Determiners, pre-determiners and pre-modifiers

SECTION 2

MEANS OF SENSE CATENATION (THE NOUN PHRASE ENIGMA)

Determiners, pre-determiners and pre-modifiers

COMMENTARIES AND EXPLANATIONS

2.1.1. Determiners and pre-determiners: definitions and specifications.

Determiners form a closed set of words whose function is (1) to determine, (2) classify, or (3) limit a following noun:

e.g. What’s the nature of the problem? (1)

You made a common mistake. People like you are most prone to such errors. (2)

I don’t think I’ve ever heard of the book. What is its title? (3)

Put simply, determiners are “the little words that go with nouns to identify them in some way, to indicate where they are, or how many of them there are, or whether they are being referred to in a specific way or a general one” (H. Ritchie).

According to H. Ritchie, “you may not be familiar with the term but don’t be put off by it“.

Determiners are used all the time. Unfortunately, not always unfailingly correctly.

As we know determiners usually come before a noun or at the beginning of a noun phrase. That is, some of them stand before any pre-modifiers (such as adjectives, participles or nouns – See) in that phrase: the whole subject, a remote possibility, some definite acceptable solution, your own developed skills, these familiar names, what subject(s), which option, whose idea. This type of determiners is sometimes called central determiners. As shown in the given examples, they are articles (a, the), demonstratives (this, these, that, those), possessives (my, your, our etc.), some quantifiers (some, any, no), wh-words (what, which, whose). Central determiners are considered the most important.

There are other determiners, though, that stand before a central determiner. They show quantity, amount, multiplicity or intensity and are sometimes called quantifiers, multipliers and intensifiers accordingly.

Some quantifiers (all, both, half, either) as well as multipliers (once, twice, double) or intensifiers (such, what) come, when present, before central determiners: all your life, all the time, all the way, both hands, both John’s parents, both (the) sides, both research and business, half (of) my time, half (of) my friends (are), half a mile, half an hour, once a week, once every two months, double the number, double the amount, such a day, such nonsense. As this kind of words come before central determinersthey also have one more name - pre-determiners. This name is especially relevant when there are various words before the noun in a noun phrase as in examples (1) – (3):

Do we have to answer all the questions? (1)

If there were any other way of saying it, I’d say , believe me.

None of their humor is wanted. (2)

Can you reproduce any of the examples given? (3)

Study additional examples:

We solve problems all our life.

Certain things happen all the time.

I don’t need so much sugar. Half (of) the amount is enough.

Half (of) my time I am busy talking to people.

Half (of) my friends now live abroad.

BUT : We are to meet in half an hour.

The place is only half a mile away. (measurement and quantity)

In such a situation such behavior is not acceptable.

My colleagues are such nice people.

What a day!

What nice people they are!

double = twice as much, twice as many ( as a pre-determiner)

The value of the picture is double what it was.

There are only two computers in the lab now. We need double this number for the project.

But not when double is an adjective: a double meaning, the double trouble.

Many words have a double meaning.

The new entry form is very complicated. It gives you double trouble.

2.1. 2. Most important limitations on how to use determiners: count nouns singular, count nouns plural, non-count nouns.

1. We use determiners according to the type of a noun that affects our choice. There are three of them in this regard: count nouns singular (like problem), count nouns plural (like problems) and non-count nouns (like likelihood). Table 1 below lists the most common determiners indicating which noun classes we use them with.

