Retranslation of humour as a positive intercultural communication strategy

Humorous discourse is a positive communication strategy, which contributes to the success of intercultural encounters. On the other hand, wrong interpretation of humorous culture-specific meanings can be a cause of communication failures. The present paper analyses five translations of I. Ilf and E. Petrov's books The Twelve Chairs and The Golden Calf from Russian into English. The study shows that the key factors which influence the construction of cultural meanings include: background knowledge, presuppositions, imagery, evaluation, emotional perception, cultural context, connection with precedent concepts and texts, and intertextuality. The treatment of cultural meanings also depends on the historical period when the translation is done and the political views of the translator

CHINESE NARRATIVE SONG: STRUCTURE, LANGUAGE AND HISTORICAL DYNAMICS

The purpose of this paper is to examine the cultural and linguistic features of Chinese narrative songs of the 20th - early 21st centuries. They are explored through the theoretical frameworks and research instruments of narratology, cultural anthropology and linguistics (M. Bakhtin, R. Barthes, G. Genette, V. Propp, T. Todorov, etc.). The paper highlights the most important changes of narrative songs determined by historical events in China during the period under investigation: a) dynamics of themes, plots and attitudes towards related events - from ideological praise of the Communist party and Chair-man Mao - to a more personalized narration about people’s life and love in a globalized world; b) evo-lution of characters from selfless fighters for communism with clearly defined social identity - to general-ized lyrical personalities motivated by love, suffering, kinship and loyalty to their country; c) growth of genre variability due to the relaxation of ideological pressure and the influence of Western musical culture; d) return to the values of ancient Chinese culture and restoration of traditional national identity, implemented in background knowledge, binary oppositions and intertextual connections; e) new forms of linguistic expression.The findings indicate that the algorithm of text analysis developed in the course of the research may be used to investigate other types of Chinese narratives, as well as narratives from other cultures

Metaphor power and language typology: Analysis of correlation on the material of the United Nations Declarations

The established approaches to language typology share the notion that the features used as a starting point for any classification are linguistic rather than discursive. This study aims to reveal the connection between typological characteristics of languages and linguacultural patterns of expressing metaphoric meaning in discourse. We seek to answer the question: is there a correlation between the way the human mind processes metaphors, and typological characteristics of languages in which those metaphors are verbalised? The research material includes the texts of the United Nations Millennium Declaration and A Universal Declaration on a Nuclear-Weapon-Free World in three languages – Russian, English and Chinese. The methodological framework is based on the quantitative analysis of indicators connected with language typology (synthesis, agglutination and isolation) and metaphor power in discourse. To determine the degree of text metaphorisation, we employed the Metaphor-driven discourse analysis (MDDA) based on the calculation of metaphor indices: Metaphor Density Index (MDI), Metaphor Intensity Index (MII), and Metaphor Functional Typology Index (MfTI). The study further juxtaposed the typology indices and metaphorisation indices to identify the correlation between the typology index values and metaphor power on the example of the UN Declarations in three languages. Research results indicate that isolating analytical languages tend to be more figurative than synthetic ones, which is reflected in higher metaphoric density, intensity of metaphor use and frequent employment of structural metaphors. The example of the Chinese language has demonstrated that its typological characteristics on the levels of graphics, word formation and syntactic structures act as prerequisites for metaphor use. The findings contribute to the understanding of the connection between fundamental frameworks of thinking, typological characteristics of languages and linguacultural patterns of expressing identical or similar meanings in discourse

Molecular Mechanism of Capacitative Calcium Entry Deficits in Familial Alzheimer’s Disease

Poster PresentationPresenilin (PS) is the catalytic subunit of the gamma-secretase which is responsible for the cleavage of amyloid precursor protein to form beta amyloid (Aβ). Mutations in PS associated with familial Alzheimer’s disease (FAD) increase the Aβ plaques formation in the brain and cause neurodegeneration. Apart from this, FAD-linked PS mutations have been demonstrated to disrupt intracellular calcium (Ca2+) regulation. Accumulating evidence suggests that Ca2+ disruption may play a proximal role in the AD pathogenesis. Mutant PS exaggerated Ca2+ release from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). It also attenuated Ca2+ entry through the capacitative Ca2+ entry (CCE) pathway, yet, the mechanism is not fully understood. Using a human neuroblast cell line SH-SY5Y and Ca2+ imaging technique, we observed CCE deficits in FAD-linked PS1-M146L retroviral infected cell. The attenuation of CCE in PS1 mutant cells was not mediated by the down-regulation of STIM1 and Orai1 expression, the known essential molecular players in the CCE pathway. Instead, we identified a molecular interaction between PS and STIM1 proteins by immunoprecipitation. On the other hand, immunofluorescence staining showed a significant reduction in puncta formation after ER Ca2+ depleted by thapsigargin in cells infected with PS1-M146L as compared to the wild type PS1 infected cells. Taken together, our results suggest a molecular mechanism for the CCE deficits in FAD associated with PS1 mutations. The interaction of mutant PS1 with STIM1 exerts a negative impact on its oligomerization and/or its interaction with Orai1. Our results may suggest molecular targets for the development of therapeutic agents that help to treat the disease.published_or_final_versio

