le fait que seuls les sujets redoublés apparaissent en position d’argument et que seuls les marqueurs de sujets soient employés de façon régulière dans les propositions relatives indique clairement que seuls les marqueurs de sujet fonctionnent comme de véritables marqueurs d’accord et que les marqueurs d’objet retiennent leur statut d’argument syntaxique.In this article, we approach the study of the pronominal clitics of Colloquial French by assuming that morphological status and morphosyntactic behavior are two independent dimensions and that it is therefore possible to be an affix but not to function as an agreement marker. The fact that pronominal clitics exhibit a number of morphophonological idiosyncrasies which cannot be attributed to either phonological or syntactic rules and that they cannot be handled by syntactic rules will lead us to conclude that all the pronominal clitics of Colloquial French are affixes which must be generated within a morphological component. But the fact that only doubled subjects occur in argument position and that only subject markers show up regularly in relative clauses will force the conclusion that only subject markers function as true agreement markers and that non-subject markers retain argument status

The Impact of Language Revival on Linguistic Structure: Neuter Subject Pronouns in Picard

This paper examines the impact that non-native speakers have had on the structure of Picard, a Gallo-Romance language spoken in northern France and southern Belgium. Focusing on neuter subjects, a construction that is characterized by a more complex system than the equivalent form in French (the other language spoken by all Picard speakers), we compare the systems used by native and non-native speakers. Given that all three forms are used by all speakers in our corpus, a variationist approach is adopted to determine whether the same syntactic and phonological factors govern the distribution of the three forms in the two types of speakers. This analysis confirms that non-native speakers have acquired many of the constraints that characterize the grammar of traditional speakers but shows that their dominant language, French, has weakened the effect of the syntactic factors

Geminates and Picard Pronominal Clitic Allomorphy

In this paper, we examine five pronominal clitics in Vimeu Picard with a geminate-consonant allomorph. Assuming a doubly-linked (non-moraic) representation of geminates, we attribute the four different patterns observed to four different underlying structures serving as inputs to an OT constraint ranking. The 1sg and 2sg pronouns are singletons which are subject to gemination in one specific position, syllable structure permitting. The 3sg pronoun is a geminate which is subject to variable degemination or vowel epenthesis where there are insufficient syllable slots to accommodate it. The partitive/genitive is somewhere in between a singleton and a geminate (its UR is /nn/, where the superscript «n» represents a floating nasal; it may surface as [nn] or as [nε˜], depending upon where its floating nasal docks). Finally, the 3pl is neither a singleton nor a geminate underlyingly, but becomes a geminate by its first segment assimilating to its second.In this paper, we examine five pronominal clitics in Vimeu Picard with a geminate-consonant allomorph. Assuming a doubly-linked (non-moraic) representation of geminates, we attribute the four different patterns observed to four different underlying structures serving as inputs to an OT constraint ranking. The 1sg and 2sg pronouns are singletons which are subject to gemination in one specific position, syllable structure permitting. The 3sg pronoun is a geminate which is subject to variable degemination or vowel epenthesis where there are insufficient syllable slots to accommodate it. The partitive/genitive is somewhere in between a singleton and a geminate (its UR is /nn/, where the superscript «n» represents a floating nasal; it may surface as [nn] or as [nε˜], depending upon where its floating nasal docks). Finally, the 3pl is neither a singleton nor a geminate underlyingly, but becomes a geminate by its first segment assimilating to its second

A Real-time Analysis of the Variable Use of Expletive \u27il\u27 in Montréal French

This paper examines the linguistic and social factors constraining the variable use of expletive il in Montréal French. Based on two corpora of spoken French recorded in 1971 and 2012, we study the evolution of the omission of il over 40 years. The analysis of the linguistic factors shows a general omission increase between 1971 and 2012, but within a stable language system, as this variable is subject to the same linguistic constraints despite the passage of time. However, while the general tendencies suggest that the omission is on the rise in the Montréal community, the apparent-time analysis of the 2012 data shows a reversal of this trend toward the standard variant (il realization)

