A Useful System in Learning and Teaching English Pronunciation——IPA Cardinal Vowels System

The paper introduces the cardinal vowels system invented by the famous English phonetician Daniel Jones.This system enables a teacher to describe to his students a foreign vowel by comparing it with the nearest vowel in his mother tongue,which makes the learning of a foreign sound much easier to his students.Two cases of teaching Chinese students English vowels are taken as an example to illustrate the point.IPA cardinal vowel system is of use in terms of teaching and learning English.Two suggestions are put forward in the end.

The Emotional Approach of Foreign Vowel Acquisition Within the Example of British English Vowels

The aim of the article is to present results of research that was performed with 97 Polish students of the second and third year of English Philology. The purpose of the research is to examine how conscious manipulation of facial expressions aids acquisition of foreign vowels by learners, regardless of their native language and the culture they have been brought up in. Taking advantage of achievements derived from such disciplines as psychology of emotions and phonetics depicted as a physical process, an attempt is made to find a tool that improves teaching/learning of foreign vowels, that is to say, an effort is put in search of a useful method to make the phonetic process faster and more accurate. Teachers of English are encouraged to put the method, which is described in detail in the paper, into practice with their own mother languages and to share opinions about the method with colleagues. Similarly, it is believed that it can be applied to courses of other languages than just English. Teachers of those languages are encouraged to try to use it, too.

Using Formants to Compare Short and Long Vowels in Modern Standard Arabic

This study was concerned with the short vowels in modern standard Arabic words with Consonant Vowel-Consonant Vowel-Consonant Vowel (CVCVCV) structure, and the long vowels in words with Consonant Vowel Vowel-Consonant (CVVC). Even though there has been a dispute on the precise number of Arabic vowels that exist between language studies, this study used the opinion that the Arabic language has three vowels;the elongation of each vowel gave the other three because this is the opinion of classical Arabic linguists which is the source of the Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). Studies said that the first and second formant values (F1, F2) can represent the vowels. In this study, the formants were measured using LPC (Linear Predictive Coding), verifying the measurement to see if the measured follows the pattern of formants measurements of the other studies, and the formants were used to investigate the relationship between short and long vowels. Furthermore, the study figured out if the dialect of speakers can affect the values of formants, even if the spoken language is MSA, some statistical measurements were calculated to evaluate the relationship.

Using Formants to Extract Short Vowels from Arabic Words with (Consonant Vowel)³Structure

Arabic texts suffer from missing short vowels. Arabic Speech Recognition is not as good as English speech recognition due to the short vowels not being recognized. And the Arabic language is unlike the English language in characteristics such as the number of vowels. English has more than 24 vowels that are close to each other in pronunciation. The Arabic language only has three short vowels that are far from each other in utter and measurement, by elongating those short vowels, long vowels arose. Researchers said that the vowels could be recognized using formants. The formants’ measurements of Arabic vowels are far from each other too, so it is possible to recognize them so that Arabic Speech recognition can give more accurate results. The paper applies this idea to the corpus Phonemes of Arabic. It uses the Euclidian distance method to measure the distances between formant values to recognize Arabic from words with a CV3 structure, the Linear Predictive Coding method and MATLAB to develop the programs that will extract the formants and calculate the means of the short vowels by using the corpus to identify the short vowels within words in the corpus. The results showed that if highly qualified readers were chosen to read the Arabic text, then higher rates of recognition of the short vowels involved in words will be achieved. This paper revealed that some of the characteristics of a language can be utilized for vowel recognition or to enhance the existing methods for speech recognition.

IPA Cardinal Vowels and the English Pronunciation Teaching in China

In pronunciation teaching, learners may have difficulty when there is a ＂gap＂ in the phonemic system between L1 （the first or native language） and L2 （the second or foreign language）. In such a case, they tend to use their native language sounds in speaking the foreign language. Since some Chinese and English vowel sounds are easy to be confused, applying IPA cardinal vowels in the teaching of English pronunciation will help Chinese learners identify the difference between an English vowel sound and a Chinese vowel sound and thus enables them to make intelligible English speech sounds.

