Contributions of the philosophy of science to juridical semantics

Special language for "special languages"

Linguistic problems in connection with special language have been analysed mainly from the point of view of widely used languages or even world languages. Comparatively little attention has been paid to less widely used languages, and the so-called lesser used languages are even worse off. This is especially true in the case of the lesser used languages in Central Eastern, Eastern and South Eastern Europe. They underwent significant political and economic changes that influenced language profoundly. When trying to develop the terminology of special language they are not only faced with the influence of a world language but also with one or more dominating languages. The problem and possible solutions will be analysed with a special reference to the Sorbian languages.

Mavor, Sally
Aligning genre and practices with learning in higher education: an interdisciplinary perspective for course design and teaching
see: Beverly Trayner

Miller, Paul
The relationship between vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension: The example of an ESP test
Although knowledge of 95% of the words in a text has been widely quoted in the applied linguistics literature as being the minimum to ensure successful reading comprehension, this claim has received little empirical investigation. In order to address this issue a test designed to evaluate the reading ability of non-English speaking health care professionals wishing to practice in Australia was administered to a group of Spanish-mother tongue medical students. The subjects' vocabulary knowledge was assessed by asking the subjects to translate or define a list of words which computer analysis had shown to constitute a representative sample of all the lexical items in the reading text. Data from this study suggest that the relationship between levels of vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension test performance is more complex than the ‘95% model’ allows for. The paper discusses some fundamental problems with this model, and examines their implications for ESP.


Mishlanova, Dr. Svetlana

Russian medical metaphor

This paper can be related to the area of metaphor research particularly to the cognitive theory of metaphor because it deals with the conceptualization of medical knowledge.

The goal of our investigation is to study the role of metaphor in the forming and functioning of medical concepts.
The object of this research contains 2500 examples of metaphors chosen by the method of entire selection from Russian scientific medical texts. All the selected examples are organized in the thesaurus of Russian scientific medical metaphor. The main parts of this thesaurus are: nature, human activity, art and culture, policy, war, flora, fauna etc. Such representation of metaphors gives opportunity to identify the most active domains oof medical knowledge imagination in the consciousness and to study their explication in language.
The revealed data can be used by specialists in history of medicine, in clinical diagnostics, in linguistics, psycholinguistics, lexicology, lexico­graphy, translation theory etc.
The new vistas in our research based on composed thesaurus and revealed typology of metaphor will be connected with the study of medical discourse.

Mondahl, Assoc. Prof. Ph.D Margrethe Smedegaard

Ways and means in professional oral communication – a case for meta-linguistic awareness

together with: Lisbet Pals Svendsen

We wish to present our on-going research within the area of teaching professional oral competence to adult ESL learners. The paper will be a direct continuation of the papers we presented at the LSP conference in Brixen in 1999, and like in Brixen it will fall into a theoretical and a practical part.
Ways and means I – theoretical part (Margrethe Smedegaard Mondahl)
Our first hypothesis is that five competencies can be identified, viz a linguistic, a discourse, a pragmatic, a socio-cultural and a strategic competence and that the professional language user must command all five in order to be a competent foreign/second language user. Our second hypothesis is that we need to explain adequately to the adult learner what it means to acquire a foreign/second language because this knowledge will enable the students to understand and work with their own linguistic development. Our third hypothesis is that several layers of linguistic awareness need to be addressed, ranging from linguistic knowledge via explicit linguistic knowledge and metalinguistic ability to metalinguistic awareness (Bialystok, Odense 2000); these layers of knowledge can be activated by learners at different stages in their development towards the professional command of the foreign/second language. Our fourth hypothesis is related to the learners’ analysis and control of their own performance and the influence these elements have on learner output.
Ways and means II – the practical implementation (Lisbet Pals Svendsen)
To investigate learner development, we have set up an empirical study, the results of which we would like to present. The study is based on video-taped pre- and post-tests of MA student discussions. The classes that take place between the two video-recording sessions are focused primarily on raising student awareness of three competence arease that traditionally prove difficult to Danish adult ESL learners:

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  Linguistic competence: the ability to use expressions of modality;
  
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  Discourse competence: the ability to use agreement, persuasion and turn-taking tools;
  
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  Pragmatic/strategic competence: the ability to use expressions of politeness and the situation-adequate body language.
  