Table 1

Determiners	Count singular	Count plural	Non-count	Examples
a/an; one	░			An acceptable solution now seems a long way off. Flynn is an English author. You cab get an MS after your first degree. Conferences are one way of meeting new people.
the	░	░	░	Could you tell me the way to the station? The news on the front pages of newspapers is usually important.
no article		░	░	Your colleague is pretty forthcoming, in his own way. It is good that you could see the error of your ways. (You realized that you had been behaving badly and decided to stop). Tell me your news.
all possessives like my, your, our etc.	░	░	░	There are different theories about how basic physical processes operate in the solar corona. In this chapter we will consider the definition of relevance.
this, that (demonstratives)	░		░	This book concentrates solely on grammar. Where will you be this time next year? I like this music. That text is certainly better. In that case we are going to refuse.
these, those (demonstratives)		░		Everyone is so busy these days. Today those achievements are recounted by science textbooks.
what, which, whose (refers back to people or things)	░	░	░	What journals do you read? What references or alternate texts can be used for a more traditional course on math? What good is it for me? Which way is the main campus? Which people have any influence in these circles? Whose idea is that? Whose names are mentioned? It’s an action whose purpose is rather dim.
some, any, no	░	░	░	There must be some reason for the refusal. Every time a non-standard speaker uses any non-standard grammar, they are, to whatever extent, downgraded. Did they show any interest in your research? – No, they showed no interest at all. .
every	░	░		They read every page of the contract carefully (thinking of the pages together in the contract, closer to all). The exam is given every year. Also: She seems to remember every single phone number. (Used to emphasize all). Also for time and distance: Elections are held every five years. ( time intervals) The phone rang every few minutes. (time intervals) I had to stop at traffic lights every two hundred meters. (distance intervals)
each (of) (in positive sentences only, see none)	░			Each page of the contract is to be read carefully (thinking of the pages separately, one at a time). The exam is given each year. I remember that he had papers in each hand. They are each invited.
either, one or the other of two people or things	░			There are two courses on English offered – you can take either. Either (English) course lasts two months. We are most interested in either grammar or lexis. There are coffee machines at either end of the corridor. Accept or refuse it – you can act either way.
either of		░		Sandy does not like either of her math teachers. Either of her teachers is not / are not tolerant. I read both the books and didn’t like either of the stories very much. (in a negative statement)
neither, not one or the other of two people or things	░			Shall we arrange our meeting on Monday or Wednesday? – Sorry, neither day is acceptable. Neither of the two projects proposed is / are adequate to the ultimate goal.
neither of		░		My colleague and I work together but neither of us was /were in the lab yesterday.
none of (before a determiner)		░	░	None of my colleagues is interested. (formal) None of my colleagues are interested. (informal) None of the information is valid.
all (three or more persons or things) with nouns and pronouns	░	░	░	We are busy all day. (determiner) All (of) our students are busy. (pre-determiner) We are busy all the time. (pre-determiner) All scientists debate. (determiner)
both		░		Both large classrooms are occupied. For both these reasons we are to accept. You can’t have both ways.
half (of)	░	░	░	Half (of) the deposit on the house may get lost in line with inflation before you pay the rest. Only half (of) the money is properly deposited. Half (of) the participants arrive a few days before the conference starts.
half (measurement and quantity)	░	░		Let’s meet in half an hour. The place is not far from here. Half a mile, perhaps. It will take us half a day to get there. Half measures never work. She waited a full half-second and then spoke.
few ( shows the smallness of a number, not many, not enough)		░		There were surprisingly few questions asked after the lecture. The rule is very strict. There few exceptions to it if any. We must make the best of the few facts available. Few people understand those complicated theories. Responsible people are few and far between, you know.*
fewer		░		We have fewer classes on Friday than we do on other days. It was a big conference with no fewer than one thousand participants attending. (no fewer that = at least)
the fewest		░		The report with the fewest discrepancies in it is the best, isn’t it? Who made the fewest remarks during the discussion?
a few (a small number, but at least some)		░		Although the rule is generally observed there are a few exceptions to it. George left the company and went freelance a few years ago.
more		░	░	I have no more questions. There are a few more things to discuss now. We need two more days to complete the report.
little ( shows the smallness of the amount, not much, not enough)			░	There is little double in my mind that the grant will be terminated. We have little hope of our ideas being supported. Sorry, I’ve got little time and can’t talk now.
a little (a small amount, but at least some)			░	I’ve got a little time to think the matter over. A little more assurance at the meeting will do you good.
less ( a smaller amount, not too much) See Notes.			░	Less money is to be spent on unhealthy food. Less noise in the room is makes you less tired at the end of the day. During the term students normally have less time for fun.
least			░	This is the least support we can give for the project. Do the least work at least!
such	░	░	░	This is such a good idea. Scientists often debate the choice between successive theories. The parties to such debates see certain situations differently. I’ve never heard such nonsense!
double	░	░	░	How could they get married! He is double her age. The alternative plan will cost double this amount. Everybody will want double their salaries.
another	░	░ numbers, a few		There will be another train in a few minutes. This is another point on which my opponent and I do not see eye to eye. We need to wait another two days for the result. They are going to stay here for another few days. There’s still another 50 dollars to pay.
other	░	░		There are a few other determiners that do not fit into any specific group. The opinion of other people never interested him in the slightest degree. The other people in the room did not take notice of what was happening. You can use my other computer – I’ve got two of them. Russia is bigger that any other country in the world. I’m sure he will slip from class on some pretext or other.*

Notes.

