Theories of Language Evolution

ASSIGNMENTS B. Com General 1st Semester Subject Name expression Functional English Subject code BCC 101 Summer scram 2012 4 credits (60 marks) (BKID B1294) Set 1 1. What is the difference between the theories of speech communication maturation? 1. 2. 3 Language evolution and memes It is possible to imagine legion(predicate) potential scenarios by which verbiage might gestate evolved as a purely biological adaptation. How incessantly, Susan B pretermitmore, reveals a different theory of language evolution in her book The Meme Machine.She proposes that it evolved for the sake of world a characteristic of a culture (memes), non as an adaptation for the benefit of genes. Susan says that memes first came into humans with the advent of true imitation in humans, which completelyowed the former to spread through with(p) populations. Recalling production of bracing(a) copies or that natality is necessary for a replicator. She too said that the language came into man to se rve the object of being a mechanism for improving the fecundity of memes. Sound transmission has many another(prenominal) avails for the purpose sounds can be heard by multiple listeners and can be dod even at night.After sound transmission (proto-language) came into existence, the digitalization of language into discrete words arose as a mechanism for ensuring meme fidelity, or lack of errors in the new copies. She explains that those alterations that produce the most copies of the highest fidelity will be those that predominate, thus improving the language. Blackmore goes on to suggest that grammar was an adaptation to repair the fecundity and fidelity of existing memes its recursive structure then provided the frame engagement for the outgrowth of more interwoven memes, which then favored the existence of more complex grammar, etc. n a self-sustaining cover. Furthermore, language then began to practice pressure on the genes, creating a selection pressure toward bigger b rains that be separate at language. If people prefer to mate with those possessing the best or most memes, then the genes that allowed those people to be honorable meme-sp lecturers will be differentially transmitted into the next generation. This carry through again leads to a self-catalytic process of brain evolution that places a strong survival and reproductive advantage on those most capable of meme transmission.Finally, Blackmore believes that language is an unavoidable pull up stakes of the existence of memes, which follow naturally from the ability to imitate (an ability that is, surprisingly, realized in very few species). She states, Verbal language is almost an inevitable result of memetic selection. First, sounds be a good candidate for high-fecundity transmission of behaviour. Second, words ar an obvious centering to digitise the process and so increase its fidelity. Third, grammar is a next step for increasing fidelity and fecundity yet again, and all of thes e will aid memorability and hence longevity. 2.What are the common mistakes done while writing declarative sentences? Give examples of each of them. 2. 5. 3 education A parameter is also known by the name of a declarative sentence. This type of sentence simply states a fact, an argument or an idea, without requiring any answer or action from the reader. It does not give a command or request, nor does it ask a question. There are twain types of statements, viz. 1. Un qualified statement 2. Conditional statement Let us trans tardily twain of them one by one. 1. Un qualified Statement These are the statements without any fit in them. Example, a) Marina plays the piano. (b) I think you will pass. (c) I have forgotten his name. (d) She asked which drink I preferred. 2. Conditional Statement These are the statements with a condition(s) in a clause accompanied by the of import clause which shows the action. The conditional statements are of three types (a) The open conditional stat ement. (b) The supposititious conditional statement. (c) The unfulfilled supposed statement. Let us understand each of them one by one. (a) The open conditional statement This type of statement generally refers to a future showcase which is conditional on another(prenominal) future event.The verb of the conditional clause is in the elemental present tense up and the verb of the main clause is in the future tense (usually with will). Example, 1. If I sleep too much, my eyelids s wellspring. 2. My eyelids swell if I sleep too much. 3. still if the absolute group works fast, well off the work today. 4. We will not finish the work today if the entire police squad does not work fast. 5. We will not finish the work today unless(prenominal) the entire team works fast. Occasionally, the open conditional statement describes a web site or an instance which is dependent on another instance (given in the conditional clause).In this case, two verbs are in the present tense. Example, 1. If I sleep well at night, I feel much relaxed in the morning. 2. If it rains, I jazz it a lot. sometimes, if? is replaced by when?. If? implies that the condition is really open and may not be fulfilled, while when? implies that the condition will be fulfilled and event will certainly take place. Example, 1. I will sing when you dance. 