01-02 LS&A Bulletin

Courses in Linguistics (Division 423)

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LING 102. First Year Seminar (Humanities).: Only first-year students, including those with sophomore standing, may pre-register for First-Year Seminars. All others need permission of instructor. (3). (HU).; Designed to introduce entering students to the intellectual life of the university in a small course taught by an experienced member of the faculty. Topics vary according to the interests of the instructors. Whatever their subject matter, first-year seminars emphasize critical thinking through class discussion and regular practice in writing. Linguistics 102-104 differ only in their area distribution designation.
LING 103. First Year Seminar (Social Science).: Only first-year students, including those with sophomore standing, may pre-register for First-Year Seminars. All others need permission of instructor. (3). (SS).; Designed to introduce entering students to the intellectual life of the university in a small course taught by an experienced member of the faculty. Topics vary according to the interests of the instructors. Whatever their subject matter, first-year seminars emphasize critical thinking through class discussion and regular practice in writing. Linguistics 102-104 differ only in their area distribution designation.
LING 104. First Year Seminar (Introductory Composition).: Only first-year students, including those with sophomore standing, may pre-register for First-Year Seminars. All others need permission of instructor. (4). (Introductory Composition).; Designed to introduce entering students to the intellectual life of the university in a small course taught by an experienced member of the faculty. Topics vary according to the interests of the instructors. Whatever their subject matter, first-year seminars emphasize critical thinking through class discussion and regular practice in writing. Linguistics 102-104 differ only in their area distribution designation.
LING 112. Languages of the World.: (3). (SS).; How many languages are there, and where are they found? Are all human languages related to each other? What facts about language structure give languages their "character" or "flavor"? Are there any universal properties to language, that is, structures found in every language? What do these universals suggest about human culture and thought?
LING 114. A World of Words.: (3). (HU).; The course studies the internal structure of words (morphology and phonetics), word history (etymology), how English is related to other languages (Indo-European linguistics) and social and cultural implications of our vocabulary and its use.
LING 119. Conversation.: (3). (SS).; At the core of contact between humans is face-to -face interaction. This course introduces students to principles for the study of conversation. Course members are actively engaged in the analysis of existing data as well as gathering and studying data they collect.
LING 140. Introduction to Deaf Culture.: (3). (Excl).; This course introduces students to Deaf culture within the United States, and focuses on the link between culture and language (in this case, American Sign Language).
LING 150. Elementary American Sign Language.: Concurrent enrollment in or completion of Ling. 140. (4). (LR).; A beginning course in American Sign Language (ASL) that introduces students to basic grammatical structures and sign vocabulary through intensive classroom conversational interactions. Emphasis is on practical communicative functions as students learn how to communicate in a visual-gestural channel. This class is conducted exclusively in American Sign Language.
LING 151. Elementary American Sign Language II.: Ling. 150. (4). (LR).; This course is a continuation of Ling 150. Upon completion of Ling 151, students are able to observe basic courtesies while making introductions, giving directions, and conversing about past, present, and future events in ASL. Participation in class includes role playing in selected situational activities.
LING 210. Introduction to Linguistic Analysis.: (4). (SS).; This course is concerned with developing the analytic skills and theoretical concepts used by linguists in describing the structural phenomena of human language. Recommended for potential concentrators.
LING 211. Introduction to Language.: (3). (SS).; Concerned with the results of linguistic research, this course covers the social, cultural, and communicative aspects of language use and development.
LING 212. Introduction to the Symbolic Analysis of Language.: (4; 2 in the half-term). (MSA).; Introduction to some basic mathematical concepts and techniques used to represent linguistic meaning. Set theory, first-order logic and (elementary) model theory. Investigation of the extent to which models constructed in class succeed in approximating natural language, and an analysis/attempt to solve some important failures of these models.
LING 250. Intermediate American Sign Language.: Ling. 151. (4). (LR).; Students in this intermediate course in American Sign Language (ASL) learn more advanced communicative forms including understanding the essential role of facial communication (non-manual behaviors) in forming expressions. Additional vocabulary including idiomatic expressions are introduced to expand students’ abilities to understand and converse appropriately in various settings.