1) In informal English many people now use less and least with plurals:

* Now that the university computer system is improved there will be less documentation problems than before.

This is still considered to be incorrect. “Fewer problems” is a form more acceptable to academic communication. .

2.1.3. Determiners order.

Determiners have different positions relative to one another. That is, we do not use them in random order. Here are some examples:

e.g. 1) All (of) our actions affect other people.

All these six pages have many mistakes.

All people need stability.

All the people you want to talk to are here.

2) Both thinking and doing are important to the solution of a problem.

Both (of) these approaches are valid.

3) What evidence is necessary to support your theory?

What kind of evidence is necessary?

Which approach would you take up?

4) Each issue is to be discussed.

Each of the issues is to be discussed.

Each individual has a chance to implement their ideas.

5) None of the information is to be lost.

None of the attempts was / were successful. (a singular verb in to be used in formalwriting)

6) Such weather is most depressing for me!

Such a nice day!

We know what we must do in such a situation.

7) I’ve been waiting for a while, another ten minutes won’t kill me.

Two more minutes, please!

Table 2

Pre-determiner (when present)	Central determiner + pre-modifier (when present) + noun modified
All (of)	our thoughtless actions	affect other people.
All	these six pages	have many mistakes.
All	people	need stability.
All	the people	… are here.
Both (of)	these approaches	are valid.
	Which approach	would you take up?
	What evidence	is necessary … ?
	What kind of evidence	is necessary … ?
	Which approach	would you take up?
Each	issue	is to be discussed.
Each of	the issues	is to be discussed.
None of	their claims	are /is adequate.
None of	the information	is to be lost.
Such	a nice day.

Pre-modifier allocation.

If you get to use more than one pre-modifier you have to put them in a particular order. The rules for pre-modifier order are very complicated, different grammars disagree about the details; that is why it is hardly possible to give exact instructions. Nevertheless, some of the most important rules are presented in Table 3. You will note that you have to deal with the string of pre-modifiers in a right-to-left order starting from the noun modified. Study the procedure given in Table 3. Mind that normally we do not use all these types of pre-modifiers at a time.

Table 3

Modifiers showing judgments and attitudes with the middle position of little, old, young [7]	Modifiers before pre-modifiers [6]	Modifiers of size, length, height [5]	Participles, color-adjectives, adjectives denoting age [4]	The adjective derived from a proper noun [3]	The noun / adjective modifier is next closest specify-ing the name already identified by (I) [2]	The item meaning consisting of, involving, relating to [ I ]
		.				This is not a legal issue, this is a social problem. The algorithm works in any number field.
This is a world social problem. A method for factoring polynomials in an algebraic number field is presented. We refer to the Einsteinian spacio-temporal universe.
This is the Russian autumn medical symposium.
These are released Russian oil trade official decisions. These are new Russian science cosmic achievements. This is a matrioshka – variegated painted Russian wooden doll.
This is a very big variegated painted Russian wooden matrioshka.
An absolutely perfect design of the device is impressive.
This is a common little problem. This is a fine old picture. He is a promising young scientist. Also when modifiers are all judgments or attitudes: The trouble was that she’d done a strange, uncharacteristic and bloody stupid thing.

ASSIGNMENTS

A) Complete the sentences using all proper pre-determiners and determiners defined by the context (including “no articles”).

e.g. A name really has … definition in terms of … words, concepts, or pictures.

A name really has no definition in terms of other words, concepts, or pictures.

1) I am not going to get involved in the conflict. … of this concerns me.

2) I don’t know those people. … of the names are familiar to me.

3) What is … central focus of your presentation?

4) What the researcher really achieves is more important than the rate of … work.

5) … teacher is a key ingredient in student learning but he or she must work with … learner in … equal partnership.

6)… experiments can take us in … number of directions. To simplify matters, we can split them into … main types: test experiments and thought experiments. … … types are valid.

