Sumtnary.-This study examines the frequency of letters of the alphabet as a function of their origin in writing or in transcriptions of speech. Data were derived from nvo sources, both in English. One source was from a previous publication and included written and speech samples of approximarely 2,400 words each from six subjects. A second source derived from a previous study that developed an estimate of English letter frequencies using a sample of 320,780 words from an article by Whissell (1998). The combined results showed remarkable consistency of English letter frequencies across different types of sources, providing further evidence of the stability of English letter frequencies.
Un número creciente de alumnos se está incorporando a la educación superior en Chile. Destacan entre ellos los jóvenes provenientes de sectores socioeconómicos más modestos, los que, en condiciones de notoria precariedad, deben competir con sus compañeros de sectores socioeconómicos acomodados. Ello atenta en contra de sus posibilidades de finalizar sus estudios. Estos jóvenes representan, sin embargo, la capacidad del sistema de promover la movilidad social, por lo que las instituciones de educación superior deben prestarles especial atención y apoyo. La identificación de estos jóvenes mediante indicadores de vulnerabilidad como el que se propone, además de la generación de acciones específicas para su protección, incorpora en la Universidad el sentido de la equidad, y favoreciendo su retención, impulsa la movilidad social y el desarrollo del país.
Based on the "utilitarian core hypothesis" that the most common words of a language develop early and resist change, the current exploratory study examined three test cases to suggest what happens to the common core of a language when its speakers are conquered. Whissell (1998) raised this issue by implication through demonstrating that the common core of English is largely Anglo-Saxon and thus survived the Norman Conquest. The notion that unique merits of English accounted for its success has a long history dating at least to Verstegan (1605/1976). We suggested that there are also instances of conquest in history illustrating the persistence of other languages despite the political subjugation of their speakers. Test cases included, in addition to the Norman Conquest of England, the Arab-Berber Conquest of most of the Iberian Peninsula, and Russian domination of modern Uzbekistan. The combined results suggest that persistence of a utilitarian core despite conquest is not an isolated instance. As a phenomenon it offers a more parsimonious account than do appeals to the special merits of English, Spanish, or Modern Uzbek. We have integrated these findings within a psychological framework pertaining to language use and change.
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