LING 251. Intermediate American Sign Language II.: Ling. 250. (4). (LR).; Students continue to learn communicative structures of American Sign Language (ASL) and develop further skills in the use of physical space to recognize and express meanings. Vocabulary and idiomatic expressions are expanded. Upon completion, students are able to communicate in ASL in a range of conversational interactions.
LING 272 / ANTHRCUL 272. Language in Society.: Primarily for first- and second-year students. (4; 2 in the half-term). (SS). (R&E).; An introduction to the systematic study of language and of the place of language in society. Origins of language in the species, child language, language and thought, meaning, and language and social class. Lectures and discussion.
LING 305. Advertising Rhetoric.: Junior standing. Ling. 210 recommended. (3). (Excl).; Considers how verbal and visual advertising messages are interpreted by consumers within a cultural context. The rhetorical analysis emphasizes the inherent contradictions in most advertising messages.
LING 313. Sound Patterns.: Ling. 210 or 211. (3; 2 in the half-term). (SS).; This course explores two fundamental aspects of the sounds of human languages: speech sounds as physical entities (phonetics) and speech sounds as linguistic units (phonology).
LING 314. Aspects of Meaning.: Ling. 210 or 211. (3). (Excl).; Introduction to aspects of semantic and pragmatic systems in natural language. Topics covered include: lexical semantics, logic and formal systems, reference and coreference, presupposition and entailment, metaphor and cognition, pragmatics, and text analysis. Emphasis on data analysis.
LING 315. Introduction to Sentence Analysis.: Ling. 210 or 211. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; This course focuses on recognizing linguistic data, organizing that data, and formulating all the logically possible analyses for that data within the framework of different syntactical areas.
LING 317. Language and History.: Ling. 210 or 211. (3; 2 in the half-term). (HU).; Languages vary and change in order to accommodate the needs of their speakers; language histories overlap with and reflect the political, social and economic histories of speech communities.
LING 318. Types of Languages.: Ling. 210 or 211. No credit granted to those who have completed or are enrolled in Ling. 518. (3). (Excl).; The course introduces students to basic grammatical structure and function by (1) having them investigate unfamiliar languages through published descriptive grammars and (2) relating this direct experience to the principal findings of contemporary linguistic researchers.
LING 319. Discourse in the Academic Disciplines.: Ling. 210 recommended. (3; 2 in the half-term). (HU).; An examination of how the rules of speaking and writing are specific to individual genres and disciplines, how discourse is structured in order to appeal to the authority, the ethos of a discipline.
LING 339 / CAAS 339. African American Languages and Dialects.: Ling. 210 recommended. (3). (Excl).; This course is an introduction to the languages and dialects of people of African ancestry living in the New World. Special attention is paid to the historical origins of these languages, their present day diversity, and the social and political factors related to their current status.
LING 340. Introduction to Sociolinguistics.: Ling. 210 or 211. (3). (Excl).; This course examines the varied relationships between language use and society along with the major methods and theories that have been devised to explore those relationships. Topics covered include the language contact and change, linguistic diversity and intercultural communication, and the relationship of identity to language use.
LING 342. Perspectives on Bilingualism.: Ling. 272, or Ling. 210, or Ling. 211. (3). (Excl).; This course examines bilingualism as a language contact phenomenon, chiefly from a sociolinguistic perspective, beginning with an overview of a broad range of social and political issues which underlie much discussion in the literature. Various definitions and descriptions of bilingualism also are considered.
LING 345. Languages and Peoples of Eastern Europe, Russia and the Caucasus.: Ling. 210 recommended. (3). (Excl).; This course provides a brief acquaintanceship with the 150 languages and peoples of Eastern Europe, Russia, and Caucasus - "a mountain of languages". The spread of the Russian language in Siberia, the Caucasus and Central Asia, as well as several other topics are covered.
LING 350. Perspectives on Second Language Learning and Second Language Instruction.: Ling. 210 or 211. No credit granted to those who have completed or are enrolled in Ling. 450. (3). (Excl).; This course explores past and current directions in both theoretical and practical aspects of second language learning and teaching. The background of knowledge and experience it provides is intended not only for those interested in learning and teaching of English to speakers of other languages but to those interested in foreign language teaching as well.