7) … team leader is to challenge … … team-members to put … expertise into practice.

8) When … new knowledge is firmly embedded through … series of … experiments you can draw … conclusions about it.

9) … problem is to be viewed within … wider context.

10) In … research it isn’t easy to predict … next step or consequence.

11) … of … colleagues has some useful experience.

12) … student assembles … or … project with … help of … teacher.

13) … individual has … opportunity to implement … newly acquired skills.

14) … … … applicants is going to win the grant./ … … … applicants are going to win the grant

15) … ,,, us are (is) to join the project. Not interested.

16) Responsibility? There is … … that here, or little.

17) We always make do on … low budget of 1 million. What you want means … … amount.

18) My colleague does many things better than … people.

19) Let … … people in the room see the poster.

20) Ten … minutes of that sort of conversation was good in a sense because it meant that Katie could score …two six-minute units on her time sheet, which in turn meant a proportionate increase in Mr. Holing’s bill.

21) I think I would take … issue with you over … particular statement. (I would disagree … I would argue … )

22) Don’t make … issue of what Dillan says. The matter is not worth arguing about it.

B) Translate the following into English making use of the patterns and vocabulary of A. Mind the usage of determiners and pre-determiners.

Если вы вовлекаетесь в какой-либо проект, будьте осведомлены не только о заманчивых результатах, но и о скрытых трудностях и возможных последствиях планируемого исследования.

Что является самым главным в проекте? Собираетесь ли вы приобрести новые знания, которые будут надежно включены в арсенал науки? Сможете ли вы достичь намеченных целей и воплотить полученные результаты в жизнь? Какого рода эксперименты вы будете проводить? Который тип экспериментов кажется вам более эффективным? Потребует ли работа каких-либо вновь приобретаемых квалификаций?

На какие источники финансирования вы рассчитываете (count on)? На грант, который вы обязательно выиграете? А что, если вам придется обходиться небольшим бюджетом? На каком основании (on what account) вы будете требовать, чтобы ваши сотрудники вкладывали все свои профессиональные знания и опыт в работу? Каким образом вы будете поощрять их, чтобы они добивались результатов?

Все эти проблемы непосредственно касаются вас. Это означает соответственное возрастание (proportional increase) усилий и времени, затрачиваемых на запуск проекта launching the project). Но какой-то мере вы заработаете преимущество (score an advantage) в качестве (as) наиболее компетентного и уважаемого (best respected) игрока команды.

2.2.2. Recall all, each, either, both, what, which, whose, none (of, neither (of), one, another, (the) other (others) and such as pre-modifiers and substitutes. Complete the sentences making proper use of them.

1. A couple went by, their young daughter holding one hand … .

2. McClymonts, senior and junior, were not pleasant men to deal with. Tony could not say that he took much to … of them.

3. – You’re building a six storey block here?

– That’s right. Three flats … on the first four, two big apartments spread over the top two floors.

4. It seems a bit presumptuous starting work when you don’t actually own the site. … is it going to be?

5. … side are you on?

6. It’s not easy getting the language right. … those words to learn, … the peculiar pronunciations to master.

7. ‘We’ve been playing nice so far, … with this being your home and … . But there’s only so much slack we can cut you.’ Interesting choice of words. Ben didn’t really need the hassle … this was going to create.

8. Grill the fish for 5 minutes on … side.

9. I would prefer to get something more up-to-date, but … to his (their) own. (каждому свое, кому как)

10. There are a few facts to consider. Let’s analyze … in turn.

11. I think this man is someone completely new who … us has ever heard of.

12. There are two basic approaches to solving this kind of problems … which are a hundred percent effective.

13. There are two quite distinct grounds, of which … is much more explicit than the … . We are equally interested in … .

14. The essential characteristic of introspective data is concerned with localization: 1) it is not localized at all; 2) its localization is physically inconsistent with something the place is already occupied with. In … case, introspective data has to be regarded as not obeying the laws of physics.

15. The meanings of some words are ultimately circular, … defined in terms of … . For instance, possibility means chance, chance means opportunity, opportunity implies possibility.