Preliminary results indicate that in the pre-tests, learner awareness of their linguistic competence is high whereas the discourse, the pragmatic/strategic as well as certain elements of the linguistic competencies are hard to identify in learner production. The post-tests show that after consciously working with these competencies in the form of constraint exercises, input on language acquisition and peer/teacher evaluation, these competencies are identifiable in learner production.

Montero Fleta, Begoña

Involving the reader in technical texts: Translation strategies in different genres

together with: Anna Montesinos, Eddy Turney, Carmen Perez Sabater

This paper presents the results of an ongoing study of how writers involve the reader in technical texts in English, Spanish and Catalan. The traditional rhetorical devices used to involve the reader in Romance languages are rather different from those used in English. Thus when translating from English, the translator has to decide between literal translation and modulations. We have analyzed translations into Spanish and Catalan in two different genres: academic textbooks and semi-technical magazines to compare the translation strategies followed in each genre.
Different translators adopt different strategies, however they tend to be extremely coherent in the strategy used. In semi-technical magazines we have found that there is more overt reader address in translations than in academic textbooks. This is probably because they are written in a less formal style and because they are often oriented towards selling a product.


Musacchio, Maria Teresa
Technical phrases and routine formulae in economic argument: A contrastive study of Italian, English and German
together with: Marella Magris
The investigation of knowledge claims in economics requires an analysis of the nature and role of the language of economics as it is difficult - if not impossible - to separate the contents of the discipline from the language in which they are expressed. A study of the favoured modes of argumentation in economics can provide useful insights into the ways the scientific method is applied in the discipline. Our objective in this paper is to ascertain how economic argumentation is formulated in text and whether different formulations are detected in Italian, English and German. To this end, we use the basic principles described in economic textbooks and expressed through key terms to study concordances in comparable Italian, English and German corpora and identify any patterns which can point to the presence of recurrent technical phrases and routine formulae in economic argumentation. Finally, we suggest that results of this type of investigation can be used as a starting point to create databases that do not only include terms, but also technical phrases and routine formulae, which in turn can serve to devise advanced knowledge bases for economic writing and translation.


Musacchio, Maria Teresa
The search for technical collocations and subtechnical vocabulary in native language corpora as an aid to LSP translation
see: Marella Magris


Musehane, Dr. Nelson Mbulaheni
On the development of legal terminology in Tshivenda: The issue of language for special purpose
Tshivenda Language is one of the eleven official languages that are spoken in South Africa as enshrined in Section 6 of the constitution of the Republic of South Africa (i.e. Act no. 108 of 1996). Although this language has been accorded official status it is in practice not used as such. It is not used as a medium of instruction by the speakers of the language in learning subjects such as Natural Sciences and Technology, Agricultural Sciences, Human Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Health Sciences, Business, Administrative and Development Sciences as well as Law in tertiary institutions of South Africa. Tshivenda language is used as a medium of instruction only in the teaching of Tshivenda as a subject. The reasons put forward by the Tshivenda language could not be used as a medium of instruction in other fields of study, is that the language has not developed enough yet and does not have adequate vocabulary or Terminology in which different concepts in these subjects could be expressed in Tshivenda.
The aim of this paper is to endeavour to investigate the possibilities of developing a list of legal terminology. The Tshivenda language will be investigated to find out concepts that could be used in law to show that Tshivenda, like all other languages of the world, could be used in law also.
Having done the research will help convince speakers and learners of the language and law that Tshivenda has acceptable legal terms thereby accorded Tshivenda the opportunity or rights of being used in the legal profession with less difficulty. Besides that the love of studying law in the mother language (i.e. Tshivenda) will be cultivated among law and language students.
The research will endeavour to analyse some English legal concepts to find out if there exists respective Tshivenda concepts to ascertain whether this language could be used for special purpose i.e. Indigenous language such as Tshivenda could be equated to other language of the world used in the legal fraternity.

