MA Linguistics / Course details

This course unit is a hands-on exploration of the production and perception of speech sounds, with a focus on experimental methodology. We’ll cover the basic principles governing the relationship between articulation and acoustics, looking at the source of sound waves in the larynx and how that sound source is shaped by the vocal tract. Students will learn how to measure a variety ofacoustic properties of speech, and how those measurements can be used as a tool to investigate questions in phonology, sociolinguistics, and second language acquisition. We’ll also explore how speech sound are perceived, and what factors influence the relationship between the acoustic signal and what the listener hears.

The aim of this course unit is to:

• Provide a strong foundation in the techniques involved in phonetic analysis.

Students will acquire an understanding of:

• Themain concepts employed in the acoustic analysis of speech sounds.
• The design of phonetic experiments.
• The use of phonetic analysis as a tool to answer broader research questions

Representative examples of topics covered:

• · The Larynx
• · Stops and Fricatives
• · The Source-Filter Model
• · Vowel Quality
• · Liquids and Nasals
• · What is Sonority?
• · Categorical Perception
• · Coarticulation
• · The Phonology-Phonetics Interface
• · Phonetics in Neurolinguistics
• · Forensic Phonetics

Integrated lecture and seminar content, focusing on a discovery-based approach to the material.

Readings, software tutorials, and additional exercises on Canvas.

Separate MA-specific sessions for coursework project.

• Understand therelationship between articulation, acoustic signal, and perception of speech sounds.
• Understand the relationship between phonetic measurements and hypotheses inphonology, sociolinguistics, and second language acquisition.

• Pose well-formed research questions.
• Read and interpret scientific articles.
• Answer theoretical questions using scientific evidence and sound reasoning.

• Measure the acoustic properties of speech relevant for answering research questions inlinguistics.
• Design and carry out scientific experiments.
• Analyse and interpret experimental data

• Pose well-formed research questions.
• Perform basic quantitative analysis and visualisation of data.
• Write a scientific report.

• Johnson, Keith. 2003. Acoustic and Auditory Phonetics, 2nd edition (or 3rd edition). Oxford: Blackwell.
• Ladefoged, Peter. 2003. Phonetic Data Analysis. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Ladefoged, Peter. 2005. Vowels and Consonants, 2nd edition. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Hayward, Katrina. 2000. Experimental Phonetics. Harlow: Pearson.
• Ladefoged, Peter. 1996. Elements of Acoustic Phonetics, 2nd edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.