Journal of Undergraduate Research

Jonathan Dehdari and Dr. Deryle Lonsdale, Linguistics The Persian language, or Farsi, stands in a unique position in the international scene for political, religious, and historical reasons. With over 60 million speakers in Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan, interest has been growing lately in the West in using current technologies to better manipulate information in Farsi. […]

Aric Bills and Dr. Deryle Lonsdale, Linguistics and English Language Many language educators have envisioned computer systems capable of providing language learners with intelligent spoken interaction in the target language. Although we can’t expect to see a fully conversant computer for years to come, there are several resources available which can be used to make […]

Rebecca J. Adams and Dr. Cynthia L. Hallen, Linguistics Swiss German is the term for the group of Germanic dialects found in Switzerland. They form a sister language to High, or standard, German. They vary significantly from standard German in phonology, syntax, and in semantics . My research project on Swiss German was divided into […]

Aaron M. Waldrip and Dr. Cynthia Hallen, Linguistics Upon arriving in the city I couldn’t help but notice the barrenness of my surroundings. Sitting at approximately 12,500 feet above sea level, the city of El Alto in La Paz, Bolivia leaves a distinct impression upon your eyes, nose, and particularly your lungs. Your eyes see […]

Nicholas A. Stetich and Dr. Deryle Lonsdale, Linguistics and English Language Although it is often repeated, perhaps to the point of becoming cliché, we live in an age of information. Information is readily available, and in a variety of formats, especially electronic formats. Our ability to digitize data, or make it available for computer access, […]

Coogan S. Rencz and Dr. Mentor-Cynthia Hallen, Linguistics Informing ourselves through comparison is a natural process. We seldom make decisions without comparing a few options. We evaluate the quality of everything from artistic techniques, to computers, to pets based on comparisons. Through the humbling process of trial and error we learn from our mistakes. We […]

Jonathan McCollum and Dr. David Bowie, Linguistics Language is an ever changing method of communication. Linguists, in their systematic studies of languages, attempt to explain the changes that modify and sometimes eliminate languages altogether. Much research has been employed to discover the methods that keep language continually evolving. Mary S. MacKeracher, at the University of […]

Deryl Keith Hatch and Dr. Deryle Lonsdale, Linguistics and English Language In the early twentieth century, throngs of male Greek immigrants came to Utah. They left their homeland seeking to save their families from impending poverty and to escape draft by the Greek and Turkish armies.1 The jobs they took in Utah mines, smelters, and […]

Jessica Gibson and Professor Lynn Henrichsen, Linguistics The Problem: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a growing, worldwide church. Thus, the members speak a variety of languages and not just English. Consequently, problems in communication arise such as, contact with church administrators, LDS publications, and unity among church members within a ward. There […]

Jonathan Dehdari and Dr. Deryle Lonsdale, Linguistics Soar is a general cognitive architecture for developing systems that exhibit intelligent behavior. Researchers all over the world, both from the fields of artificial intelligence and cognitive science, are using Soar for a variety of tasks. Psychologists, AI game developers, linguists, and others interested in cognitive modeling use […]