2. I shall have my lunch when the bell rings. (b) The hypothetical conditional statement The hypothetical conditional statement refers to a possible future situation which depends on another possible future situation.The verb of the main clause uses the present conditional tense (would + infinitive, or could + infinitive) and the verb of the conditional clause rulely uses the present subjunctive. Sometimes, the conditional aspect of the statement can be emphasized by apply the form were + to + infinitive. Example, 1. If you slept well at night, you would be relaxed in the morning. 2. You would be relaxed in the morning if you slept well at night . 3. Only if the entire team worked fast, we could finish the work that day. 4. We would not finish the work that day if the entire team did not work fast. 5.We would not finish the work that day unless the entire team worked fast. 6. If the entire team were to work fast, we could finish the work that day. Sometimes the statements use the open hypothetical form, though it is clearly quite impossible. In such cases, the main clause uses would/could+ verb form. Example, 1. If I were you, I would never go there. 2. My teacher told me that I would definitely improve my scores if I worked harder. (c) The unfulfilled hypothetical statement The unfulfilled hypothetical statement refers to a situation which an event might have taken place, beneficial now did not, because a condition was not fulfilled.The verb of the main clause goes 3. What do you mean by nonoperational voice? 3. 2. 2 Passive voice The active voice is the normal voice. provided sometimes we need the unresisting voice. The passive voice is less usual than the active voice. In this lesson we look at how to construct the passive voice, when to use it and how to blend it. The structure of the passive voice is very simple subject + auxiliary verb (be) + main verb ( ultimo take leaveiciple) The main verb is al modalitys in its past circumstancesiciple form. pic Though usually active voice is given tasting over the others, it does not mean that passive voice should not be used.But you should use it only in the following instances In order to on purpose make something true so as to minimize the guilt of the subject. For example, A cheating wife might respond, Yes, adultery was committed by me. In order to intentionally hide the subject of the sentence. For example, A political attracter might say, Mistakes were made. In order to make passive voice better emphasize the main point of the passage. For example, Children were harmed by unlicensed cab drivers bring down that we always use by to introduce the passive object (Fish are eaten by cats). The passive voice is less usual.Look at this sentence He was killed with a bullet. Normally we use by to introduce the passive object. But the bullet is not the active subject. The bullet did not kill him. He was killed by somebody with a bullet. In the active voice, it would be person killed him with a bullet. The bullet is the instrument. Somebody is the agent or doer. unification for the passive voice Passive can be made in any tense. If we pay attention, we will find that the conjugation of verbs in the passive tense is alternatively easy, as the main verb is always in past participle form and the auxiliary verb is always be.To form the required tense, we combine the auxiliary verb. So, for example Present simple It is made. Present continuous It is being made. Present perfect It has been made. 4. 2 Concepts of Vocabulary Building Each of us stands testimony to the fact that it is an essential prerequisite to have a g ood mental lexicon in order to communicate effectively. There are many ways to improve our vocabulary. Some of them are as under 1. daunt Cards Flash pla handbills are an excellent method of reviewing both old and new vocabulary words.Not only are they the best way to learn vocabulary, you may also use them in other ways. For example, winder ideas may be written out and reviewed. In addition, declensions such as the article can be put on a bait for easy reviewing. These types of cards will need to be larger than 2 x 4. A full size index card would work for these purposes. Let us make a punk card now. (a) On the front of the puffiness card Write a vocabulary word, and only the word, neatly on the front of the card. Center the word both horizontally and vertically, and be sure to keep the front of the card innocent(p) from extra markings, smudges or doodles. b) On the fastness left corner of the certify of the meretricious card On the reverse side, the information side of t he flash card, hold open a definition for the word in the upper left corner. bring in sure you fulfil up the definition in your own words. This is the key. If you indite a lexicon definition, you will be less likely to have in estimation what the word means (c) On the upper right corner of the confirm of the flash card Write the part of speech in the upper right corner of the info side. Make sure you understand what the part of speech means before writing it down. Then, colour-code it. Highlight the part of speech with one colour.When you make another flashcard with another part of speech, youll use a different colour. Make all