Magnetic resonance imaging of human tissue-engineered adipose substitutes

Adipose tissue (AT) substitutes are being developed to answer the strong demand in reconstructive surgery. To facilitate the validation of their functional performance in vivo, and to avoid resorting to excessive number of animals, it is crucial at this stage to develop biomedical imaging methodologies, enabling the follow-up of reconstructed AT substitutes. Until now, biomedical imaging of AT substitutes has scarcely been reported in the literature. Therefore, the optimal parameters enabling good resolution, appropriate contrast, and graft delineation, as well as blood perfusion validation, must be studied and reported. In this study, human adipose substitutes produced from adipose-derived stem/stromal cells using the self-assembly approach of tissue engineering were implanted into athymic mice. The fate of the reconstructed AT substitutes implanted in vivo was successfully followed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which is the imaging modality of choice for visualizing soft ATs. T1-weighted images allowed clear delineation of the grafts, followed by volume integration. The magnetic resonance (MR) signal of reconstructed AT was studied in vitro by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR). This confirmed the presence of a strong triglyceride peak of short longitudinal proton relaxation time (T1) values (200±53 ms) in reconstructed AT substitutes (total T1=813±76 ms), which establishes a clear signal difference between adjacent muscle, connective tissue, and native fat (total T1 ∼300 ms). Graft volume retention was followed up to 6 weeks after implantation, revealing a gradual resorption rate averaging at 44% of initial substitute's volume. In addition, vascular perfusion measured by dynamic contrast-enhanced-MRI confirmed the graft's vascularization postimplantation (14 and 21 days after grafting). Histological analysis of the grafted tissues revealed the persistence of numerous adipocytes without evidence of cysts or tissue necrosis. This study describes the in vivo grafting of human adipose substitutes devoid of exogenous matrix components, and for the first time, the optimal parameters necessary to achieve efficient MRI visualization of grafted tissue-engineered adipose substitutes

Wetting by liquid sodium and fracture path analysis of sodium induced embrittlement of 304L stainless steel

The wettability of the 304L steel is an important parameter in Liquid Metal Embrittlement studies. Empirically, it is found to be greatly enhanced by pre-exposure to oxygenated liquid sodium. The corrosion interface formed during exposure to sodium has been analyzed at the nanoscale by transmission electron microscopy using the focused ion beam sampling. A thin layer of sodium chromite (Na xCrO2 with x ≤ 1) is detected at the interface validating wetting on an oxide mechanism for the enhanced wetting after pre-exposure. Fracture micromechanisms and the crack path of liquid sodium-embrittled austenitic steel 304L at 573 K have been investigated down to the nanoscale. High-resolution orientation mapping analyses immediately below the fracture surface show that abundant martensitic transformations (γ → α) and twinning occur during deformation of austenite. The preferential crack path is intergranular along the newly formed γ/γ interfaces. It is concluded that these transformations play a major role in the fracture process

Naturalness assessment performed using forestry maps to validate forest management sustainability

One-quarter of forest areas worldwide are managed for forestry purposes. Depending upon the type of practice and intensity of management, forestry may alter forests to various degrees and raise sustainability issues. To mitigate the alteration of natural forests by forestry and to promote sustainability, ecosystem management has been implemented widely over the past quarter century. A need remains for the development of comprehensive and operational assessment approaches to validate its effectiveness. Naturalness assessment could be used to validate effectiveness of ecosystem management since this concept relates to the degree to which a natural state has been altered. We developed an approach that integrates stand- and landscape- scale traits of naturalness into a single comprehensive assessment that can be performed using only forestry maps. To illustrate our approach, we assessed naturalness in four managed forest landscapes (2184 km2), representing a management gradient of increasing intensity from passive restoration to plantation forestry. We defined four naturalness classes, i.e., natural, semi-natural, altered and artificial. Assessment was performed in two steps. At step one, we attributed a class to each managed stand by comparing its current composition with natural stand compositions of its potential natural vegetation. At the landscape scale, certain developmental stages or forest types could be in excess in managed forest landscapes compared with natural forest landscapes. At step two, we transferred numbers of stages or types in excess from the natural class to more altered classes. We demonstrated that naturalness decreased as management intensity increased. Passive restoration and extensive management generated a landscape where semi-natural forests predominated in mixtures with a lower abundance of natural forests. Intensive management generated a largely semi-natural forest landscape. Plantation forestry generated a landscape where semi-natural and altered forests predominated. In conclusion, it should now be possible to validate the effectiveness of different practices and intensity of ecosystem management in promoting sustainability, by performing our assessment approach periodically following every update of forestry maps. Our approach could also allow for more comprehensive assessment of forest management strategies developed to mitigate global change by putting into better perspective their potential effects upon forest alteration of various forestry practices that have been implemented to sequester carbon

