No abstract

No abstract

This article provides experimental evidence for the role of lexically specific representations in the processing of passive sentences and considerable education-related differences in comprehension of the passive construction. The experiment measured response time and decision accuracy of participants with high and low academic attainment using an online task that compared processing and comprehension of active and passive sentences containing verbs strongly associated with the passive and active constructions, as determined by collostructional analysis. As predicted by usage-based accounts, participants' performance was influenced by frequency (both groups processed actives faster than passives; the low academic attainment participants also made significantly more errors on passive sentences) and lexical specificity (i.e., processing of passives was slower with verbs strongly associated with the active). Contra to proposals made by Dąbrowska and Street (2006), the results suggest that all participants have verb-specific as well as verb-general representations, but that the latter are not as entrenched in the participants with low academic attainment, resulting in less reliable performance. The results also show no evidence of a speed-accuracy trade-off, making alternative accounts of the results (e.g., those of two-stage processing models, such as Townsend & Bever, 2001) problematic.Most linguists implicitly or explicitly assume that all first language learners converge on the same grammar (see, e.g

Reading comprehension is influenced by sources of variance associated with the reader and the task. To gain insight into the complex interplay of multiple sources of influence, we employed crossed random-effects item response models. These models allowed us to simultaneously examine the degree to which variables related to the type of passage and student characteristics influenced students’ (n = 94; mean age = 11.97 years) performance on two indicators of reading comprehension: different types of comprehension questions and passage fluency. We found that variables related to word recognition, language, and executive function were influential across various types of passages and comprehension questions and also predicted a reader’s passage fluency. Further, an exploratory analysis of two-way interaction effects was conducted. Results suggest that understanding the relative influence of passage, question, and student variables has implications for identifying struggling readers and designing interventions to address their individual needs.

This is the native speaker that the non-native speaker outperformed: Individual, education-related differences in the processing and interpretation of Object Relative Clauses by native and non-native speakers of English. Language Sciences, 59. pp. 192-203.

No abstract

The accumulation and release of [3H]‐propranolol and [3H]‐atenolol were examined in synaptosomes from rat cerebral cortex. Synaptosomes accumulated 20 pmol propranolol and 0.6 pmol atenolol mg−1 protein when incubated at 30°C with radiolabeled drugs (0.1 μm). Exposure of propranolol‐loaded synaptosomes to elevated K+, Rb+ or Cs+ evoked a concentration‐dependent increase in propranolol efflux. The action of these ions in releasing propranolol was highly correlated with their ability to produce synaptosomal membrane depolarization, as estimated with the voltage‐sensitive dye diS‐C3‐(5). Elevated K+ also promoted atenolol release from synaptosomes in a concentration‐dependent manner. Veratridine (10 μm) released propranolol and atenolol from synaptosomes and these effects were antagonized by tetrodotoxin (1 μm). Under Ca2+‐free conditions, K+‐induced release of propranolol was reduced by 37% and atenolol release was diminished by 68%. The results support the concept that both polar and non‐polar β‐adrenoceptor blocking drugs may be accumulated by nerve endings for release by membrane depolarization and suggest that neural storage and release of these molecules may influence their concentrations at localized sites of action.

No abstract