The Effect of Latinization on Reading Time and Understanding: Greeklish in Communication and Social Media

The increasing prevalence of technology in society has an impact on young people’s language use and development. Greeklish is the writing of Greek texts using the Latin instead of the Greek alphabet, a practice known as Latinization, also employed for many non-latin alphabet languages. The primary aim of this research is to evaluate the effect of Greeklish on reading time. A sample of 732 young Greeks were asked about their habits when communicating through e-mail and social media with their friends and they then participated in an experiment in which they were asked to read and understand two short texts, one written in Greek and the other in Greeklish. The findings of the research show that nearly one third of the participants use Greeklish. The results of the experiment conducted reveal that understanding is not affected by the alphabet used but reading Greeklish is significantly more time consuming than reading Greek independently of the sex and the familiarity of the participants with Greeklish. The findings suggest that amending social and communication media with software utilities related to Latinization such as language identifiers and converters may reduce reading time and thus facilitate written communication among the users.

The Interaction Betweena Reader and a Text in Reading Process —— the Application of Schemata Theory in Reading Two Poems

Inrevealingthenatureofreadingprocess,moreattentionhasbeengiventotheroleplayedbya reader.ThispaperdiscussestheapplicationofSchematatheoryinreadinginthelightofunderstandingandappre ciationoftwopoems.Bycomparingthetwopoemsinchoiceofwordsandinarrangementofthepoems,thispaper verifiesthepracticalinfluenceofschematatheoryinreadingprocess.

Comprehensive Study on the Basis of Eye Blink, Suggesting Length of Text Line, Considering Typographical Variables the Way How to Improve Reading from Computer Screen

The advent and extensive use of computer and increasing development of different technologies it is important to increase the awareness of issues related to the electronic text or text presentation on computer screen. The usage of web shows the importance of usability and readability of the web applications or sources provide by the web and web textual contents. Web application fails to encounter the user’s requirements in effective manner specially related to textual information, because the designers are unaware from some of the important factors effecting readability, reading from the screen. In this regard, this study is the continuation of the previous work that has been done for the improvement of readability, to handle the readability issues on the basis of Eye Blink for male participants and female participants. To achieve general recommendations for suitable or optimum length of text line for all type of users on the bases of eye blink. Basically during reading from the computer screen focus losses at two positions, when eye blink in the middle of text line and when text line ends. The study specifies suitable length of text line on the basis of Eye Blink, assuming three typographical variables i.e. font style, font color, font size, and with white background, which improve the overall readability or reading from computer screen. The study also shows two important things the degree of understandability and the degree of attractive appearance of different combination.

The effects of text structure, structure awareness and proficiency level on EFL learners＇ reading test performance

The present study probed into the effects of text structure, structure awareness and proficiency level on EFL learners＇ reading test performance. There are 112 college-level students participated in the experiment and their English proficiency belonged to distinct levels. The subjects＇ performance on the recall of two passages written in different types of structure was examined. Results of statistical indicate that text structure, structure awareness and proficiency level all have main effects on the subjects＇ reading performance. More specifically, two major findings emerged from the results of the investigation. One the one hand, text structures significantly affected the quantity but not the quality of the information recalled while proficiency level and structure awareness had significant impact on both the quantity and quality of information recalled. On the other hand, structure awareness was irrelevant to either text structure or proficiency level. The implications of the findings for teaching L2/FL reading were suggested.

AB104.Validation of the international reading speed texts in a Canadian sample

Background:The International Reading Speed Texts(IReST)were developed in Europe as a standardized measure to assess continuous reading in normally sighted and visually impaired individuals.The IReST is used throughout the United States and Canada to assess reading speed;however,the normative values may not be valid in North America(NA).Additionally there are no normative values for individuals with visual impairments.The aim of this study was to validate the IReSTs in a normally sighted English-speaking NA sample with and without a simulated reduction in visual acuity.Methods:Fifty undergraduate students from Concordia University participated in this study.Participants were systematically assigned to a counterbalanced order of testing conditions and were asked to read all 10 IReSTs aloud.The normal and impaired vision conditions were counterbalanced such that the first set of five IReSTs were read with either the participants normal/corrected-to-normal vision or with a simulated 20/80 visual impairment.Results:Multiple two-sample dependent t-tests using a Holm-Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons were used to compare the IReST values(means and standard deviations)to the current sample;the results showed statistically significant differences between the current samples mean reading speed and the values provided by the IReSTs.In all cases,P were equal to or less than 0.005.Mean difference scores ranged from 14.87 to 30.05 wpm,with 95%confidence intervals ranging from 4.82 to 43.32.Measures of effect size using bias corrected Hedge’s g*ranged from 0.83 to 1.32,with 95%confidence intervals ranging from 0.25 to 1.93.Multiple two-sample dependent t-tests using a Holm-Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons were used to compare the mean reading speed in wpm of the normal and impaired vision conditions;the results showed statistically significant differences between the mean reading speeds of the normal vision condition and the simulated impairment condition on the IReSTs.In all cases,the P were less than 0.001.Mean difference scores ranged from 25.44 to 41.8 wpm,with 95%confidence intervals ranging from 21.66 to 46.Measures of effect size using bias corrected Hedge’s g*ranged from 2.74 to 3.81,with 95%confidence intervals ranging from 1.97 to 4.74.Further Bayesian analyses revealed BF10 factors ranging from 1.277×107 to 7.334×1011,indicating decisive evidence for the research.Conclusions:There are statistically significant differences in reading speed between the NA English sample and the normative values established by the IReST;such that reading speeds of the NA English sample are slower than the normative values of the IReST.Additionally,participants in the simulated impairment condition read the IReSTs significantly slower than the normal vision condition.