Cross-Cultural Adjustment and Coping:U.S.Students in Taiwan Residents Higher Education

The aim of this study was to investigate the adjustment problems of students from the United States enrolled in universities in the East,specifically in Taiwan,their problems related to cultural adaptation,and the process of adjustment to student life in Taiwan.Under investigation were cultural adjustment and coping skills as these students transitioned from West to East.Qualitative data were collected from interviews with participants and faculty members as well as participant observations.Results indicated that U.S.students found their own ways to acclimate to their new academic setting as well as to social relations,cross-cultural issues,and the linguistic environment in Taiwan to achieve effective adaptation.They made changes in themselves to cope with all situations they encountered.This study provides suggestions for international students abroad in Taiwan,for the Taiwan Residents government,and for universities or colleges in terms of what they should offer to current and future international students.

Exoscopy of Detrital Zircons from Niamey Neoproterozoic Sandstones (Eastern Edge of the West African Craton, Southwestern Niger): Interpretation of Detrital Sediments Provenance

This study focuses on exoscopic analyses of detrital zircon grains of Archean and Paleoproterozoic age, contained in the sediments from the Niamey Neoproterozoic sandstones (Niamey region), with a view to confirming the sediments sources already proposed (Kénéma-Man domain for Archean-age zircons and Baoulé Mossi domain for Paleoproterozoic-age zircons). Exoscopic analysis reveals that Archean zircon grains are more corroded, with rounded to sub-rounded shapes, while Paleoproterozoic zircon grains are less corroded and mostly angular in shape. The strong corrosion of Archean zircon grains, implying long-distance transport, is consistent with the remoteness of the Kenema-Man domain which are the source these sediments. The fact that the Paleoproterozoic zircon grains show little or no wear implies a proximal source of sediments, corresponding to the Baoulé Mossi domain.

Digital Disparities:How Artificial Intelligence Can Facilitate Anti-Black Racism in the U.S.Healthcare Sector

This paper delves into the intricate interplay between artificial intelligence(AI)systems and the perpetuation of Anti-Black racism within the United States medical industry.Despite the promising potential of AI to enhance healthcare outcomes and reduce disparities,there is a growing concern that these technologies may inadvertently/advertently exacerbate existing racial inequalities.Focusing specifically on the experiences of Black patients,this research investigates how the following AI components:medical algorithms,machine learning,and natural learning processes are contributing to the unequal distribution of medical resources,diagnosis,and health care treatment of those classified as Black.Furthermore,this review employs a multidisciplinary approach,combining insights from computer science,medical ethics,and social justice theory to analyze the mechanisms through which AI systems may encode and reinforce racial biases.By dissecting the three primary components of AI,this paper aims to present a clear understanding of how these technologies work,how they intersect,and how they may inherently perpetuate harmful stereotypes resulting in negligent outcomes for Black patients.Furthermore,this paper explores the ethical implications of deploying AI in healthcare settings and calls for increased transparency,accountability,and diversity in the development and implementation of these technologies.Finally,it is important that I prefer the following paper with a clear and concise definition of what I refer to as Anti-Black racism throughout the text.Therefore,I assert the following:Anti-Black racism refers to prejudice,discrimination,or antagonism directed against individuals or communities of African descent based on their race.It involves the belief in the inherent superiority of one race over another and the systemic and institutional practices that perpetuate inequality and disadvantage for Black people.Furthermore,I proclaim that this form of racism can be manifested in various ways,such as unequal access to opportunities,resources,education,employment,and fair treatment within social,economic,and political systems.It is also pertinent to acknowledge that Anti-Black racism is deeply rooted in historical and societal structures throughout the U.S.borders and beyond,leading to systemic disadvantages and disparities that impact the well-being and life chances of Black individuals and communities.Addressing Anti-Black racism involves recognizing and challenging both individual attitudes and systemic structures that contribute to discrimination and inequality.Efforts to combat Anti-Black racism include promoting awareness,education,advocacy for policy changes,and fostering a culture of inclusivity and equality.

