Netlinguistics and English for Internet Purposes

This paper proposes the development of a new field of research and study within applied linguistics: netlinguistics1. This is to be a functional, stylistic and pragmatic linguistic and sociolinguistic analytical framework concerned with the technology of Internet, the lexicological production of new e-terms, the evolution of cybergenres, digital tenor (as manifested in the informalisation process of Internet discourse), digital mode (as realised via hypertext and hyperlinks), the power relations established between different digital communities, and the overall Englishisation of Internet. Complementarily, the paper describes some of the pedagogical implications of netlinguistic research in the teaching of English for Internet Purposes in ESP/LSP teaching contexts and other language learning settings

El nacimiento de una vestal

El nacimiento de una vesta

The Emergence of a New Genre: Advertising on the Internet (netvertising)

This article describes the specific characteristics of internet genres. These  genres are characterized by the net system, a specific interlanguage, hypertext, the multimedia effect and an interactive audience. Netvertising is analysed as a representative example of an internet genre. A set of 20 first web pages of banner ads has been studied. The parameters considered are the following ones: http linkers, images used, integration of visuals with text, objectives of the ad, register, audience, overall page length, sentence length, verb tenses, punctuation marks and personal pronouns. Results show that most net ads are short texts. This conciseness is offset by a wider use of other devices such as punctuation marks, images and http linkers. Banner ads are based on an elaboration of images, with the text used, mainly a variety of brief sentences and noun phrases

A pragmatic analysis framework for the description of modality usage in academic English contexts

In our pragmatic approach to research articles (RAs), we take a look at one of the main characteristics of academic writing: the use of modalized statements. Modalization, in the form of modal verbs, has been extensively studied by ESP researchers and practitioners. Most of their studies, however, have slightly touched upon the distinction between epistemic modality, which questions the certainty or probability of a statement, and deontic modality, which lays obligations or gives permission to the audience. This dichotomy is an important tool to describe disciplinary variations in academic and professional writing. We contend that different disciplines favor different types of modality. Results in this study indicate that health science RAs mostly use epistemic modality, whereas literary criticism RAs combine the use of both epistemic and deontic modality

Simplifying the assessment of parameters of electron-transfer reactions by using easy-to-use thin-layer spectroelectrochemistry devices

UV–Vis absorption thin-layer spectroelectrochemistry greatly contributes to the assessment of parameters of electron-transfer reactions by providing electrochemical and spectroscopic information obtained simultaneously in a confined space around the working electrode. In this work we present an ingenious modification of a spectroelectrochemistry device based on carbon nanotubes and bare optical fibers to perform UV–Vis absorption thin-layer spectroelectrochemistry measurements. The working and counter electrodes are made of carbon nanotubes filtered and press-transferred onto a flat support where a painted silver line acts as pseudo-reference electrode. To perform high sensitivity measurements, two bare optical fibers are fixed to the support in a parallel arrangement. In a novel development, a quartz plate is placed on top of the bare optical fibers in order to create a thin layer whose thickness is reproducibly controlled by the diameter of the optical fibers. This methodology is also successfully applied using commercial screen-printed electrodes. Three different electroactive compounds, ferrocenemethanol, o-tolidine and [Ru(bpy)3]2 +, are studied and good results are obtained. As demonstrated below, these long optical path UV–Vis absorption thin-layer spectroelectrochemistry cells considerably reduce the complexity associated with this type of devices, eliminating one of the major disadvantages of this technique and making it much more accessible to the scientific community.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (CTQ2014-55583-R, CTQ2014-61914-EXP, CTQ2015-71955-REDT) and Junta de Castilla y León (BU033-U16)Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (CTQ2014-55583-R, CTQ2014-61914-EXP, CTQ2015-71955-REDT) and Junta de Castilla y León (BU033-U16

Application of spectroelectroanalysis for the quantitative determination of mixtures of compounds with highly overlapping signals

The amount of qualitative and quantitative information provided by a UV–vis absorption spectroelectrochemistry (SEC) experiment is sometimes wasted. However, almost all electrochemical and spectroscopic data can provide valuable information. In this spirit, the main objective proposed in this work is the quantitative resolution of catechol/dopamine (CAT/DA) and dopamine/epinephrine (DA/EP) mixtures, using spectroelectrochemical sensors in long optical path length arrangement based on bare optical fibers in parallel configuration with respect to carbon nanotubes or screen-printed electrodes. These compounds show extremely similar electrochemical and spectroscopic responses at high acidic pH, being impossible to determine their concentrations in the mixtures just using univariate regression models. To our knowledge, the SEC ability to resolve complex mixtures has never been demonstrated before with signals with this degree of overlapping. The quantitative analysis of these mixtures is possible using multivariate regression analysis of a set of time-resolved spectroelectrochemical data with a powerful statistical tool such as parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC). PARAFAC enables us to extract all the information from the experiments, allowing us to quantify the different analytes in mixtures of varying concentrations with excellent results. This milestone for spectroelectroanalysis illustrates the expected capabilities of SEC and demonstrates experimentally the potential of this technique for sensing of biomolecules.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (CTQ2014-55583-R; CTQ2014-61914-EXP; CTQ2015-71955-REDT; CTQ2017-83935-R AEI/FEDER, UE) and Junta de Castilla y León (BU033-U16) is gratefully acknowledged. Jesus Garoz- Ruiz thanks Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte for his FPU fellowship (FPU12/02795) and Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad for his postdoctoral contracts (CTQ2014-55583-R; CTQ2017-83935-R AEI/FEDER, UE)