16. You can operate the controls with … hand.

17. You two! Nobody’s safe around … of you!

18. My colleague and I …have strong scientific opinions and we usually disagree.

19. If you can’t decide which of the two devices you might need in the lab, why not take…?

20. Although …Britain and Australia are English-speaking countries, there are many differences between the two.

21. If there was one … loopy philanthropist in the world, why not … ?

22. The opinion of … people never interested my friend in the slightest degree. Was it really a sign of his greatness?

2.2.3. Analyze a set of synonyms given in [ ] (square brackets) after each sentence (or just one word making a set phrase or the only option). Modify the underlined noun choosing one of them as a pre-modifiers; mind proper determiners.

1. What to do next is … problem [big, serious, major].

2. … issue is whether the funding is stable. [important, key, major, big]

3. Getting papers published is now … … issue for a scholar. [thorny, vexed, difficult]

4. Food prices are … issue. [ sensitive, political]

5. … issues should get more attention. [political, social, academic, environmental]

6. There is … chance that we will win. [every, good, fair; some, little, no; slight, slim, outside; fifty-fifty]

7. We never get … chance to relax these days. [any, slight, slim, outside]

8. Taxes are … necessity. [economic, practical, regrettable]

9. Our getting those premises now looks like … possibility. [strong, real, distinct]

10. A discovery like that is … possibility. [remote, faint]

11. The study raises … possibility that the theory is wrong or at least incomplete. [the, - ]

12. The project has … probability of making profits. [high, strong]

13. In … probability we will make mistakes. [all]

14. This is … procedure for grant application. [normal, standard, proper, correct]

15. It takes hard work and … ability to make it as a researcher. [ natural, great]

16. He is a scientist of … ability. [great, exceptional, remarkable].

17. It’s no easy matter to teach students in … classes. [mixed ability]

18. The country’s … capability is really limited. [manufacturing, military, nuclear]

19. There can be … powers: powers …, …, …, … powers. [various, powers of speech, powers of observation, ~ of concentration, ~ of persuasion; mental ~, magical ~ etc.]

20. There is … demand for fuel. [huge, great, strong].

21. Mr. D. is …lecturer, much in demand. [successful, popular]

22. That was quite … attempt. [successful]

23. What … attempt at humor! [feeble]

24. In … attempt to obtain some info, we contacted the department. [ in an attempt]

25. The author offers … reasons for rejecting this theory. [compelling]

26. You must have … reason to do that. [good, compelling, personal].

27. For … reasons, we changed the names. [obvious, simple, personal, sentimental]

28. Some people have … desire to visit this country. [ strong, overwhelming, burning]

29. The boss is full of … intentions. [ good, best ]

30. A high level of … aspiration is typical of every …leader. [political, academic ]

31. If one is careless with their expenses they are sure to face … financialcollapse. ( inevitable, unavoidable, inescapable)

2.2.4. a) Complete the following utterances using hints. Make use of proper pre- and central determiners, pre-modifiers and prepositional groups.

b) Comment on the situation described in every item according to how you see it.

e.g. It is no easy matter to find a parking place near your house. Actually, it’s … (major problem, big cities).

A) You reproduce a full statement saying: … Actually, it’s a major problem of all big cities.

B) You comment saying: Quite so. It’s very hard to find a parking space downtown.

1. The chronic lack of equipment is … ( permanent issue).

2. Reporting to the management on our progress is … ( regrettable necessity, setback for our research team).

3. The study raises … that one’s viewpoint on fundamentals is very nearly unchanged. ( possibility)

4. … , we will win. Actually, I’m almost sure of it. (probability)

5. I welcome … to sketch needed revisions and to comment on reiterated criticism. (chance)

6. Several of … … in the article cluster about the concept of a nanobot. (key, problems)

Note: in stories and films, nanobot is a machine that can move and perform jobs, but is so small that it cannot be seen unless you use some special equipment.

7. … … we are to be careful saying things. (obvious, reasons)

8. There is … for chairs on the premises, I must say. (strong, demand)

9. … …. quickly discloses the shortages of the system (control, procedure).

10. The scientist’s … to think in an original way is much … … . . (capacity, demand)

11. Professor is famous for his remarkable … (power, persuasion).

12. It is … … … to make a subjective and irrational enterprise of science. (obvious / blatant, attempt)

13. With … of acquiring systematic, time-tested and corrigible knowledge we study hard. (intension)

14. The question is whether the project matches … … of the students. (aspirations)

15. Most people know pretty well nothing about grammar and are, … , bad at it. (probability)

Read and do tasks (A) - ( ) given below.