A Preliminary Analysis of Text Coverage and Extensive Reading of Chinese ESL Learners--Range Analysis of The Little Prince and Pride and Prejudice

One of the common problems for L2 learners in ESL reading is that the text is either too difficult to understand or too simple to challenge,particularly the extracurricular reading material.The Little Prince and Pride and Prejudice are typically listed in the key reading materials for L2 learners.Contrary to the popularity,a large number of L2 learners find it is hard to complete due to the low text coverage with existing vocabulary.The corpus has become an important language research tool to store language materials according to the specific goals and the way through certain technical means.This paper is going to explore the text coverage of The Little Prince and Pride and Prejudice by range analysis,and comparing with English Curriculum Standards to figure out suitable reading targets of these two materials.

Text Difficulty,Working Memory Capacity and Mind Wandering During Chinese EFL Learners’Reading

This experimental study investigated how text difficulty and different working memory capacity(WMC)affected Chinese EFL learners’reading comprehension and their tendency to engage in task-unrelated thoughts,that is,mind wandering(MW),in the course of reading.Sixty first-year university non-English majors participated in the study.A two-factor mixed experimental design of 2(text difficulty:difficult and simple)×2(WMC:high/large and low/small)was employed.Results revealed that 1)the main and interaction effects of WMC and text difficulty on voluntary MW were significant,whereas those on involuntary MW were not;2)while reading the easy texts,the involuntary MW of high-WMC individuals was less frequent than that of low-WMC ones,whereas while reading the difficult ones,the direct relationship between WMC and involuntary MW was not found;and that 3)high-WMC individuals had a lower overall rate of MW and better reading performance than low-WMC individuals did,but with increasing text difficulty,their rates of overall MW and voluntary MW were getting higher and higher,and the reading performance was getting lower and lower.These results lend support to WM theory and have pedagogical implications for the instruction of L2 reading.

Understanding the Process of Second Language Acquisition

As the world is becoming more and more connected,the education system needs to provide each learner with an equal opportunity for success.Measures should put in place to ensure that obtaining an education is made possible for all students,including foreign students,such as English speakers in China and Chinese speakers in the United Kingdom.The biggest obstacle to making this dream a reality is that very few educators are sufficiently equipped to understand the foundational knowledge with regards to teaching learners of speaking a different language from the regional language,raising the need for target language acquisition.This paper will look into the Acculturation model of second language acquisition and Stephen Krashen's theory of second language acquisition.Since educators are increasingly being forced to teach students speaking foreign languages understanding second language acquisition is very important.Understanding the process of second language acquisition may be important to educators and enable students in second language acquisition.

Inheritance and Development of Three Pre-Qin Classics of Confucianism——An Application of Topic Modeling in Classical Chinese Text Analysis

The Analects, Mengzi and Xunzi are the top-three classical works of pre-Qin Confucianism, which epitomized thoughts and ideas of Confucius, Mencius and XunKuang1. There have been lots of spirited and in-depth discussions on their ideological inheritance and development from all kinds of academics. This paper tries to cast a new light on these discussions through “machine reading2”.

让Office XP读出声音来

阐述在Office2002XP中开发“从文本到语音”的语音合成功能,首先介绍了在Word中开发的程序和步骤,接着介绍了在PowerPoint中开发的方法和程序,最后介绍了如何在Access中进行开发的过程。

“Honesty:Is It Going out of Style?”不宜作为《大学英语》精读课文

笔者以为,《大学英语》第二册"Honesty:Is It Going out of Style?"一文,严重缺乏文章写作的典范性,不宜作为精读课文。

Noticeable Focuses in Readinga Text

This paper discusses the relationship between commanding those basic information contained in a text and the final purpose of comprehending in a text-reading process.By using the main topic and the central meaning that all texts have as two main examples,the author mainly illustrates what a reader should pay attention to in reading a text.