LING 351. Second Language Acquisition.: Ling. 210 or 211. (3). (SS).; An introduction to second language learning and emphasis on linguistic, psychological and socio-cultural variables.
LING 352(451). / PSYCH 352. Development of Language and Thought.: Psych. 350. (3). (SS).; An examination of early children's language and its relation to conceptual development. Course covers development of word meaning, organization of early concepts, the nature of early grammatical knowledge, and how language development relates to logical thinking and social knowledge.
LING 370(410) / ANTHRCUL 370. Language and Discrimination: Language as Social Statement.: Ling. 210 recommended. (3). (SS). (R&E).; The study of those dialectical differences which vary with class, ethnic, and racial affiliation. Particular emphasis is given to dialects of English spoken by Black Americans.
LING 374(409) / ANTHRCUL 374. Language and Culture.: Sophomore standing. (4; 2 in the half-term). (HU).; The study of the ways various culture patterns and values are reflected in languages.
LING 385. Experiential Practice.: Permission of instructor. (1-6). (Excl). Offered mandatory credit/no credit. (EXPERIENTIAL). May be repeated for a total of six credit.; Supervised participation in one of a variety of service projects involving language, including tutoring and formal teaching. May involve specialized training, which is a part of the project. Projects may extend over several terms.
LING 395. Individual Research.: Permission of instructor. (1-4). (Excl). (INDEPENDENT). May be repeated for a total of six credits.; Adequately prepared students pursue individual research with a member of the faculty.
LING 406 / ENGLISH 406. Modern English Grammar.: (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; A descriptive analysis of the structure of present-day American English.
LING 408 / ENGLISH 408. Varieties of English.: (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; Under this rubric, the department has courses in such topics as American English, English as a world language, Black English, and dialects of English.
LING 411. Introduction to Linguistics.: Not intended for Linguistics concentrators. Not open to students with credit for Ling. 211. (3). (Excl).; Basic concepts, scope, and methodology of the science of language in its descriptive and historical aspects.
LING 416. Field Methods in Linguistics.: One course in phonetics or phonology and a course in syntax. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; Course giving the student "hands-on" experience in the elicitation and analysis of linguistic data. A native speaker of a language not known to the students or the instructor is present in the class as informant. Students are given training in techniques of elicitation, organization and analysis of data as well as formation and testing of hypotheses based on such data.
LING 421. Morphology.: One introductory linguistics course. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; An introduction to morphological theory, the goal of which is to provide a framework within which word structure in all languages can be described.
LING 433 / AAPTIS 433. Arabic Syntax and Semantics.: Arabic 431, and Arabic 102 or 103. (3). (Excl).; Study of theories of generative syntax especially the principles and parameters approach and situation semantics and their relevance to the analysis of Modern Standard Arabic and at least on Arabic dialect using as a reference point medieval Arabic grammar. There is focus on some relevant theoretical constructs as they apply to the syntactic and semantic analysis of Arabic.
LING 440. Language Learnability.: Ling. 314 and 315. (3). (Excl).; This course examines various theory-related questions, goals, and assumptions within the scope of language acquisition. The course objectives are two-fold: (1) to develop familiarity with prominent aspects of language learnability; and (2) to promote discussions and perspectives that stimulate further investigation and insight into language learning theories.
LING 447 / PSYCH 445. Psychology of Language.: Psych. 340. (3). (Excl).; A survey of research and theory on the normal language processes in children and adults. Among the topics usually discussed are first language acquisition, biological basis of language, speech perception, language comprehension, semantic memory, language production, bilingualism, second-language learning, and reading.
LING 473 / ANTHRCUL 473. Ethnopoetics: Cross-Cultural Approaches to Verbal Art.: Two courses in anthropology, linguistics, or literature. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; Cross-cultural problems in translation and interpretation of text in oral traditions. Form and performance in verbal art of non-Western peoples. "Oral literatures" as shapers of, and shaped by, the cultures of which they are part.
LING 492. Topics in Linguistics.: (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl). May be elected for credit twice.; This course covers current topics in linguistics.
LING 493. Undergraduate Reading.: Permission of the concentration advisor. (1-3). (Excl). (INDEPENDENT). May be repeated for credit with permission of concentration advisor.; An independent study course for undergraduates.