Phthalic acid esters usually called phthalate esters or just phthalates, are a group of chemicals used in a wide range of consumer goods. Thus, they are commercially important.

World production of these compounds is estimated to be several million tons per year, which is the first indicator of their great social and economic significance. They have a wide variety of uses and hence, are an important part of our lives. Phthalates of low molecular weight, such as dimethyl or diethyl phthalates, are widely used in cosmetics and personal care products. Thus DMP and DEP allow perfume fragrances to be evaporated more slowly making the scent linger longer, and a small amount of DBP (di-n-butyl phthalate) makes nail polish chip-resistant. Longer phthalate molecules have wide application as plasticizers in the polymer industry to improve flexibility, workability, and general handling properties. About 80% of all phthalates are used for this purpose. The stability, fluidity and low volatility of these compounds make them very suitable for manufacturing PVC and other resins. They act as lubricants among the long polymer molecules permitting them to slip and slide against one another. The content of phthalates in a finished plastic product is in the range of 10 – 60% by weight.

As phthalates are not chemically bound in the plastics but remain present as a freely mobile and leachable phase, they can be lost from soft plastic over time and released to the environment during the production and manufacture or use of the products in which they are present. Their widespread applications mean that they are now ubiquitous environmental contaminants. Phthalates are often found in water, soil, air, food products and the human body. This causes extensive testing of phthalates because of their possible health effects on humans or damage to the environment.

The toxicity of phthalates is the subject of discussion and public concern. The commercial importance of phthalates is coupled to the debate over their impact on human health and the environment. While some groups assert that some phthalates pose a threat to human health, other groups, usually associated with producers of phthalates, argue that the risk posed by these compounds is minimal since dosage levels are low. But some adverse health effects are observed and confirmed in numerous animal tests. Although many studies are carried out to investigate the possible toxicity of phthalates there remain questions about health effects of these compounds.

(A) Pronounce some words we would seldom - or never - look up:

phthalic [(f)θælık], phthalic acid, phthalate, phthalate ester, molecule [΄mOlıֽkju:l] , molecular [m@΄lekjul@], polymer dimethyl [daı΄meθıl] phthalates (DMP) , diethyl [daı΄eθıl] phthalates (DEP), di-n-butyl [΄bju:tıl] phthalate (DBP), plastic, plasticizer, polymer molecule, polymer industry, PVC, product, finished plastic product, compound, chemical, chemically

associate, associated, association

commerce, commercial, commercially

manufacture [ֽmænju΄fæk¶@ (r)], manufactured

social, society

product, production

toxic, toxicity

(B) Choose a proper substitute for the underlined words and word groups.

1. For a material (1) to be financially rewarding (2), it is to be utilized in (3) a large assortment (4) of things for personal and home use (5).

(1) A. substantive B. substance C. substitute D. substitution

(2) A. commercially available B. commercially viable C. commercially necessary D. commercially important

(3) applied to B. appointed by C. approved of D. appropriated by

(4) a high rank B. a familiar ring C. a wide range D. a random number

(5) consumer goods B. consumables C. compounds D. goods

2. The amount of a product manufactured (1) per year is the first indicator of its great social and economic significance (2).

(1) A. produced B. provided C. professed D. projected

(2) A. signature B. imposition C. signification D. importance

3. Phthalates have a widevariety (1) of uses.

(1) A. considerable differences in number B. great variegation C. big collection of different means D. large degree of changeability

(2) A. appointments B. applications C. approximations D. appeals

4. DMP and DEP allow (1) a perfume fragrance (2) to be evaporated (3) more slowly making the scent (4) linger (5) longer.

(1) A. permit B. perceive C. perfect D. perfume

(2) A. a small piece of a larger object B. a break or crack in a substance C. a substance burned to produce a nice smell D. sweet smell

(3) A. evacuated B. vaporized C. evaluated D. variegated

(4) A. small B. sign C. smell D. smash

(5) A. make a longer connection between DMP and DEP B. leave for a long time C. last for a long time D. get longer

5. Phthalates are used in the polymer industry to improve flexibility (1), workability, and general handling properties (2).