雅思阅读list of headings题型对大学英语教学的导向

针对目前大学英语阅读语篇教学存在的问题及其消极影响,从测试对教与学的反拨作用出发,对比全国英语四级阅读测试,通过介绍雅思阅读list of headings题型的效度,着重论述测试中引入该题型对大学英语语篇阅读教学具有正面的反拨作用。

Reading Text Under Normal and Disappearing Presentation Conditions

In this article I discuss data from a series of experiments in which readers’ eye movements were recorded as they processed sentences in which each word disappeared or was masked 60ms after fixation onset. We used this paradigm to investigate whether we could induce a gap effect during reading, and how visual and linguistic factors affected eye movements under these conditions. The data showed that no gap effect occurred in our experiment. Overall reading times were the same under normal and disappearing presentation conditions. However, readers did adopt a strategy of making fewer but longer fixations when the text disappeared than when it did not. Additionally, clear frequency effects occurred regardless of whether the text was presented normally or disappeared. This finding indicates that while the visual uptake of information is important, cognitive processes associated with the lexical identification of words are a primary influence on when readers move their eyes during reading. The findings are taken to support the E-Z Reader model of eye movement control.

Analysis on Text-level Reading

Reading,especially reading at text level,is a process of continuously repeating,consolidating and understanding words,phrases,and sentences.However,from the perspective of psycholinguistics,the compariosn and contrast of empirical data from experiments and researches would be evidences to support the idea that reading at text level is mainly influenced by readers' ability of identifying a text's cohesion and coherence,balancing the activation and suppression of background knowledge,as well as readers' utilization of working memory.Readers can make good use of these three aspects in order to advance their understanding of reading at text level.

Exploring EFL Learners Reading Comprehension Problems in Reading ESP Texts

By considering the fact that in EFL （English as foreign language） contexts learners need reading comprehension skill more than other skills in their academic studies, reading comprehension should be attached more importance especialy in ESP （English for specific purposes） classes in which reading ability plays a crucial role in the students＇ academic success. But in order to help learners in the best possible way, teachers need to identify their learners＇ problems in reading ESP texts. Detecting the problematic areas for the students will assist teachers better design and apply appropriate methods and strategies to solve their students＇ reading comprehension problems. Therefore, the following research was an attempt to explore the EFL learners＇ reading comprehension problmes in reading ESP texts in ESP classes. For the purpose of the study, five passages from their coursebook were selected and they were asked to underline the syntactically problematic parts in the passages. The subjects of the study were composed of 185 homogenous engineering students who were learning english as a foregin langauge. Chi-square analysis showed that 15 major syntactic categories are serious hurdle to reading comprehension of ESP texts. The results and implications are discussed in the light of TLA （teachers＇ language awareness）.

Chinese English Learners＇ Text Reading Strategy Research

Reading strategies are different from identifying the words, but a kind of metacognitive activity based on the monitoring mode. This paper will explore Chinese English learners＇ text reading strategies according to the cognitive process of the reading, hoping for providing some suggestions and references for Chinese college students to learn English well and improve the text reading ability.

Impacts of mobile phone use while driving on the performance of petroleum product drivers in Cameroon

The objective of this article is to show the influence of mobile phone use while driving on the performance of petroleum product drivers in Cameroon.The topical questioning centred on the series of accidents and near misses in general and specifically in the petroleum products sector and showed the need to look for other causes.To do so,we conceptually proposed a model derived from the literature review and adjusted by practical research,which shows that our approach is the hypothetico-deductive type.Methodologically,the observations from the experience of 90 questionnaires were operationalized using multivariate logistic regression analyses.The results indicate that making or receiving calls while driving significantly influences the occurrence of reckless driving situations.Reading and sending short message service(SMS or text messages)while driving negatively influences drivers’performance by increasing delivery times.The type of phone used has an effect on the risk of accidents or near misses.Indeed,drivers who use smartphones are 2.14 times more likely to experience crash-like events compared to those who use conventional mobile phones.In addition,with a view to reducing near misses and accidents,it is important to organize regular appropriate road safety campaigns,to install on-board cameras in all trucks,to provide rest areas and encourage drivers to stop at these areas to check their phones and catch up on missed calls.Additionally to introduce training for drivers in defensive driving with a renewable licence after a maximum of 2 years.

看、读、思的有机结合:英语绘本阅读素养构成要素探析

绘本是义务教育阶段英语重要的文本类型之一,其典型特征是通过图像和文字两种媒介的交互来表达意义。绘本阅读是读者和文本互动的过程,读者在阅读中将文本中的新信息与已有知识经验建立联系来获取和建构意义。英语绘本阅读素养包括看图能力、语言理解能力、认知和思维能力、修辞和表现手法知识、阅读策略、世界知识、跨文化意识和能力、元认知策略八个方面,其中每个方面又包括若干要素。这八个方面及其要素指向英语学科核心素养,围绕它们展开绘本阅读教学能有效提升学生英语绘本阅读能力和审美能力,发展学生的英语学科核心素养。

从法书文献到童蒙读物的流传轨迹——以启功先生《说〈千字文〉》为线索

智永的《千字文》以楷书和草书体书写,有多种版本。启功的研究展示了法书文献的复制方式及流传轨迹,还强调《千字文》具有启发童蒙、流传广远的实用价值。这有助于人们了解古代法书文献的版本知识、认识“王羲之这个角色”、拓展法书文献出版物及书法教学“启发童蒙”的功用,同时也为研究中国特色的阅读史提供了一个有意义的案例。