the nouns yellow, all the verbs blue, etc. Your mind flirt withs colours really well, so youll start to associate colour with the part of speech, and youll have an easier time remembering how the word functions in a sentence. (d) On the lower left corner of the back of the flash card map the vocabulary word in a sentence you will remember. Make the sentence steamy, hillarious, or creative in some other way. If you write a bland sentence, your chances of remembering what the word means go way down.Example of a memorable sentence My pompous ex-boyfriend used to think he could get any girl he wanted, until he met my friend Mandy, who laughed at his conceited self in front of the entire school. Example of a non-memorable sentence The king, whose pompous heads-of-state were trying to dethrone, decided to flee the country to save his own life. (e) On the lower right corner of the back of the flash card Draw a small picture/graphic to go with the vocabulary word. It doesnt have to be artistic just something that reminds you of the definition.For the word pompous, or conceited, maybe youd draw a stick person with his obtrude in the air. Why? You remember pictures much better than words, which is the reason you cant write anything on the front of the card besides the vocabulary word youd remember the design and associate it with th e definition instead of associating the word with the definition. Repeat this process for every one of your vocabulary words, until you have a deck of flash cards. 2. Rote method (repetition) This is something that we all hate. Rote the new words up to remember them. But isnt it the way we used to learn new words in the childhood?So remember, when no other methods work, you should not hesitate to resort to the time tested rote method. 3. Self dictionary We hear and read new words all the time but rarely do we take the time to look them up. When you hear an unacquainted with(predicate) word, jot it down and take the time to look it up later. 4. excogitate games There are many games that can be played online. It not only serves as a way to entertain but at the same time, develops your vocabulary. Some of the examples of such games are Word Search, Cross Words, advert Mouse, Quiz, Match Game, Scramble, Letter Blocks, etc. 5.Visualisation At times there are very difficult words that cant be learnt by any method else than visualization. Words can be related with something long-familiar and funny so that it can be remembered. 6. Reading Read a lot. The experience of encountering unfamiliar words in print is remarkably instructive. First, because youre already engaged in reading something, you are arguably more do to learn a new word so that you better understand what youre voluntarily reading. Second, you have come across the word organically rather than artificially (i. e. in a vocabulary list).Youll pick up new words and clarify meanings of words already in your toolkit by exposing yourself to them in their, shall we say, natural habitat. The context will enrich your attempt to build a better vocabulary. Diversity of topics is important Read some natural wisdom stuff, applied science stuff, contemporary literature, Shakespeare, Psychology book and then belt down a humorous work. Varied reading will sharpen both general and subject-specific vocabularies. A manger may not feel the improvement of subjects like History, Philosophy, Biology, Travel, Anthropology, Linguistics, Art, Gender Studies, Politics, etc.But a mind that knows varied fields has a rich vocabulary as well as is respected everywhere. You dont have to be an expert in all disciplines to build a substantive vocabulary, but you do need to be a well-informed reader who is confident and comfortable reading on topics outside your areas of immediate expertise. 7. interact in English All said and done, we must try to improve our spoken English so as to write better. The more we turn to in English, the better it would be for us to improve our vocabulary. 5. Decide which split of speech are the underlined words i.You have to believe in yourself if you ever expect to be successful at something. Pronoun ii. We left for the mountain just before six in the morning. Verb iii. We first went to the store to buy a few things. Preposition iv. We had a breakfast at a cafe in force(p ) the rail station. Noun v. My friend wasnt strong enough to lift his heavy rucksack. adjectival vi. I helped him carry it. Pronoun vii. The weather was very frigid. Adverb viii. My friend said, Oh What a cold weather Interjection ix. We didnt spend the night there. Adverb x. We got back home late at night but we didnt go to sleep immediately.We were very hungry. Conjunction. 6. subscribe to in the blanks with these words against, at, like, on, to, up, with, well(p), for. i. She is doing a degree course __at__a university. ii. We had to climb slow ___up__ the hill. iii. His house looks __like___ a temple. iv. Dont lean that ladder ___ against __ the wall. v. My house is quite ___ near __ to your school. vi. A university is where you study ___ for __ a degree. vii. He sometimes quarrels ___ with __ the neighbour. viii. Her next birthday will be __on__ a Sunday. ix. My father has a car __like__ yours. x. The obturate stoned her __to__ death.