• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.59-67
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• 2014

The purpose of this study is to scientifically examine Kuhl's (2011), originally Johnson and Newport's (1989) critical period graph, from a perspective of auditory perception and linguistic discrimination. This study utilizes two types of experiments (auditory perception and linguistic phoneme discrimination) with five different age groups (5 years, 6-8 years, 9-13 years, 15-17 years, and 20-26 years) of Korean English learners. Auditory perception is examined via ultrasonic sounds that are commonly used in the medical field. In addition, each group is measured in terms of their ability to discriminate minimal pairs in Chinese. Since almost all Korean students already have some amount of English exposure, the researchers selected phonemes in Chinese, an unexposed foreign language for all of the subject groups. The results are almost completely in accordance with Kuhl's critical period graph for auditory perception and linguistic discrimination; a sensitive age is found at 8. The results show that the auditory capability of kindergarten children is significantly better than that of other students, measured by their ability to perceive ultrasonic sounds and to distinguish ten minimal pairs in Chinese. This finding strongly implies that human auditory ability is a key factor for the sensitive period of language acquisition.

• KIPS Transactions on Software and Data Engineering
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• v.5 no.11
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• pp.541-548
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• 2016

The use of social media is already essential as a source of information for listening user's various opinions and monitoring. We define social 'risks' that issues effect negative influences for public opinion in social media. This paper aims to discriminate various linguistic features and reveal their effects for building an automatic classification model of social risks. Expecially we adopt a word embedding technique for representation of linguistic clues in risk sentences. As a preliminary experiment to analyze characteristics of individual features, we revise errors in automatic linguistic analysis. At the result, the most important feature is NE (Named Entity) information and the best condition is when combine basic linguistic features. word embedding, and word clusters within core predicates. Experimental results under the real situation in social bigdata - including linguistic analysis errors - show 92.08% and 85.84% in precision respectively for frequent risk categories set and full test set.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2020

The perceptual assimilation of a nonnative phonological contrast can change with linguistic experience, resulting in naïve listeners and novice second language (L2) learners potentially assimilating the members of a nonnative contrast to different native (L1) categories. While it has been shown that this sort of change can affect the discrimination of the nonnative contrast, it has not been tested whether such a change could have consequences for the production of the contrast. In this study, L1 speakers of Mandarin Chinese who were (1) naïve to Korean, (2) novice L2 learners, or (3) advanced L2 learners participated in a Korean non-word repetition task using word-initial sibilants. The initial CVs of their repetitions were then played to L1 Korean listeners who categorized the initial consonant. The naïve talkers were more likely to repeat an initial /s^ha/ as an affricate, whereas the L2 learners repeated it as a fricative, in line with how these listeners have been shown to assimilate Korean sibilants to Mandarin categories. This result suggests that errors in the production of new words presented auditorily to nonnative listeners may be driven by how they perceptually assimilate the nonnative sounds, emphasizing the need to better understand what drives changes in perceptual assimilation that accompany increased linguistic experience.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.401-418
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• 2023

Recently, the socio-economic interest in Large Language Models (LLMs) has been growing due to the emergence of ChatGPT. As a type of generative AI, LLMs have reached the level of script creation. In this regard, it is important to address the issue of discrimination (sexism, racism, religious discrimination, ageism, etc.) in the performing arts in general or in specific performing arts works or organizations in a large language model that will be widely used by the general public and professionals. However, there has not yet been a full-scale investigation and discussion on the issue of discrimination in the performing arts in large-scale language models. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to textually analyze the perceptions of discrimination issues in the performing arts from LMMs and to derive implications for the performing arts field and the development of LMMs. First, BBQ (Bias Benchmark for QA) questions and measures for nine discrimination issues were used to measure the sensitivity to discrimination of the giant language models, and the answers derived from the representative giant language models were verified by performing arts experts to see if there were any parts of the giant language models' misperceptions, and then the giant language models' perceptions of the ethics of discriminatory views in the performing arts field were analyzed through the content analysis method. As a result of the analysis, implications for the performing arts field and points to be noted in the development of large-scale linguistic models were derived and discussed.

• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.131-138
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• 1998

In usual statistical data analysis, we describe statistical data by exact values. However, in modem complex and large-scale systems, it is difficult to treat the systems using only exact data. In this paper, we define these data as fuzzy data(ie. Linguistic variable applied to make the member-ship function.) and Propose a new method to get an analysis of fuzzy survey data based on the maximum entropy Principle. Also, we propose a new method of discrimination by measuring distance between a distribution of the stable state and estimated distribution of the present state using the Kullback - Leibler information. Furthermore, we investigate the validity of our method by computer simulations under realistic situations.

• 한국노년학
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.751-765
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• 2011

The purpose of this article is to examine the conflicts and political implications of the various linguistic practices concerning how to call old age, and to illuminate the reasons for these conflicts in the cultural sphere. Recently, the issue of proper ways of calling old age has become problematized. As a result, new ways of addressing older people are being devised, which signifies the marginalization of old age. These new ways of calling older people, however, are not settling the problems. It is because the ageist, gender-discriminatory, status-conscious culture of Korea marginalizes the meaning of the various ways of calling old age. As the otherization of old age deepens in the cultural realm, old age becomes a site where various features of marginality accumulate. The academy and the professionals need to be aware of the political implications of the various ways of calling old age, and to strive to surmount discriminatory linguistic practices.