Acoustic Analysis of EkeGusii Vowel System

This study describes the vowel system of EkeGusii(“Bantu E.42”)(Guthrie,1948)in an acoustic phonetics perspective using oral data got from purposively sampled subjects:four adult males,four adult females and four children(two boys and two girls all 8 years old)equally from the two dialects of EkeGusii(EkeMaate and EkeRogoro Dialects).In order to capture the distribution characteristics of the vowel acoustic concentration,the group frequency means are normalized using Lobanov’s(1971)algorithm.Two viewpoints are the subjects of analysis in EkeGusii vowels:(a)acoustic vowel space as projected by the intersection of F2 vs.F1 or quadrilateral,and(b)spatial features of high,low,front and back.These qualities are mainly influenced by the physiology of speakers and social variability as occasioned by gender,age and dialect.The results indicate that children have no gender difference in formants,and have the highest frequencies for all formants,followed by adult females and then adult males.Furthermore,acoustic vowel space and spatial features are affected by gender,age,and dialect.A vowel pattern,replicated by all informants,is realized in the dispersion of the vowels within the chart influenced by gender and age.This study found out that EkeGusii seems to adopt a seven-vowel system of/i eɛaɔo u/with a length contrast.

Determining Hubbard U of VO_(2) by the quasi-harmonic approximation

Vanadium dioxide VO_(2) is a strongly correlated material that undergoes a metal-to-insulator transition around 340 K.In order to describe the electron correlation effects in VO_(2), the DFT+U method is commonly employed in calculations.However, the choice of the Hubbard U parameter has been a subject of debate and its value has been reported over a wide range. In this paper, taking focus on the phase transition behavior of VO_(2), the Hubbard U parameter for vanadium oxide is determined by using the quasi-harmonic approximation(QHA). First-principles calculations demonstrate that the phase transition temperature can be modulated by varying the U values. The phase transition temperature can be well reproduced by the calculations using the Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof functional combined with the U parameter of 1.5eV. Additionally,the calculated band structure, insulating or metallic properties, and phonon dispersion with this U value are in line with experimental observations. By employing the QHA to determine the Hubbard U parameter, this study provides valuable insights into the phase transition behavior of VO_(2). The findings highlight the importance of electron correlation effects in accurately describing the properties of this material. The agreement between the calculated results and experimental observations further validates the chosen U value and supports the use of the DFT+U method in studying VO_(2).

Presentation of Consonants,Vowels and Stresses in English Medical Terminology

This paper studies the special pronunciation rules of consonants.vowels and stresses in English medical terms from the phonetic and etiologic perspectives,which may provide help for medical students in studying medical English.

Differences of Vowel Pronunciation in China English and American English： A Case Study of [i] and [I]

This paper investigates the differences between vowels [i] and [ I] pronounced by Chinese English speakers and American English speakers. Seven people consisting of two natives and five Chinese have read a list of sentences and their voices were recorded. A software program is used to analyze their voices. In spectrograms generated by Praat, the connection between formant values and articulation features is used to investigate how native speakers pronounce these two vowels and what the differences are between native speakers and Chinese speakers. Through this investigation, it is discovered that Chinese speakers have lower tongue position in [i] and their tongues are more forward in [I], thus making it hard to differentiate these two vowels. Moreover, the length of [i] is much shorter than those in American pronunciation, suggesting that Chinese speakers differentiate [i] and [I] largely by length. However, the comparison of Chinese speakers and native speakers proved otherwise.

Hybrid Scalable Researcher Recommendation System Using Azure Data Lake Analytics

This research paper has provided the methodology and design for implementing the hybrid author recommender system using Azure Data Lake Analytics and Power BI. It offers a recommendation for the top 1000 Authors of computer science in different fields of study. The technique used in this paper is handling the inadequate Information for citation;it removes the problem of cold start, which is encountered by very many other recommender systems. In this paper, abstracts, the titles, and the Microsoft academic graphs have been used in coming up with the recommendation list for every document, which is used to combine the content-based approaches and the co-citations. Prioritization and the blending of every technique have been allowed by the tuning system parameters, allowing for the authority in results of recommendation versus the paper novelty. In the end, we do observe that there is a direct correlation between the similarity rankings that have been produced by the system and the scores of the participant. The results coming from the associated scrips of analysis and the user survey have been made available through the recommendation system. Managers must gain the required expertise to fully utilize the benefits that come with business intelligence systems [1]. Data mining has become an important tool for managers that provides insights about their daily operations and leverage the information provided by decision support systems to improve customer relationships [2]. Additionally, managers require business intelligence systems that can rank the output in the order of priority. Ranking algorithm can replace the traditional data mining algorithms that will be discussed in-depth in the literature review [3].