Epistemic and deontic modality: a linguistic indicator of disciplinary variation in academic English

We present a pragmatic analytical framework to explore the reasons underlying the differences in the use of modal verbs in English research articles (RAs) in three different academic disciplines: medicine, biology and literary criticism. Sentences may be either modalized or unmodalized. The use of modalized statements is a key feature of academic writing, and this expression of modalization has been widely researched. However, most of this investigation has not considered the linguistic distinction of types of modalization: epistemic modality (questioning the certainty or probability of a statement) and deontic modality (laying obligations or giving permission to the reader/audience). This linguistic dichotomy may be an important tool to describe disciplinary variations in academic writing. It is hypothesized that different disciplines favor different types of modality. Results in this study indicate that scientific RAs (i.e., in medicine and biology) mostly use epistemic modality, whereas literary criticism RAs combine the use of both epistemic and deontic modality. It is our contention that the selection of one specific type of modality (i.e., epistemic or deontic) is a matter of a deliberate stylistic choice of writers influenced by the pragmatic context of their specific and distinct academic discourse communities

A PRAGMATIC ANALYSIS FRAMEWORK FOR THE DESCRIPTION OF MODALITY USAGE IN ACADEMIC ENGLISH CONTEXTS

AbstractIn our pragmatic approach to research articles (RAs), we take a look at one of the main characteristics of academic writing: the use of modalized statements. Modalization, in the form of modal verbs, has been extensively studied by ESP researchers and practitioners. Most of their studies, however, have slightly touched upon the distinction between epistemic modality, which questions the certainty or probability of a statement, and deontic modality, which lays obligations or gives permission to the audience. This dichotomy is an important tool to describe disciplinary variations in academic and professional writing. We contend that different disciplines favor different types of modality. Results in this study indicate that health science RAs mostly use epistemic modality, whereas literary criticism RAs combine the use of both epistemic and deontic modality

The theoretical research article as a reflection of disciplinary practices: The case of pure mathematics

Recent years have seen an interest in the generic structure of empirical research articles across a variety of disciplines. However, significantly less attention has been given to theoretical articles. This study aims to begin to address this imbalance by presenting the results of an investigation into the organizational and rhetorical structure of theoretical pure mathematics research articles. The data set combines a close analysis of 22 peer-reviewed articles and semi-structured interviews with their authors. While there is considerable variation in terms of the major section headings and content, the results reveal an overall structure that differs from a typical empirical research article. We argue that this alternative structure is produced by the dual argumentation-mathematical and metamathematical-which runs throughout the text. Moreover, triangulation with the interview data indicates that the structural patterns of the theoretical pure mathematics research article can be viewed as a reflection of the research practices and epistemology of the discipline

Writer's positioning in literature reviews in English and Spanish computing doctoral theses

Making appropriate reference to other texts is an essential feature of successful academic writing (Hyland, 2000; Myers, 1990). Writers are expected to integrate others' ideas into their arguments to indicate what is already known about the area of study of the discipline, or to point out weaknesses, aligning themselves with a particular disciplinary framework (Thompson & Tribble, 2001). Literature reviews (LRs) of PhD theses provide support for the writer's position and show the novelty of her/his work. This study analysed the resources of evaluation at both rhetorical and linguistic levels used by the writers of 20 PhD LRs in computing in English and Spanish. The data reveal that the Spanish and the English PhD LRs have a similar rhetorical structure. However, the English writers use more strategies for the development of each move than the Spanish writers. Attitude markers are the most usual devices doctoral writers use to express opinion in both sets. Epistemic modality and a variety of discourse-based markers are typically found in the English LRs while the Spanish LRs seem to rely mainly on adversatives and certainty markers. Differences respond partly to individual writing styles, but also reflect rhetorical variation in the relationship with the audience. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reservedGil Salom, ML.; Soler Monreal, C. (2014). Writer's positioning in literature reviews in English and Spanish computing doctoral theses. Journal of English for Academic Purposes. 16:23-39. doi:10.1016/j.jeap.2014.08.002S23391