• Russian Language and Literature
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• no.64
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• pp.191-217
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• 2019

This article aims to examine the possibility of conflicts and disputes between titular nations and ethnic minority groups in the post Soviet countries where most of the policies were designed only for the titular nations. Most of the Post-Soviet countries supported a policy that a language of the indigenous national must be used as a lingua franca. This caused the resistance of minority people in the countries. Especially, the promotion of the language status and function as an indigenous national language resulted in discrimination in the political, economic and socio-cultural areas of the ethnic minorities. In the 14 new independent countries except for the Russian Federation, the Russians became an ethnic minority. It led Russian peoples to emigrate out of the new independent country, creating a chaotic situation. In the Baltic region, Russians have descended to ethnic minorities, and the use of Russian language has also been banned. Thus there is a possibility of a conflict between the titular nations and Russians. The ethnic minorities in Moldova are also Russians, who constitute a de facto independent state, Transnistria. Another ethnic minority, the Gagauzes, compromised with the Moldovan government and formed a self-governing organization in the territory of Moldova. However, there is a possibility of a conflict between the titular nations and Gagauzes. Ethnic minorities in the Caucasus region are the Abkhazians, Ossetians of Georgia, the Russians and Azerbaijani of Armenia, and the Russians and Armenians of Azerbaijan. The status of the Russians and Russian language in Armenia and Azerbaijan remains virtually unchanged, but the Russian-speaking regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in Georgia are still likely to experience ethnic and language disputes. Minorities in Central Asia are the Karakalpaks and Tajiks in Uzbekistan, and the Uzbeks in Kyrgyzstan (mostly in Osh Province) as well as the Russians and Koreans, who were Russian single language users and became ethnic minorities in the new environment.

• Human Ecology Research
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.29-47
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• 2015

The purpose of this study is to conceptualize the definition of school readiness specific to the context of the Republic of Korea. The school readiness test can be used as basic data to enable early childhood educational institutes to determine the general readiness of preschoolers and provide support to fit individual characteristics. For this purpose, six stages of the school readiness development process were considered, that is, draft development, primary preliminary survey, primary expert verification, secondary expert verification, secondary preliminary survey, and main survey. In the main survey, tests were conducted using the school readiness final draft targeting 344 preschoolers living in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do. The item discrimination power analysis and factor analysis for the examination area and question area were also conducted. Consequently, a test tool was developed on the basic of the results obtained, consisting of 129 items in the five areas of knowledge, function, adaptation, tendency, and attitude. The knowledge area was divided into general, linguistic, and mathematical knowledge, and the function area into fine motor function, basic living ability, expressive function, and gross motor function. The adaptation area was classified into adaptation activity, separation anxiety, maladaptive behavior, and environment adaptation; the tendency area into learning tendency; others understanding, and individual tendency, and the attitude area into rule compliance and life habits.

• Journal of Korean Library and Information Science Society
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.357-384
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• 2013

"The IFLA Multicultural Library Manifesto" affirms that libraries should serve all members of the community without discrimination based on cultural and linguistic heritage; provide information in appropriate languages and scripts; and, give access to a broad range of materials and services reflecting all communities and needs. Public libraries in Korea currently are facing the challenge to adopt this IFLA manifesto as Korea is rapidly changing toward a multicultural society. In regard to these speculations, this study explores the experiences and major characteristics of public library services for multicultural population in Richmond, Canada. Based on the case study, this paper scrutinizes the current situation of public library services for multicultural immigrant population in Busan area, and develops several service agenda as they can be oriented to the new strategic plans of public libraries in Korea.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.335-344
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• 2020

Background: The purpose of this study was to identify factors inhibiting access of people with disability to health check-ups as well as identify pertinent solutions for improvement. Methods: Twenty-three people with disability older than the age of 19 who took respective health check-ups within the last 3 years were selected as participants. For the data collection, the 1:1 intensive interview was used. The data were analyzed by the grounded theory by Corbin and Strauss. Results: The results comprised nine categories, 23 subcategories, and 179 concepts. The central phenomenon was 'failure to obtain check-ups.' Causal conditions were observed as a 'lack of communication method,' 'physical difficulties,' and 'staff unfamiliar with people with disability,' Interventional conditions comprised 'physical accessibility,' 'staffs' competency,' and 'assistant manpower.' The active strategy was included 'to investigate the professional medical institution,' 'to find the medical institution of convenient traffic accessibility,' 'to overcome communication difficulties through equipment,' and 'to overcome linguistic barriers through sufficient communication.' Whereas, 'utilization of ancillary equipment,' 'the education of staffs on people with disability,' 'universal design manual,' and 'customized check-ups' were included in the passive strategy. Such processes arose in the contextual conditions of 'lack of expectations for daily lives' and 'lack of government support.' As a consequence, the subjects participated experienced the 'disadvantages,' 'discrimination,' and 'reduced reliability of the health check-ups.' Conclusion: The subjects who participated in this study emphasized 'staffs familiar with people with disability' and 'systems customized for people with disability' are mandatory to secure complete health check-ups for people with disability.