Additive Particles in Romance and Germanic Languages: Are They Really Similar?

The starting point of this paper is the observation of an unequal frequency of the additive particle auch in German as compared to the paucity of its French counterpart aussi, in L1 and L2 developmental data as well as in adult native speakers' production, which leads to an investigation of the reasons for the observed difference in language use. The paper brings together findings on the structure and discourse integration of utterances containing additive particles (translation equivalents of also) in written sources from French and German and in oral production data from speakers of French and Italian, German and Dutch. Next to data from native speakers, developmental data from learners of French and German (as L1 and L2) are shown to be relevant sources of information about the integration of the optional particles into utterances and at the discourse level. The developmental data reveal a difference between Romance and Germanic languages, concerning not only the frequency of additive particles, but also their interaction with early markers of assertion: auch/ook function as precursors of the assertive value, in competition with the expression of assertion through finiteness, whereas no such interaction is attested for aussi/anche. A comparison of native speakers' preferential choices concerning the information unit highlighted to enhance discourse cohesion confirms the differences between the two language families: speakers of Germanic languages preferentially use particles and Verum Focus, i. e. anaphoric links operating on the assertion value of the relevant utterances, whereas speakers of Romance languages choose anaphoric links operating on the utterance's descriptive content (entities and predicate). Although additive particles across languages share a similar basic meaning, only the Germanic ones are integrated in a system of assertion-related items that push their speakers to apply a discourse perspective oriented towards a comparison of assertions

L'acquisition de la finitude en allemand L2 à différents âges

Ultimate attainment in adult second language learners often differs tremendously from the end state typically achieved by young children learning their first language (L1) or a second language (L2). The research summarized in this article concentrates on developmental steps and orders of acquisition attested in learners of different ages. Findings from a longitudinal study concerned with the acquisition of verbal morpho-syntax in German as an L2 by two young Russian learners (8 and 14 years old) are compared to findings from the acquisition of the same target language by younger children and by untutored adult learners. The study focuses on the acquisition of verbal morphology, the role of auxiliary verbs and the position of finite and non finite verbs in relation to negation and additive scope particles

Ein neues, unkompliziert auszuführendes Verfahren zur Bestimmung kleiner Konzentrationen an Wasser in organischen Lösungsmitteln

A new procedure for the determination of water (even in trace amounts) in organic solvents is described. The solvatochromism of the pyridiniumphenol betaine, E T30, determined by a simple UV-absorption measurement, together with a two-parameter equation, permits an exact determination. The procedure is rapid and is, therefore, an alternative to the Karl-Fischer titration

Oxaloacetate decarboxylase of Archaeoglobus fulgidus: cloning of genes and expression in Escherichia coli

Archaeoglobus fulgidus harbors three consecutive and one distantly located gene with similarity to the oxaloacetate decarboxylase Na+ pump of Klebsiella pneumoniae (KpOadGAB). The water-soluble carboxyltransferase (AfOadA) and the biotin protein (AfOadC) were readily synthesized in Escherichia coli, but the membrane-bound subunits AfOadB and AfOadG were not. AfOadA was affinity purified from inclusion bodies after refolding and AfOadC was affinity purified from the cytosol. Isolated AfOadA catalyzed the carboxyltransfer from [4-14C]-oxaloacetate to the prosthetic biotin group of AfOadC or the corresponding biotin domain of KpOadA. Conversely, the carboxyltransferase domain of KpOadA exhibited catalytic activity not only with its pertinent biotin domain but also with AfOad

When contrasting polarity, the Dutch use particles, Germans intonation

This study compares how Dutch and German, two closely related languages, signal a shift from a negative to a positive polarity in two contexts, when contrasting the polarity relative to a different topic situation (In my picture the man washes the car following after In my picture the man does not wash the car, henceforth polarity contrast) and when correcting the polarity of a proposition (The man washes the car following after The man does not wash the car, henceforth polarity correction). Production data show that in both contexts German speakers produced Verum focus (i.e., a high-falling pitch accent on the finite verb), while Dutch speakers mostly used the accented affirmative particle wel. This shows that even lexically and syntactically close languages behave differently when it comes to signalling certain pragmatic functions. Furthermore, we found that in polarity correction contexts, both affirmative particles and Verum focus were realized with stronger prosodic prominence. This difference was found in both languages and might be due to a secondary (syntagmatic) effect of the information structure of the utterance (absence or presence of a contrastive topic)

A Simple, Quick, and Precise Procedure for the Determination of Water in Organic Solvents

A procedure for the UV/VIS-spectroscopic determination of water by the use of a solvatochromic pyridiniumphenolate betaine is given. The water content of organic solvents is calculated by a two parameter equation from λmax of the dye. A typical, detection limit is of the order of 1 mg in 1 ml solvent for routine spectrometers. The parameters for the determination of water are given for a number of commonly used solvents

Cellular localisation by immunolabelling and transmission electron microscopy of oxaloacetate decarboxylase or its individual subunits synthesised in Escherichia coli

The genes oadGAB encoding the oxaloacetate decarboxylase γ, α and β-subunits from Klebsiella pneumoniae were expressed in Escherichia coli. Using different expression vectors, the entire enzyme or its individual subunits were synthesised. The expression was evidenced immunologically in whole cells with polyclonal antibodies raised against the purified oxaloacetate decarboxylase. The expressed α-subunit or a combination of a and β-subunits were shown to reside in the cytoplasm, while the entire oxaloacetate decarboxylase or a γα-complex were located mostly in the cytoplasmic membrane. Interestingly, overexpression of the γα-complex or the entire oxaloacetate decarboxylase in E. coli led to a significant immunogold labelling in the cytoplasm, indicating that the a-subunit was not completely complexed to the membrane-bound γ or βγ-subunit