(1) A. (ready) capability for being turned or twisted B. ability to deal with a changing situation C. ability to move easily D. changeable quality

(2) A. qualities of control B. motives for being held with care

C. qualities for being treated or processed D. qualities of being able to act successfully

6. The stability, fluidity (1) and low volatility (2) of phthalates make them very suitable for manufacturing PVC.

(1) A. the state or degree of being fluid B. the physical property of (a substance) which enables it to flow C. easy adaptability D. flexibility

(2) A. ability of a liquid to change easily into gas B. ability to change suddenly C. unstableness

D. changeability

7. Phthalates act as lubricants among the long polymer molecules permitting them to slip and slide against one another.

A. substances reducing friction B. substances acting as catalysts C. substances improving quality

D. contaminants

8. The content of phthalates in a finished plastic product is in the range of 10 – 60% by weight.

A. of the same general type B. within particular fixed limits C. to a limited extent D. to a large degree

9. Phthalates are now ubiquitous environmental contaminants.

A. common B. unique C. unearthly D. omnipresent

(C). Transform modifiers into full passive predicates making the necessary changes coupled with the meaning of the entire statement.

e.g. Phthalic acid esters usually called phthalate esters or just phthalates, are a group of chemicals.

Phthalic acid esters are usually called phthalate esters or just phthalates. They form a group of chemicals.

(1) Phthalates used in a wide range of consumer goods are commercially important.

(2) World production of these compounds estimated to be several million tons per year is the first indicator of their great of their significance.

(3) Phthalates used in cosmetics and personal care products are normally of low molecular weight.

(4) Perfume fragrances evaporated more slowly make the scent linger longer. (If … )

(5) Phthalates chemically unbound in the plastics remain present as a freely mobile and leachable phase.

(6) Phthalates lost from soft plastic over time and released to the environment turn into environmental contaminants.

(7) Phthalates found in water, soil, air, food products and the human body pose a threat to human health.

(8) The commercial importance of phthalates coupled to the debate over their impact on human health and the environment makes it a matter of public concern.

(9) Some experts, usually associated with producers of phthalates, argue that the substances pose the minimal risk of damage.

(10) According to some groups of experts, the risk posed by these compounds is minimal. ( … but it is … )

(11) Many studies carried out to investigate the possible toxicity of phthalates have not given any simple answer.

D.

TEXT CONCORDANCE

agreement in case, number and gender -согласование по падежу, числу и роду (грамм.)

annotate - аннотировать, добавлять краткие комментарии к тексту для объяснения тех или иных фрагментов (e.g. an annotated edition of ‘Othello’); отмечать, размечать

annotated corpus - размеченный корпус, аннотированный корпус

API (Application Program Interface) -интерфейс прикладных программ

application domain -область применения

automatically acquitted models -автоматически полученные модели

corpus - собрание, совокупность, множество, коллекция, корпус; pl. corpuses or corpora

crawling- сканирование, «обход» серверов с помощью программного робота (crawler, краулера, «паука») с целью помещения доступных документов в базу данных поисковой системы

disambiguated- лишенный неоднозначности, со снятой неоднозначностью

domain mismatch- несоответствие областей

hard-coded linguistic rules - жестко кодируемые лингвистические правила

hard constraints - жесткие ограничения

held-out portion - установленная выборка, тестовая выборка

graded constraints - градиентные ограничения

lemma - инвариантная (базовая) форме слова, отвлеченная от грамматических вариаций (e.g. the verb “sing” or “to sing”, in abstraction from the varying word forms sing, sings, sang, sung, singing).

lemmatization - лемматизация - приведение слова к лемме - базовой инвариантной форме

lemmatize - приводить слово к базовой инвариантной форме - лемме

long- distance dependencies - отдаленные зависимости

machine learning - машинное обучение, обучение машины (модели, системы)

natural language processing (NLP) - обработка естественного языка

nominative singular masculine noun - существительное мужского рода единственного числа в именительном падеже

pipeline - конвейер, непрерывная последовательность, цепь

pre-tokenized text - предварительно разбитый (на предложения, слова) текст

problem of unknown knowns - проблема неизвестных известных

syntactic parsing - синтаксический разбор, ~ анализ

tag - тег, маркер, метка

tag label - маркер тега

tag labeling - разметка тегов

tagger - теггер ( a piece of software that adds identifying or classifying tags to pieces of text or data)

tagging - разметка; part-of-speech tagging (POS) - частеречная разметка

training data - обучающие данные

training process - процесс обучения (модели)

training set -обучающая выборка

trigram -триграмма

DISCUSSION ISSUES

1) Fred Jelinek claimed that every time he fired a linguist the results of speech recognition went up.

