Regional Variation on Loanword Adaptation in Japanese

This thesis examines the variations of loanword abbreviations in Japanese dialects. When adopting foreign words into Japanese, phonological grammar is applied creating loanwords. When loanwords are introduced, Japanese phonological rules determine how to pronounce the new words; Japanese truncation styles are applied to shorten and abbreviate loanwords. Much like native Japanese words, regional variations can be observed in loanword abbreviations. In order to discover how variations are created, this study compares two dialects: the eastern Japanese dialect (standard dialect) and the western Japanese dialect (Kansai dialect). Despite a recent decrease in popularity, the Kansai dialect is still one of the most prestigious dialects in Japan. This thesis addresses and explores how variations between two regions, Nagoya (east) and Kansai (west) are generated. A survey was conducted with the help of 121 university students from both regions. The methods used were a perception test, an acceptability judgement test, a production test, and an additional questionnaire. The data analysis reveals that adaptations in loanword abbreviations are closely related to Japanese sociophonetics and phonology. Results further show how cultural histories impact the modern Japanese lexicon

Bour's theorem for helicoidal surfaces with singularities

In this paper, generalizing the techniques of Bour's theorem, we prove that every generic cuspidal edge, more generally, generic $n$-type edge, which is invariant under a helicoidal motion in Euclidean $3$-space admits non-trivial isometric deformations. As a corollary, several geometric invariants, such as the limiting normal curvature, the cusp-directional torsion, the higher order cuspidal curvature and the bias, are proved to be extrinsic invariants.Comment: 21 pages, 9 figure

L2 Japanese Speaking Span Test: A Preliminary Report

This paper presents a newly created L2 Japanese Speaking Span Test (L2JSST) and reports preliminary results on its validity based on ten English speaking learners of Japanese. The Intermediate High ~ Advanced Japanese learners took two Japanese language proficiency tests and L1 English Speaking Span test. All scores correlated with the scores of the L2JSST. Given this finding, we believe that the current version of JSST can be used to measure English speaking learners’ working memory capacity in speech production in the same way that the L2 Japanese Reading Span Test (Itomitsu and Nakayama 2005a) does in reading

Topological surface states hybridized with bulk states of Bi-doped PbSb2Te4 revealed in quasiparticle interference

Topological surface states of Bi-doped PbSb2Te4 [Pb(Bi0.20Sb0.80)2Te4] are investigated through analyses of quasiparticle interference (QPI) patterns observed by scanning tunneling microscopy. Interpretation of the experimental QPI patterns in the reciprocal space is achieved by numerical QPI simulations using two types of surface density of states produced by density functional theory calculations or a kp surface state model. We found that the Dirac point (DP) of the surface state appears in the bulk band gap of this material and, with the energy being away from the DP, the isoenergy contour of the surface state is substantially deformed or separated into segments due to hybridization with bulk electronic states. These findings provide a more accurate picture of topological surface states, especially at energies away from the DP, providing valuable insight into the electronic properties of topological insulators.Comment: 7+8 pages, 4+5 figure

Experimental verification of band convergence in Sr and Na codoped PbTe

Scanning tunneling microscopy and transport measurements have been performed to investigate the electronic structure and its temperature dependence in heavily Sr and Na codoped PbTe, which is recognized as one of the most promising thermoelectric materials. Our main findings are as follows: (i) Below T=4.5 K, all carriers are distributed in the first valence band at the L point (L band), which forms tube-shaped Fermi surfaces with concave curvature. With Sr and Na doping, the dispersion of the L band changes, and the band gap increases from 200 meV to 300 meV. (ii) At T=4.5 K, the Fermi energy is located ~100 meV below the edge of the L band for the Sr/Na codoped PbTe. The second valence band at the Sigma point (Sigma band) is lower than the L band by 150 meV, which is significantly smaller than that of pristine PbTe (200 meV). The decrease in the band offset, leading to band convergence, provides a desirable condition for thermoelectric materials.(iii) With increasing temperature, the carrier distribution to the Sigma band starts at T=100 K and we estimate that about 50 percent of the total carriers are redistributed in the Sigma band at T=300 K.Our work demonstrates that scanning tunneling microscopy and angular dependent magnetoresistance measurements are particularly powerful tools to determine the electronic structure and carrier distribution. We believe that they will provide a bird's eye view of the doping strategy towards realizing high-efficiency thermoelectric materials.Comment: 36+12 pages, 4+9 figures, including Supplementary Material

Urinary ACE2 in pediatric IgA nephropathy

Background : Our previous studies demonstrated that the intrarenal renin-angiotensin system (RAS) status was activated in pediatric patients with chronic glomerulonephritis. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) expression in the kidney is associated with the development of pediatric IgA nephropathy. Methods : We analyzed urinary ACE2 levels and ACE2 expression in the kidney tissues of pediatric patients with IgA nephropathy treated with RAS blockade. Paired tests were used to analyze changes from the first to the second biopsy. Results : Urinary ACE2 levels were significantly decreased after RAS blockade treatment, accompanied by decreased ACE2 expression levels in kidney tissues, urinary protein levels and mesangial hypercellularity scores. Urinary ACE2 levels at the first biopsy were positively correlated with the ACE2 expression levels. Conclusions : These data suggest that urinary ACE2 is associated with ACE2 expression in the diseased kidney, which correlates with the pathogenesis of IgA nephropathy in pediatric patients

Supplementary material for the article: Fukushi, K.; Fujita, Y.; Nonogaki, J.; Tsujimoto, J.-I.; Hattori, T.; Inui, H.; Beškoski, V. P.; Hotta, H.; Hayashi, M.; Nakano, T. Capillary Zone Electrophoresis Determination of Fluoride in Seawater Using Transient Isotachophoresis. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry 2018, 410 (6), 1825–1831. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-017-0838-0

Supplementary material for: [https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-017-0838-0]Related to published version: [http://cherry.chem.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/2083