Changes in syllable magnitude and timing due to repeated correction

Abstract

In a semi-spontaneous conversational setting, subjects were made to repeat the same correction of one digit in a three-digit sequence consisting of “five” or “nine” followed by “Pine Street”. Articulatory and acoustic signals were recorded by the University of Wisconsin Microbeam Facility for four speakers of American English. By analyzing jaw movements, syllable magnitude and time values were evaluated, to represent the rhythmic organization of the utterance by a linear string of syllable pulses. Preliminary results suggest that not only does the magnitude of the corrected syllable increase by the correction of a digit, but also, in most cases, there is some systematic increase of syllable magnitude both in the corrected digit and other digits in the same utterance, as the same correction is repeated. Considerable difference among different speakers is observed and discussed in terms of syllable magnitude and timing patterns.