The Evolution of Focus in Austronesian (1981)

The present paper attempts to account for the evolution of Western Austronesian focus constructions by showing that they evolved as a result of the reinterpretation of nominalized equational constructions by analogy with functionally equivalent verbal constructions, i.e., *-en, *ni-/-in-, *-ana, *iSi-, and possibly *mu-/-um- were all noun-deriving affixes in PAN that their verbal focus usages in the Formosan and Philippine languages represent a secondary development

The Evolution of Focus in Austronesian

In this paper, we will attempt to reconstruct the features of Proto-Austronesian morphology and syntax which gave rise to the focus systems exhibited by modern Philippine languages. In order to approach this problem, it will be necessary to consider the following questions: 1) What is the grammatical structure of sentences showing ‘verbal focus’ in Philippine languages? And in particular, what is their synchronic and diachronic relation to nominalizations which show affixes cognate with the verbal focus affixes? We need to have a reasonably clear idea of the endpoint of an evolutionary sequence before we can reconstruct the stages that led up to it. 2) Do the focus systems of Philippine languages represent a retention from Proto-Austronesian or an innovation? What kind of case marking system can we reconstruct for the proto-language which will allow us to provide plausible accounts of how a single original system could evolve into the Oceanic object focus system in one area and the Philippine subject-focus system in another

PET scan investigations of Huntington's disease: Cerebral metabolic correlates of neurological features and functional decline

Fifteen drug-free patients with early to midstage Huntington's disease were evaluated with quantitative neurological examinations, scales for functional capacity, computed tomographic (CT) scans, and positron emission tomographic (PET) scans of 18 F-2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose ( 18 F-FDG) uptake. All patients had abnormal indices of caudate metabolism on PET scanning, whereas in patients with early disease indices of putamen metabolism and CT measures of caudate atrophy were normal. Indices of caudate metabolism correlated highly with the patients' overall functional capacity ( r = 0.906; p < 0.001) and bradykinesia/rigidity ( r = −0.692; p < 0.01). Indices of putamen metabolism correlated highly with motor functions: Chorea ( r = −0.841; p < 0.01), oculomotor abnormalities ( r = −0.849; p < 0.01), and fine motor coordination ( r = −0.866; p < 0.01). Indices of thalamic metabolism correlated positively with dystonia ( r = 0.559; p < 0.05). The data suggest that PET scanning with 18 F-FDG is a sensitive measure of brain dysfunction in Huntington's disease and that basal ganglia metabolism is highly correlated with the overall functional capacity of individual patients and with the degree of their motor abnormalities.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/50317/1/410200305_ftp.pd