Glocal Dialogue Transformation through Transcultural Communication

This paper addresses the role of dialogical communication in acculturation efforts within organizations and regions, especially during periods of transition, mergers, technological innovations, and globalization. This optimal communication mode can be achieved through a “dialogue process” proposed by David Bohm and developed by Peter Sense at MIT, Boston. The “dialogue process”, as an integral part of intercultural communication training, aims at promoting dialogue competence for intercultural communication in which man can learn how to better deal with their own stereotypes of other cultures and eventually acquire a generally de-stereotyping style of communication. It has tried out in a small city in Germany, since April 2002. About 25 citizens of the city are taking part in this dialogue process. The empirical part of this study tries to describe the socio-psychological transformation of the dialogue-group.Dialogical communication, Transcultural communication, Acculturation process, Sociopsychological transformation

Acquisition of the English article system in SLA and the Missing Surface Inflection Hypothesis

This paper examines the article system in interlanguage grammar focusing on Japanese learners of English, whose native language lacks articles. It will be demonstrated that for the acquisition of the English article system, count/mass distinctions and definiteness are the crucial factors. Although Japanese does not employ the article system to encode these aspects, it will be argued that they are nevertheless syntactically encoded through its classifier system. Hence, the problem for these learners must be to map these features onto the appropriate surface forms as the Missing Surface Inflection Hypothesis predicts (Prévost & White 2000). This suggestion will further be supported empirically by a fill-in-the article task. It will be concluded that these Japanese learners understand the English article system fairly well, possibly due to their native language, yet have problems with realizing the relevant features (i.e. count/mass distinctions and definiteness) in the target language

Epidemiological research of radioactive springs (Misasa Hot Springs) on circulatory systems. II. Incidences of abnormal ECG findings and hypertension (A preliminary report)

Misasa Hot Springs water contains 4.81-1169.2×10(-10) curie per liter of radon and its temperature ranges from 53.0℃ to 76.0℃. The authors examined one group of 265 residents who are living over 1 year at Misasa Hot Springs and another control group of 226 residents at the middle district of Tottori Prefecture, where the Misasa area is singular for its high radon concentration. A living environment of these two groups is of same condition, for example, dietarily or economically. The incidences of abnormal ECG findings and hypertension in the both groups was analysed stochastically and the results obtained were as follows: 1. The incidences of abnormal ECG findings were found less in the residents at the radioactive hot springs area than another residents at the middle district of Tottori Prefecture. 2. The difference in these incidences were found especially about the ECG findings due to functional disorderes, for example, sinus tachycardia and bradycardia, premature supraventricural and ventricural systole, atrio-ventricural block and right bundle branch block. 3. The ECG findings due to organic disorderes, for example, both auricural and ventricural hypertrophy or strain, myocardial and coronary arterial lesions, auricural fibrillation and left bundle branch block, were not found different significantly between both groups. 4. No difference of the incidences of the functional and organic abnormal ECG findings between both aging groups, over 60 years old, were found. 5. The incidences of hypertension were not found different between both groups