The joint influence of area income, income inequality, and immigrant density on adverse birth outcomes: a population-based study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The association between area characteristics and birth outcomes is modified by race. Whether such associations vary according to social class indicators beyond race has not been assessed.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study evaluated effect modification by maternal birthplace and education of the relationship between neighbourhood characteristics and birth outcomes of newborns from 1999–2003 in the province of Québec, Canada (N = 353,120 births). Areas (N = 143) were defined as administrative local health service delivery districts. Multi-level logistic regression was used to model the association between three area characteristics (median household income, immigrant density and income inequality) and the two outcomes preterm birth (PTB) and small-for-gestational age (SGA) birth. Effect modification by social class indicators was evaluated in analyses stratified according to maternal birthplace and education.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Relative to the lowest tertile, high median household income was associated with SGA birth among Canadian-born mothers (odds ratio (OR) 1.13, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06, 1.20) and mothers with high school education or less (OR 1.13, 95% CI 1.02, 1.24). Associations between median household income and PTB were weaker. Relative to the highest tertile, low immigrant density was associated with a lower odds of PTB among foreign-born mothers (OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.63, 1.00) but a higher odds of PTB among Canadian-born mothers (OR 1.14, 95% CI 1.07, 1.21). Associations with income inequality were weak or absent.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The association between area factors and birth outcomes is modified by maternal birthplace and education. Studies have found that race interacts in a similar manner. Public health policies focussed on perinatal health must consider the interaction between individual and area characteristics.</p

Family Physicians’ Attitudes and Practices Regarding Assessments of Medical Fitness to Drive in Older Persons

BACKGROUND: Higher crash rates per mile driven in older drivers have focused attention on the assessment of older drivers. OBJECTIVE: To examine the attitudes and practices of family physicians regarding fitness-to-drive issues in older persons. DESIGN: Survey questionnaire. PARTICIPANTS: The questionnaire was sent to 1,000 randomly selected Canadian family physicians. Four hundred sixty eligible physicians returned completed questionnaires. MEASUREMENTS: Self-reported attitudes and practices towards driving assessments and the reporting of medically unsafe drivers. RESULTS: Over 45% of physicians are not confident in assessing driving fitness and do not consider themselves to be the most qualified professionals to do so. The majority (88.6%) feel that they would benefit from further education in this area. About 75% feel that reporting a patient as an unsafe driver places them in a conflict of interest and negatively impacts on the patient and the physician–patient relationship. Nevertheless, most (72.4%) agree that physicians should be legally responsible for reporting unsafe drivers to the licensing authorities. Physicians from provinces with mandatory versus discretionary reporting requirements are more likely to report unsafe drivers (odds ratio [OR], 2.78; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.58 to 4.91), but less likely to perform driving assessments (OR, 0.58; 95% CI, 0.39 to 0.85). Most driving assessments take between 10 and 30 minutes, with much variability in the components included. CONCLUSIONS: Family physicians lack confidence in performing driving assessments and note many negative consequences of reporting unsafe drivers. Education about assessing driving fitness and approaches that protect the physician–patient relationship when reporting occurs are needed