LING 494. Undergraduate Reading.: Permission of the concentration advisor. (1-3). (Excl). (INDEPENDENT). May be repeated for credit with permission of concentration advisor.; An independent study course for undergraduates.
LING 495. Senior Honors Reading Course.: Permission of concentration advisor. (1-3). (Excl). (INDEPENDENT).; No description provided.
LING 496. Senior Honors Reading Course.: Permission of concentration advisor. (1-3). (Excl). (INDEPENDENT).; No description provided.
LING 505. Rhetoric.: (3). (Excl).; This course emphasizes political rhetoric, especially oratory and debate, but also includes units on advertising. law, and perhaps other institutional contexts. The objective is to understand how rhetors use language and or visual structures to influence and persuade a general public. The course includes theoretical readings from classical rhetoric, literary rhetoric, discourse analysis, and conversational analysis.
LING 512. Phonetics.: Ling. 313. (4). (Excl).; An introduction to phonetics (the study of the nature of speech sounds). The course focuses on the description of speech sounds in terms of their articulatory, acoustic, and perceptual characteristics and the production and transcription of sounds that occur in the languages of the world.
LING 513. Phonology.: Ling. 313. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; The organization of speech into the functionally distinct phonological units of particular languages. Applications of phonological analysis to English and other languages.
LING 514. Semantics and Pragmatics.: Ling. 314. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; An introduction to semantics (literal meaning) and pragmatics (contextual and inferred meaning) with emphasis on applications to grammatical analysis. Specific topics include: (1) ambiguities of structure and meaning; (2) word meaning and compositionality; and (3) quantification and logical form.
LING 515. Generative Syntax.: Ling. 315. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; In the Generative (or Chomskyan) framework of syntax, sentence structure is viewed as being generated by a formal mathematical system of rules and constraints. Some of these rules and constraints are innate and universal across languages; others are learned or "paramaterized."
LING 517 / ANTHRCUL 519 / GERMAN 517. Principles and Methods of Historical Linguistics.: Graduate standing, or permission of instructor. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; Assumptions underlying the establishment of historical relationships between languages. Techniques of internal and comparative reconstruction of related languages and types of linguistic change.
LING 518. Linguistic Typology.: Graduate standing; undergraduates with permission of department. No credit granted to those who have completed or are enrolled in Ling. 318. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; While humans appear fairly alike in physical characteristics and mental capacity, their languages (and cultures) are extremely divers. This course invites students to investigate unfamiliar languages in published descriptive grammars and relate this to contemporary typological research.
LING 519. Discourse Analysis.: (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; The study of turn-taking and conversation structure, referent status (topic and focus), information status (given/new, foregrounding); cohesion and coherence in texts, the role of belief systems (knowledge and social status) in text construction.
LING 532. Issues in Bilingualism.: Graduate standing or permission of instructor. (3). (Excl).; This course explores a number of issues arising from bilingualism – attitudes towards bilingualism; bilingual knowledge and competence; bilingual language acquisition; the social meanings associated with different codes in bi- and multi-lingual repertoires; language maintenance, shift and death.
LING 540 / AAPTIS 540. Structure of Persian and Iranian Linguistics.: Taught in English. (3). (Excl).; For students interested in Iranian, Near Eastern Languages and comparative linguistics. The objective of this course is the position of Persian within Iranic dialectology and the larger context of symbolic and adjacent language groups.
LING 541 / CMPTRSC 595 / EECS 595. Natural Language Processing.: Senior standing. (3). (Excl). (BS). CAEN lab access fee required for non-Engineering students.; A survey of syntactic and semantic theories of natural language processing, including unification-based grammars, methods of parsing, and a wide range of semantic theories from artificial intelligence as well as from philosophy of language. Programming is optional, though a project is normally required.
LING 542 / ANTHRCUL 572. Introduction to Sociolinguistics.: Ling. 514 or graduate standing. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; The study of language as a heterogeneous system. The analysis of linguistic variability in its social context and the implications of variation for language change.
LING 555. Introduction to Cognitive Grammar.: Graduate standing or permission of instructor. (3; 2 in the half-term). (Excl).; This course presents the grammar of English from a cognitive perspective, based on psychological models of concepts in the mind.

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