• Speech Sciences
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.37-51
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• 2008

The main goal of this study is to examine if there is a difference in the utilization of a vowel length cue between Korean and Japanese L2 learners of English in their perception and production of postvocalic coda contrast in English. Given that Japanese subjects' performances on the identification and production tasks were much better than Korean subjects' performance, we may support the prediction based on the Feature Hypothesis which maintains that L1 phonological features can facilitate the perception of L2 acoustic cue. Since vowel length contrast is a phonological feature in Japanese but not in Korean, the tasks, which assess L2 leaners' ability to discriminate vowel length contrast in English, are much easier for the Japanese group than for the Korean group. Although the Japanese subjects demonstrated a better performance than the Korean subjects, the performance of the Japanese group was worse than that of the English control group. This finding implies that L2 learners, even Japanese learners, should be taught that the durational difference of the preceding vowels is the most important cue to differentiate postvocalic contrastive codas in English.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.239-244
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to investigate two phonological error patterns on coronal feature of children with functional articulation disorders and to compare them with those of general children. We tested 120 children with functional articulation disorders and 100 general children from 2~4 years of age with 'Assessment of Phonology & Articulation for Chidren(APAC)'. The results were as follows: (1) 37 disordered children substituted [+coronal] consonants for [-coronal] consonants (fronting of velars) and 9 disordered children substituted [-coronal] consonants for [+coronal] consonants (backing to velars). (2) Theses two phonological patterns were affected by the articulatory place of following phoneme. (3) The fronting pattern of children with articulation disorders was similar with that of general children, but their backing pattern was different with that of general children. These results show the clinical usefulness of coronal feature in phonological pattern analysis, the need of articulatory assessment with various phonetic context, and the importance of error contexts in clinical judgment.

• MALSORI
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• no.29_30
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• pp.19-42
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• 1995

This paper deals with the current phonological theory named the elementary theory Before manipulating this theory with highest depth, we need to discuss the distinctive feature theory which can be estimated as playing a central role in the standard generative trends. En the element-based phonological theory, the followings might act as tile main traits in differentiating it from other theories: the notion of phonological opposition is regarded as privative one, treating the univalent element as an analysing unit in a phonological process instead of distinctive features, and the nile convention in standard theory is replaced by the element. In chapter 2, a brief history of generative theory is to be described with respect to the merits and demerits of the distinctive feature theory. In chapter 3, After dealing with the current tendency and some prominent aspects of each element theory, a couple of problems thought to be confronted by the distinctive feature theory And the analysing method taken from the element-based theory which may be regarded currently as the alternative to the problems mentioned above will be discussed mainly, The government-based theory introduced by KLV(1985, 1988) may be the main target in discussing the current topic.

• MALSORI
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• no.29_30
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• pp.43-60
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• 1995

Standard generative phonologists assumed that there were no orders or hierarchies among distinctive features. This means that the distinctive features which make up a segment are independent and unordered. The unordered linear matrix cannot explain phonological phenomena such as complex segments as hierarchical representation does neatly. The hierarchical feature representation theory which embodies the concept of multi-tiered phonological representation organizes distinctive features in the appearance of hierarchical dominance. This paper aims to show how we can solve some problems of the linear feature representation. As regard underlying representation the theory of underspecification is discussed. I propose a feature hierarchy similar to that of Sagey(1986) but slightly different. I show English consonantal assimilation in feature hierarchical model compared with that of feature changing theory of linear representation.

• International Journal of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.63-72
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• 2016

Nominal compounds of 'N1 + N2'in Korean can be classified into the following three major categories: co-compound, sub-compound, and fusion. Among these three major categories, insertion of /t/ in the compounding process and subsequent tensification are found only in sub-compounds. This peculiar phenomenon of /t/-insertion which causes, in turn, tensification in sub-compounds has been long controversial because linguists have not been able to expect in which phonological environment of sub-compounding insertion of /t/ takes place. In this paper, I explore a phonological rule which makes it possible to expect the phonological environments of sub-compounding that allow insertion of /t/ and automatic tensification of the subsequent consonant in the onset of N2. In this process, I show that semantic feature(s) between two combined roots should be considered as one of the important structural descriptions in phonology.