Understanding as the Beginning of Agreement: Linguistic Aspects of Intercultural Family Communication

В статье рассматриваются специфические особенности вербальной коммуникации в межкультурных семьях, которые включают: 1) выбор языка семейного общения; 2) билингвизм/ полилингвизм; смешение и переключение кодов; 4) использование ойколекта. Лингвистические помехи в межкультурной семейной коммуникации могут возникать на фонологическом, графическом, лексическом, грамматическом и лингвокогнитивном уровнях, а также на уровне использования коммуникативных стратегий. Исследование проводилось в междисциплинарном аспекте, на стыке теории коммуникации, лингвистики и семиотики с целью выявления ключевых проблем, возникающих в межкультурном семейном общении, и раработки путей его оптимизации. Методика исследования включала: наблюдение, письменные и устные опросы, нарративный, биографический и семиотический анализ. В работе сделан вывод о том, что, несмотря на наличие универсальных закономерностей человеческого взаимодействия, достижение гармонии в межкультурной семейной коммуникации требует от ее участников усвоения знаковых систем друг друга, а также существенной модификации паттернов вербального поведения. Результаты исследования могут найти практическое применение в тренингах по межкультурной коммуникации, работе семейных консультационных служб, а также в реальных жизненных ситуациях.The paper discusses the issues connected with the use of language in an intercultural family, which include: 1) the choice of language, 2) bilingualism / polylingualism, 3) code mixing and code switching, 4) the use of an oikolect. Linguistic difficulties, which can lead to communication problems, can occur on the phonological, graphic, lexical or linguocognitive level, as well as the level of communication strategies. The paper brings together the theoretical frameworks of communication studies, linguistics and semiotics in order to identify the key problems, which arise in intercultural marriages, and suggest possible solutions. Methods employed in the research include observation, questionnaires and interviews, narrative, biographic, and semiotic analysis. The study is done from the Russian perspective and is aimed at overcoming the difficulties intercultural families face both in Russia and abroad. The results of the study may lead to their practical application in family counselling, cross-cultural education and training, as well as in real-life situations

Retranslation of humour as a positive intercultural communication strategy

Humorous discourse is a positive communication strategy, which contributes to the success of intercultural encounters. On the other hand, wrong interpretation of humorous culture-specific meanings can be a cause of communication failures. The present paper analyses five translations of I. Ilf and E. Petrov's books The Twelve Chairs and The Golden Calf from Russian into English. The study shows that the key factors which influence the construction of cultural meanings include: background knowledge, presuppositions, imagery, evaluation, emotional perception, cultural context, connection with precedent concepts and texts, and intertextuality. The treatment of cultural meanings also depends on the historical period when the translation is done and the political views of the translator

Семиотический ландшафт Волгограда в контексте медиаурбанистики

The aim of the paper is to investigate how urban semiotic signs construct the image of Volgograd as a non-capital city, which is in many ways representative of the current social processes in Russia. The study is done from the perspective of urban communication studies. The interdisciplinary approach is elucidated through the use of the theoretical frameworks of symbolic interactionism and critical discourse analysis, in combination with the research instruments of sociolinguistics, semiotics and ethnography of communication. The investigation shows in what way the semiotic landscape of Volgograd is created by means of verbal and nonverbal signs reflecting the city’s historical memories, its cultural heritage and globalization tendencies. The emergence of new creative forms of communication, such as anti-cafés, “posidelki”, “kvartirniki”, etc., brings about changes in discourse patterns and vocabulary. Social activism based on “bottom-up” information flows produces new forms of urban communication symbolizing the growth of a new generation of the city-dwellersЦель статьи – рассмотреть роль семиотических знаков в конструировании образа Волгограда как нестоличного города, в значительной степени отражающего тенденции социального развития в российской городской среде. Исследование проводится с позиций медиаурбанистики – стремительно развивающегося научного направления. Междисциплинарный подход обеспечивается благодаря использованию теоретических положений символического интеракционизма и критического дискурс-анализа, а также методов социолингвистического, семиотического и этнографического анализа. Изучение семиотического ландшафта Волгограда показывает, как образ города создается с помощью вербальных и невербальных знаков, в которых концептуализируются историческая память, культурное наследие и глобализационные тенденции. Возникновение новых креативных форм коммуникации, таких как антикафе, «посиделки», «квартирники» и т. д., приводит к изменению дискурсивных моделей и языка общения. Социальная активность, основанная на восходящих потоках информации, продуцирует новые формы медиаурбанистического дискурса, типичного для молодого поколения жителей крупных городо