What does the author mean saying that? What is the author’s opinion of linguistic knowledge functionality? Do you hold the same opinion on the issue at stake?

2) Why is computer-aided speech recognition in the mainstream of today’s research? Is this a recurrent theme in numerous scientific publications?

3) What are the two basic approaches to natural language computer processing described in the article? Which seems more efficient to you?

4) Does natural language computer processing correlate with any basics of human speech recognition? What kind of mental mechanisms prevail in human foreign language acquisition? Those based on hard-stated linguistic rules explicitly created by teachers? Those based on working through massive language corpora, both annotated and raw?

5) What are some basic procedures for designing a statistical language processing method?

Here is some info on the point.

Each procedure can be described in the following lines:

a) taking an annotated text corpus;

b) designing a simplified representation of annotations to convert the corpus into the format suitable for the learning tool to de used;

c) learning a model in several iterations to tune the learning parameters.

“Thus, in this approach the human efforts are invested into creating annotated corpora, representing data and designing machine learning algorithms, while the machine is able to learn the links between the data. In the end, linguistic knowledge is induced from annotated corpora rather than explicitly hand-crafted by linguists”. (See the text above).

Are there entirely statistical methods applied to building tools for language processing? Account for the difference between text annotation and explicit formulation of language rules. Which approach is closer to the natural process of human language acquisition?

6) According to computer experts, annotating texts implies tagging - assigning a label (tag) to each word concerned. Until the end of the 19980s this task had been usually performed by sets of carefully crafted rules for disambiguating contexts, e.g. for detecting contexts in which the form ‘known’ is a participle or a noun. Ken Church was one of the first researchers to show the possibility of abandoning the rules and relying exclusively on annotated data. In the frame of statistical approaches, tagging implies automatic derivation of decision trees or machine learning.

7) What kind of issues do researchers encounter with statistical approaches to natural language processing? What are the main advantages of using statistical methods for natural language processing?

Practice vocabulary.

A)Review the meanings:

concern = feeling of worry : have/ express/ voice concern (about/ over / at)

cause concern / be a cause of concern

growing / widespread concern

a matter of concern

important environmental concerns

main / major concerns

raise concerns

= something

important: main/primary/ major concern

= responsibility: be one’s concern

(singular)

= care with concern

(singular) with genuine concern

= absence of be of no concern of somebody

responsibility or

need to become

involved

B) Complete the sentences choosing a proper equivalent:

1) The Net advertisers’ … is how to make users click through to them.

A. some concern B. concerns C. primary concern D. a cause of concern

2) There is … (1) that half of every ad budget is regularly wasted. That raises important … (2) among advertisers.

(1) A. some concern B. concerns C. main concern D. raised concerns

(2) A. environmental concerns B. domestic concerns C. political concerns D. commercial concerns

3) My … is to gain my degree by the end of the course.

A. cause of concern B. matter of concern C. concerns D. major concern

4) Cognitive science considering no mental states raises some important … about its status.

A. conceptual concerns B. growing concerns C. causing concerns D. primary concerns

5) The toxicity of various contaminants released into the environment is becoming … .

A. concerns B. causing concerns C. a matter of great concern D. a matter of some concern

6) The lawyers’ … is to protect the rights of law-abiding people in the first place.

A. a matter of great concern B major concern C. concerns D. a cause for concern

7) If you do not submit your paper in time, it is … .

A. your concern B. your adviser’s concern C. somebody else’s concern D. no concern of yours

8) One’s private life is … members of the public.

A. a matter of great concern B. a cause of concern C. no concern of D. no concern

9) My colleague looked sympathetic and listened with … .

A. a cause of concern B. genuine concern C. with primary concern D. a matter of great concern

SECTION 2

MEANS OF SENSE CATENATION (THE NOUN PHRASE ENIGMA)

Determiners, pre-determiners and pre-modifiers