Myers, Dr. Marie J.
A multi-media (CD ROM) dictionary used in language development for Technical College students
The analysis of the use of an English CD ROM dictionary with 254 hours of recorded data during course work at a technical college from April to September 2000 will be presented. The results show the following: The words connected with geographical (Monterey, peninsula) or cultural connotations (Hansel, Gretel) were often misspelled and mispronounced. Familiar words which should have been encountered in everyday life situations were often not known; for example "sugar", "nap", "mess"... "Laundromat" or "slot" (where money is put), perhaps because these experiences were not part of a particular life.
The meanings of collocations and word phrases were successfully arrived at, perhaps because explanations given in this case are more carefully worded. All grammar exercises were completed and this outcome was positive because the student was used to studying grammar.
The student showed total blocks in cases where words like "Novocain", "disposal", "trash", "aisle" and "numb" came up, only several days later did she uncover the meanings of these words.
Life experiences and idiolects are important for vocabulary development. This is not true only for special contexts but also when people with different backgrounds come together. Conclusions will be drawn as regards communication in inter-cultural contexts and multilingualism.


Myers, Dr. Marie J.
Modal auxiliaries in technical contexts.
The use of modal auxiliaries in a computer programming course: new connotations for modals in technical fields or specialists' knowledge making the meaning of modals less relevant? Four modal auxiliaries covered 75% of the use of modality. These are can, will, must and would. Where explanations are given "can" was preferred. To express a consequence of a technical manipulation "will" appeared. The meaning of "must" was more likely to be a strong recommendation than an obligation. "would" also used for recommendations carried a connotation of option. Clearly in this special language context of computer engineering, understanding the technical terms was of the utmost importance. It seems that the connotations attached to the modal auxiliaries were merely inferred from the context. In addition "softer" meanings were attached to modals in some instances when the subjects' ability to anticipate the functioning of the system did not require "you must", because the subjects knew that if certain steps were not taking the programme would crash, or perhaps because thanks to the debugging system allowing the students to correct an error at some level, the instructor deliberately had the students test their ability as a more effective way to learn by trial and error.


Myking, Johan
Socioterminology, terminology planning and standardisation
Traditional terminology is criticised for its alleged neglect of the relationship between language and society, leaving an impression that terminology is concerned with no more than solving certain problems of standardisation. In this paper I will discuss two directions that advocate the need for ”real language studies” against "Prescriptivism":

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  the French ”socioterminologie” promoted by the Rouen group (e.g. Gaudin 1993, Gambier 1994), and
  
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  the”socio-cognitive terminology” proposed by Rita Temmerman (Temmerman 2000)
  

I intend to present some main and apparent common points of their criticism:

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  Terms, not concepts, should be the point of departure for terminological analysis,
  
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  Onomasiology and semasiology should be balanced or, even, a semasiological approach be preferred,
  
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  Instead of introspection and context-independent conceptology, the use of text corpora and the punctual approach are encouraged,
  
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  In opposition to the ”univocity ideal, synonymy, polysemy and variation deserve empirical studying as functional features of natural language,
  

before outlining some background features that partly may explain their positions:

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  Arbitrariness vs. motivation – a paradigmatic shift?
  
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  Different orientations – the unilingual vs. multilingual approach
  
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  ’Political’ vs. ’scientific’ terminology
  

At the end, I will touch upon some general questions to be discussed.

see also: Colloquium Terminology science at the crossroads?

Männikkö, Tiina
Who wrote what? The role of the editors in a popularised magazine in history
According to the questionnaire I sent to ten Swedish historians in 1998–1999 they seem to be familiar with popularising their professional results. In the Swedish popularised magazine (Populär Historia, Popularised History) most of the articles are written by historians, not by reporters (Oswalds 1998). All the articles sent to the editorial staff of the magazine are, however, read by at least three editors, who may make changes in texts if needed (Oswalds 1998).
My aim in this study is to examine what these changes are and how they affect the contents and the language of the article. I am comparing two original articles sent to the editors with the corresponding published articles.

Oswalds, Erik (1998). A letter to Tiina Haapakangas.

Nematzadeh, Ph.D. Shahin