LA-ICP-MS Zircon U-Pb Geochronology and Petrology of the Muchang Alkali Granite,Zhenkang County,Western Yunnan Province,China

The Muchang composite intrusion is located about 14 km southeast of the Fengwei town and south of the Baoshan-Zhenkang block.The rift-related intrusion consists of the early-stage riebeckite nordmarkite in the east and west sides and the discontinuous marginal zone,the late-stage main body of dominant riebeckite granite,and minor aegirine granite.Studies on petrological geochemistry and LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb dating of the late-stage riebeckite granite,origin and evolution of the Muchang alkali granite and the relationship between the granite and the associated skarn-type Luziyuan Pb-Zn deposit are discussed in this paper.The results show that the Muchang alkali granites belong to A-type granites,which are characterized by enrichment in Al_2O_3,SiO_2,total alkali and Fe, depletion in MgO and CaO contents with high FeO_T/MgO ratios.The REE concentrations are relatively high,exhibiting highly fractionated LREE patterns with significantly Eu negative anomaly. The Muchang granites are obviously enriched in lithophile elements（e.g.,Rb,K,U and Th） and high field strength elements（e.g.,Zr,Hf,Nb,Y and Ga） with high 10000×Ga/Al ratios and depleted in Sr, Ba,Ti,Cr and Ni,which are similar to those of the A-type granites and quite different from those of S-type andⅠ-type granites.The LA-ICP-MS zircon dating results of the Muchang granite gave a weighted mean age of 266.2±5.4 Ma（2σ）,suggesting that they were formed in the stage of extension at the end of post-collision at Middle Permian and the consumption of Paleo-Tethys ocean took place before 266 Ma. It is suggested that the unexposed intermediate-acid intrusive rocks in the Luziyuan ore district,which is the ＂sister＂ rocks material of the Muchang granites and related closely to Luziyuan Pb-Zn mineralization,were the product of Middle Permian.

Distributed genetic algorithm for optimal planar arrays of aperture synthesis telescope

Sparse arrays of telescopes have a limited (u, v)-plane coverage. In this paper, an optimization method for designing planar arrays of an aperture synthesis telescope is proposed that is based on distributed genetic algorithm. This distributed genetic algorithm is implemented on a network of workstations using community communication model. Such an aperture synthesis system performs with imperfection of (u, v) components caused by deviations and(or) some missing baselines. With the maximum (u, v)-plane coverage of this rotation-optimized array, the image of the source reconstructed by inverse Fourier transform is satisfactory.

Zircon U-Pb Ages of Bottom and Top Parts of the Zhangjiakou Formation in Lingyuan Area(West Liaoning Province) and Luanping Area (North Hebei Province) and Their Significance

In Lingyuan region of West Liaoning Province, the Zhangjiakou Formation (J_3z) and the Yixian Formation (K_1y) display an angular unconformity. That is, the Lower Mesozoic strata of the Zhangjiakou Formation are ENE (near E-W) oriented, while the overlying strata of the Yixian Formation exhibit an NNE orientation. The results of LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb ages show the Zhangjiakou Formation formed from about 130 Ma to 132 Ma in Lingyuan and 135 Ma to 136 Ma in Luanping (North Hebei Province), respectively. Three conclusions can be drawn: (1) The Zhangjiakou Formation in Lingyuan is comparable to that in Luanping, with the volcanic rocks of the Zhangjiakou Formation from Lingyuan being younger than those from Luanping. (2) 5-6 Ma difference between the top of the Zhangjiakou Formation and the bottom of the Yixian Formation in Lingyuan proves the angular unconformity between the two formations; and it reflects that the 5-6 Ma interval period is the main period of the transition of tectonic framework in Mesozoic in North Hebei and West Liaoning. In the interval period, the magmatic action went up to high tide in Mesozoic in the northeast of China. Moreover, after the interval period, the “Rehe fauna” developed into “erupted” period. This reflects that the interval period is also an important biological interface in Northern Hebei and Western Liaoning. (3) The Dabeigou Formation in Luanping should correspond to the upper part of the Zhangjiakou Formation, but not to the lower part of the Yixian Formation.

