Language acquistion essays

Language acquistion essays Language acquisition is the process of learning a native or a second language. Although how children learn to speak is not perfectly understood, most explanations involve both the observation that children copy what they hear and the inference that human beings have a natural aptitude for understanding grammar. Children usually learn the sounds and vocabulary of their native language through imitation, and grammar is seldom taught to them; that they rapidly acquire the ability to speak grammatically. This supports the theory of Noam Chomsky (1959). that children are able to learn the grammar of a particular language because all intelligible languages are founded on a deep structure of universal grammatical rules that corresponds to an innate capacity of the human brain. Adults learning a second language pass through some of the same stages, as do children learning their native language. In the first part of this paper I will describe the process of language acquisition. The second part will review how infants respond to speech. Language is multifaceted. It contains both verbal and non-verbal aspects that children seem to acquire quickly. Before birth virtually all the neurons (nerve cells) are formed, and they migrate into their proper locations in the brain in the infant. When a baby is born, it can see and hear and smell and respond to touch, but only dimly. The brain stem, a primitive region that controls vital functions like heartbeat and breathing, has completed its wiring. Elsewhere the connections between neurons are wispy and weak. But over the first few months of life, the brain's higher centers explode with new synapses. This helps an infant to be biologically prepared to face the stages of language acquisition. According to the textbook Child Development: A Thematic Approach, 3rd Edition (D. Bukatko & M.W. Daehler, 1996, p. 252) there are four main components to language acquisition. These components are phono...

Rating Minerals on Mohs Scale of Hardness

Rating Minerals on Mohs Scale of Hardness Mohs hardness scale was devised in 1812 by Friedrich Mohs and has been the same ever since, making it the oldest standard scale in geology. It is also perhaps the most useful single test for identifying and  describing minerals.  You use the Mohs hardness scale by testing an unknown mineral against one of the standard minerals. Whichever one scratches the other is harder, and if both scratch each other they are the same hardness. Understanding Mohs Hardness Scale The Mohs scale of hardness uses half-numbers, but nothing more precise for in-between hardnesses. For instance,  dolomite, which scratches calcite but not fluorite, has a Mohs hardness of 3 ½ or 3.5.   Mohs Hardness Mineral Name Chemical Formula 1 Talc Mg3Si4O10(OH)2 2 Gypsum CaSO4 ·2H2O 3 Calcite CaCO3 4 Fluorite CaF2 5 Apatite Ca5(PO4)3(F,Cl,OH) 6 Feldspar KAlSi3O8 – NaAlSi3O8 – CaAl2Si2O8 7 Quartz SiO2 8 Topaz Al2SiO4(F,OH)2 9 Corundum Al2O3 10 Diamond C There are a few handy objects that also help in using this scale. A fingernail is 2 ½, a penny (actually, any current U.S. coin) is just under 3, a knife blade is 5 ½, glass is 5 ½Ã‚  and a good steel file is 6 ½.  Common sandpaper uses artificial corundum and is hardness 9; garnet paper is 7 ½. Many  geologists just use a small kit featuring 9 standard  minerals and some of the above-mentioned objects; with the exception of diamond, all of the minerals on the scale are fairly common and inexpensive.  If you want to avoid the rare chance of a mineral impurity skewing your results (and dont mind spending some extra money), there are sets of hardness picks available specifically for the Mohs scale.   The Mohs scale is an ordinal scale, meaning that it is  not proportional.  In terms of absolute hardness, diamond (Mohs hardness 10) is actually four times harder than corundum (Mohs hardness 9) and six times harder than topaz (Mohs hardness 8).  For a field geologist, the scale works great.  A professional mineralogist or metallurgist, however, might obtain absolute hardness by using a  sclerometer, which microscopically measures the width of a scratch made by a diamond.   Mineral Name Mohs Hardness Absolute Hardness Talc 1 1 Gypsum 2 2 Calcite 3 9 Fluorite 4 21 Apatite 5 48 Feldspar 6 72 Quartz 7 100 Topaz 8 200 Corundum 9 400 Diamond 10 1500 Mohs hardness is just one aspect of identifying minerals. You also need to consider luster, cleavage, crystalline form, color, and rock type to zero in on an exact identification. See this step-by-step guide to mineral identification to learn more. A minerals hardness is a reflection of its molecular structure - the spacing of the various atoms and the strength of the chemical bonds between them. The manufacture of Gorilla Glass used in smartphones, which is nearly hardness 9, is a good example of how this aspect of chemistry is related to hardness. Hardness is also an important consideration in gemstones. Dont rely on the Mohs scale to test rocks; it is strictly for minerals. The hardness of a rock depends on the exact minerals that make it up, particularly the mineral that cements it together. Edited by Brooks Mitchell