Determination of Base Station Emission Power Change in a Mobile Network Cell with Movable Users

This paper considers base transceiver station (BTS) emission power change in the cell-organized mobile network with dynamic power control, due to users’ moving. Such power adjustment contributes to energy saving and environment pollution reduction. We analyzed mutual influence of user’s moving speed, users’ surface distribution and propagation coefficient γ on BTS power variations. It is proved that users’ concentration near BTS, greater γ (in urban areas), faster user’s moving and greater connection duration contribute to BTS power increase of several tens of percent in real conditions. We present two examples when mean user’s moving distance is 30% of mobile cell radius: 1) power of one movable user is increased more than 50% when distance between user and BTS is uniformly distributed (decreasing users’ surface density); 2) emission power is decreased 2.5% when users are uniformly distributed (there are more users near a cell rim). BTS power has nearly constant value in the second example, because in our model users, crossing the cell rim, are replaced by users from adjacent cells, who are moving towards BTS. The analysis results are verified by Monte Carlo simulation, where user’s starting position, displacement and angle of moving are determined based on randomly generated numbers

Is the superior verbal memory span of Mandarin speakers due to faster rehearsal?

It is well established that digit span in native Chinese speakers is atypically high. This is commonly attributed to a capacity for more rapid subvocal rehearsal for that group. We explored this hypothesis by testing a group of English-speaking native Mandarin speakers on digit span and word span in both Mandarin and English, together with a measure of speed of articulation for each. When compared to the performance of native English speakers, the Mandarin group proved to be superior on both digit and word spans while predictably having lower spans in English. This suggests that the Mandarin advantage is not limited to digits. Speed of rehearsal correlated with span performance across materials. However, this correlation was more pronounced for English speakers than for any of the Chinese measures. Further analysis suggested that speed of rehearsal did not provide an adequate account of differences between Mandarin and English spans or for the advantage of digits over words. Possible alternative explanations are discussed

Variability in second language article production: Beyond the representational deficit vs. processing constraints debate

This article addresses the debate on the causes of variability in production of second language functional morphology. It reports a study on article production by first language (L1) Serbian / second language (L2) English learners and compares their behaviour to that of a Turkish learner of English, reported in Goad and White (2004). In particular, it focuses on the tendency of these learners to omit articles more in adjectivally pre-modified (Art + Adj + N) than in non-modified contexts (Art + N). The asymmetry is found in both spoken and written production. The article argues that the pattern of results is not consistent with models assuming target-like syntax: the Missing Surface Inflection Hypothesis cannot predict the asymmetry at all, and the Prosodic Transfer Hypothesis cannot extend its explanatory power to spoken production of L1 Serbian/L2 English learners, or to written production in general. An alternative account, with broader empirical coverage, is proposed, on which L2 learners whose L1s do not grammaticalize definiteness misanalyse English articles as nominal modifiers, and treat them in production as such. The model goes beyond the representational deficit vs. processing constraints debate, in that it suggests that variability is caused by processing limitations, but precisely because the production of misanalysed elements cannot be (directly) syntactically motivated, and has to rely on general cognition instead

Form-meaning connections in the acquisition of English articles

This paper examines the acquisition of English articles by native speakers of Serbian, a language which has no article system. Data from a translation task, performed by four proficiency groups are presented to demonstrate that, contrary to previous research, learners do not associate articles with either ‘hearer knowledge’ or ‘specificity of referent’ (Huebner 1983, Master 1990, Tarone and Parish 1989, Thomas 1989). Rather, they establish non-target form–meaning connections, where ‘the’ is associated with a discrete referent, and ‘a(n)’ with the individuation of non-discrete referents

Definiteness in Serbian/Croatian/Bosnian and some implications for the general structure of the nominal phrase

This paper questions traditional views that in Serbian/Croatian/Bosnian (S/C/B), languages without a system of articles, definiteness may be expressed through some other linguistic means, namely word order, the aspect of adjectives, and demonstrative determiners. While it is assumed that semantic/pragmatic definiteness as a universal category is inferred in communication though some general principles of goal-oriented behaviour, it is argued that it is not grammaticalised in these languages. The structure of the nominal phrase in S/C/B is discussed, and evidence from an SLA study presented which supports the argument that DP is not projected on top of (full) nominal phrases in S/C/B