Xiba Granitic Pluton in the Qinling Orogenic Belt, Central China: Its Petrogenesis and Tectonic Implications

Xiba granitic pluton is located in South Qinling tectonic domain of the Qinling orogenic belt and consists mainly of granodiorite and monzogranite with significant number of microgranular quartz dioritic enclaves. SHRIMP zircon U-Pb isotopic dating reveals that the quartz dioritic enclaves formed at 214±3 Ma, which is similar to the age of their host monzogranite （218±1 Ma）. The granitoids belong to high-K calc-alkaline series, and are characterized by enriched LILEs relative to HFSEs with negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies, and right-declined REE patterns with （La/Yb） N ratios ranging from 15.83 to 26.47 and δEu values from 0.78 to 1.22 （mean= 0.97）. Most of these samples from Xiba granitic pluton exhibit εNd（t） values of 8.79 to 5.38, depleted mantle Nd model ages （T DM ） between 1.1 Ga and 1.7 Ga, and initial Sr isotopic ratios （ 87 Sr/ 86 Sr） i from 0.7061 to 0.7082, indicating a possible Meso-to Paleoproterozoic lower crust source region, with exception of samples XB01-2-1 and XB10-1 displaying higher （ 87 Sr/ 86 Sr） i values of 0.779 and 0.735, respectively, which suggests a contamination of the upper crustal materials. Quartz dioritic enclaves are interpreted as the result of rapid crystallization fractionation during the parent magmatic emplacement, as evidenced by similar age, texture, geochemical, and Sr-Nd isotopic features with their host rocks. Characteristics of the petrological and geochemical data reveal that the parent magma of Xiba granitoids was produced by a magma mingling process. The upwelling asthenosphere caused a high heat flow and the mafic magma was underplated into the bottom of the lower continent crust, which caused the partial melting of the lower continent crustal materials. This geodynamic process generated the mixing parent magma between mafic magma from depleted mantle and felsic magma derived from the lower continent crust. Integrated petrogenesis and tectonic discrimination with regional tectonic evolution of the Qinling orogen, it is suggested that the granitoids are most likely products in a post-collision tectonic setting.

Commentary on "Association of daily sitting time and leisure-time physical activity with body fat among U.S.adults"

In their study,association of daily sitting time and leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) with body fat among U.S.Adults,Liao et al.^(1) analyzed data from the 2011-2018 National Health and Examination Survey to examine associations between h/day sitting,meeting (or not meeting) the U.S.Physical Activity Guidelines of≥150 min/week of moderate-and vigorous-intensity LTPA,and combinations of sitting time and LTPA on totaland trunk percent body fat (BF%).

Letters of the Hebrew Alphabet:As Sound Notation

While Bronze Age Proto-Sinaic and Proto-Canaanite syllabic inscriptions were found engraved on fragments of pottery and stone,evidence of early alphabetic script was also inscribed in ink onto a massive parchment scroll,known as the Torah.Albeit the contours of those original characters transformed over time,it took the clairvoyant genius of Moses,and later the scribes of Ancient Israel,to configure and adapt ancient semitic prototypes into phonetic letters,producing the greatest literary document in the history of the world,the Bible.This article summarizes the acoustic properties of that alphabet,with further historical considerations.

SHRIMP Zircon U-Pb and Molybdenite Re-Os Datings of the Superlarge Donggou Porphyry Molybdenum Deposit in the East Qinling,China,and Its Geological Implications

Located in the eastern part of the East Qinling molybdenum belt, the Donggou deposit is a superlarge porphyry molybdenum deposit discovered in recent years. The authors performed highly precise dating of the mineralized porphyry and ores in the Donggou molybdenum deposit. A SHRIMP U-Pb zircon dating of the Donggou aluminous A-type granite-porphyry gave a rock-forming age of 112±1 Ma, and the ICP-MS Re-Os analyses of molybdenite from the molybdenum deposit yielded ReOs model ages ranging from 116.5±1.7 to 115.5±1.7 Ma for the deposit. The ages obtained by the two methods are quite close, suggesting that the rocks and ores formed approximately at the same time. The Donggou molybdenum deposit formed at least 20 Ma later than the Jinduicheng, Nannihu, Shangfanggou and Leimengou porphyry molybdenum deposits in the same molybdenum belt, implying that these deposits were formed in different tectonic settings.