• ETRI Journal
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.292-299
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• 2007

In this paper, we present a speech recognition system using a throat microphone. The use of this kind of microphone minimizes the impact of environmental noise. Due to the absence of high frequencies and the partial loss of formant frequencies, previous systems using throat microphones have shown a lower recognition rate than systems which use standard microphones. To develop a high performance automatic speech recognition (ASR) system using only a throat microphone, we propose two methods. First, based on Korean phonological feature theory and a detailed throat signal analysis, we show that it is possible to develop an ASR system using only a throat microphone, and propose conditions of the feature extraction algorithm. Second, we optimize the zero-crossing with peak amplitude (ZCPA) algorithm to guarantee the high performance of the ASR system using only a throat microphone. For ZCPA optimization, we propose an intensification of the formant frequencies and a selection of cochlear filters. Experimental results show that this system yields a performance improvement of about 4% and a reduction in time complexity of 25% when compared to the performance of a standard ZCPA algorithm on throat microphone signals.

• MALSORI
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• no.37
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• pp.1-12
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• 1999

In this paper, we examine the allophones of an underlying segment /l/ in Korean dialects. In particular, we examine how an underlying /l/ sound surfaces in the Korean dialect spoken at Yonbyon, China. To do so, we employ the following processes: First, we perform the phonetic studies on the allophones of an underlying /l/ in the Yonbyon dialect. Secondly, we compare the phonological environments of the allophones of an underlying /l/ in the Yonbyon dialect with the South Korean dialect. Finally, we discuss the phonological implications of the allophones of the underlying /l/ in terms of Feature Geometry and Syllable Contact Law. Based on the phonetic study, we will argue that the distinctive feature [sonorant] should be placed outside the root node and that the flap, an allophone of an underlying /l/, should be understood as an obstruent, not a sonorant.

• Speech Sciences
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.223-232
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• 2004

This study investigated and compared the acoustic characteristics of the Korean stop sound [k'] in three different phonological environments: the tensified lenis stop [k'] as observed in /prek+kaci/, the fortis stop /k'/ as in /pre+k'aci/, and the fortis stop /k'/ following an obstruent as in /prek+k'aci/. The specific research question was whether or not the tensified lenis stop shares all the acoustic features with the other two kinds of fortis stops. The acoustic measures adopted in this study were H1*-H2*, VOT, length of stop closure, and $F_0$. The major findings were that the three stops showed no significant difference in all the acoustic measures except the length of stop closure. The fortis stop /k'/ following an obstruent showed significantly longer duration of stop closure than the other two stops, both of which showed no significant difference. Based on these phonetic results, this study argued that, for the proper phonological description of post-obstruent tensification, the phonological feature [slack vocal folds] of a lenis stop should be changed into [stiff vocal folds, constricted glottis] that the fortis stops should have.

• MALSORI
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• no.33_34
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• pp.71-89
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• 1997

In the framework of linear representation which allows for no internal structure within features, there is no way to represent nonlinear phonological phenomena such as complex segments. This paper shows how we carl solve some problems of the linear feature theory in relation to the hierarchical feature theory. The purpose of this paper is to explain lateral assimilation under hierarchical feature representation. Although arguments for the position of classes of distinctive features have been made the position of (lateral) remains the issue of debate. Sagey(1988) argues that the feature [lateral] is structurally dependent on the root node. In contrast Rice & Avery (1991) put the feature (lated) under the spontaneous voicing. I have discussed previous studies of feature hierarchy and I propose a revised model of feature representation. Within this model I have shown how well feature geometry describes lateralization as feature spreading.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.41-46
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• 2009

Duration of the preceding vowel is known to vary as a function of the (phonological or phonetic) voicing feature of the following consonant. This study raises a question against this general belief. A spectrographic experiment using 14 Korean obstruents (three sets of stops: /p, p', $p^h$/, /t, t', $t^h$/, /k, k', $k^h$/; one set of affricates: /c, c', $c^h$/; one set of fricatives: /s, s'/) reveals that (1) phonetic voicing in the intervocalic lax consonants /p, t, k, c, s/ has nothing to do with the duration of the preceding vowel; (2) vowel length is significantly shorter before tense consonants than before their lax cognates while tense consonants are significantly longer than their lax cognates. Importantly, Korean obstruents are all phonologically voiceless. Therefore, the voicing feature is rejected as the cause of preconsonantal vowel shortening in Korean both phonetically and phonologically. It is suggested that the temporal phenomenon is basically a kind of physiologically-motivated coarticulation though it is restricted by the phonology of a given language. To meet this assumption, the feature voicing should be replaced with the feature tenseness as the cause, which will enable us to explain the temporal phenomenon on the same basis irrespective of language.