The German language and Reunification 1990 : the effect of emotion on the use of modal particles in East and West Berlin

The thesis looks at the language of Germany before and after unification in 1990. In particular the language of the German Democratic Republic before the Wende is examined and the subsequent changes within it. Furthermore, the influence of emotion on the use of modal particles in East and West Berlin is analysed in order to ascertain how emotion can affect language use. The first section concentrates on the language of the German Democratic Republic and how this differed from the language of the Federal Republic of Germany. By looking at two such opposing political systems it is possible to see the effect of politics and the social, cultural and economic values of a state on its language. The second section analyses the language of Germany after the Wende in 1989 and unification in 1990. These changes in German society had profound effects on all aspects of East German life, and to a lesser extent in the Federal Republic of Germany. The citizens of the former German Democratic Republic had to learn to adapt to their new system and this is closely examined. Section three examines modal particles, what they are and how they are used in the German language. After a more general section, the particular modal particles examined in chapter 5: eben, halt, doch, denn and eigentlich are discussed and their usages examined. The fourth section concentrates on emotion and how it has been viewed in past and present research, in conjunction with thought and language. The fifth and final section is the analysis of a corpus of German language, interviews with citizens of East and West Berlin regarding 9 November 1989 and the period after. By examining this corpus, looking at the usage of the five afore-mentioned modal particles and tags and the emotion felt by the speakers, the connection between emotion and the use of modal particles is illustrated

Emotional and emotive language: modal particles and tags in unified Berlin

This paper endeavours to show the relationship between emotion and language, in particular with respect to the use of modal particles in German. Modal particles have long been considered insignificant fillers without a specific function and as such, not worthy of linguistic investigation. This is clearly a view which cannot be sustained. Modal particles have been found to illustrate the speaker’s opinion of what is being said; in addition, they may add emphasis. Certain German modal particles (especially halt and eben) are examined as they occur in a corpus of utterances containing accounts of highly emotional events, related to East and West Berliners’ experiences after the fall of the Berlin Wall and German unification. By reviewing spoken accounts of events which were life-changing for one side, but only nominal for the other, thereby producing different emotions, the article demonstrates the use of these modal particles. The analysis suggests that there is a direct link between emotion and the way these speakers of German use their language

Voice parade procedures: optimising witness performance

Unfamiliar voice identification is error-prone. Whilst the investigation of system variables may indicate ways of boosting earwitness performance, this is an under-researched area. Two experiments were conducted to investigate how methods of presenting voices during a parade affect accuracy and self-rated confidence. In each experiment participants listened to a target voice, and were later asked to identify that voice from a nine-person target present or target absent parade. In Experiment 1, accuracy did not vary across parades comprising 15 or 30 s sample durations. Overall, when the target was present, participants correctly identified the target voice with 39% accuracy. However, when the target was absent, participants correctly rejected the parade 6% of the time. There was no relationship between accuracy and confidence. In Experiment 2, performance with a serial procedure, in which participants responded after hearing all nine voices, was compared with a sequential procedure, in which participants made a decision after listening to each voice. Overall accuracy was higher with the sequential procedure. These results highlight the importance of system variable research in voice identification. Different methods of presenting voices have the potential to support higher levels of accuracy than the procedure currently recommended in England and Wales

Novel genetic loci associated with hippocampal volume

The hippocampal formation is a brain structure integrally involved in episodic memory, spatial navigation, cognition and stress responsiveness. Structural abnormalities in hippocampal volume and shape are found in several common neuropsychiatric disorders. To identify the genetic underpinnings of hippocampal structure here we perform a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 33,536 individuals and discover six independent loci significantly associated with hippocampal volume, four of them novel. Of the novel loci, three lie within genes (ASTN2, DPP4 and MAST4) and one is found 200 kb upstream of SHH. A hippocampal subfield analysis shows that a locus within the MSRB3 gene shows evidence of a localized effect along the dentate gyrus, subiculum, CA1 and fissure. Further, we show that genetic variants associated with decreased hippocampal volume are also associated with increased risk for Alzheimer's disease (rg =-0.155). Our findings suggest novel biological pathways through which human genetic variation influences hippocampal volume and risk for neuropsychiatric illness

Novel genetic loci underlying human intracranial volume identified through genome-wide association

Intracranial volume reflects the maximally attained brain size during development, and remains stable with loss of tissue in late life. It is highly heritable, but the underlying genes remain largely undetermined. In a genome-wide association study of 32,438 adults, we discovered five novel loci for intracranial volume and confirmed two known signals. Four of the loci are also associated with adult human stature, but these remained associated with intracranial volume after adjusting for height. We found a high genetic correlation with child head circumference (ρgenetic=0.748), which indicated a similar genetic background and allowed for the identification of four additional loci through meta-analysis (Ncombined = 37,345). Variants for intracranial volume were also related to childhood and adult cognitive function, Parkinson’s disease, and enriched near genes involved in growth pathways including PI3K–AKT signaling. These findings identify biological underpinnings of intracranial volume and provide genetic support for theories on brain reserve and brain overgrowth

Linking Teaching and Research Through Scholarship Projects: A Case Study

Many lecturers find that teaching and research compete for their time. However, teaching and research can be linked closely together, and there are many ways of linking the two. This article will consider how research can be incorporated into teaching through a case study in Linguistics at Nottingham Trent University (in the United Kingdom), where undergraduate students are invited to participate on a research project. This project aims to foster and strengthen the links between teaching and research in the undergraduate curriculum to enhance the student learning experience (both for the students involved in the project and the wider student community). Allowing students to become involved in academic research before their final year can influence teaching and learning practice by encouraging students to look beyond lectures and seminars at the work which is carried out by their own lecturers. In order for learning to be most effective, it must be seen as relevant to the real world and by inviting students onto active research projects will show them how academic research is relevant to, and involved with, the wider world outside academia. By enthusing students with the actual potential of their studies, will increase learning and allow us to link research and teaching actively for all students