This paper deals with the ways in which Marulic speaks of the phenomenon of language. The analysis is conducted on a corpus of 19 of his works in Latin and Croatian. At the beginning, a review is made of the humanist attitude to language, particularly among Marulic’s contemporaries, in the context of changes in the fundamental tendencies in the prehistory and history of linguistic science. In Marulic’s time in this area there was a turn away from the late medieval concern with grammatical rules (ars) in the direction of the humanist and anti-grammatical promotion of language use (usus) as the main educational and developmental principle. Marulic’s unsystematic and rare use of grammatical terminology, and only of that which fell within the fundamental school education of the time, fits well within this picture.
After this, Marulic’s references to the grammatical and phonological structure of language are discussed. Even in In epigr., a work in which we might reasonably expect quite a systematic engagement with grammatical structure, Marulic restricts himself to sporadic and unsystematic notes, and it is much more poorly featured than other linguistic domains. Only in In epigr. does he refer to phonology, for it was necessary to him for the interpretation of the epigraphs. In the same work he uses a number of expressions that refer to morphology and derivation; the notes on syntax are extremely rudimentary and are in fact always occasioned by a need to explain the semantics.
Marulic is most deeply engaged in writing about meaning. In this he has specific priorities, conditioned by the time in which he lives, and his own interests and objects. Most important to him are allegorical relations (most systematically expounded in Tropol. expos.), which only partially fall into the realm of linguistic signification and which have in addition a certain degree of arbitrariness at the level of the individual, explained with separate linguistic means. In allegoresis, biblical names in Hebrew have a key role, serving as a basis for the reflection on the spiritual stratum of meaning. Non-allegorical etymology features relatively poorly, mostly being used for an interpretation of individual words in In epigr. Marulic understands synchronic linguistic explanations as superficial variations of a linguistic expression and undertakes them more through the establishment of links between language and extra-linguistic reality than between linguistic units.
The ways in which text is organised were not included within traditional linguistic analysis, although today discourse markers and phoric elements are considered and analysed as meta-speech about language. The most prominent means through which text is organised in Marulic’s oeuvre are repetition of anaphoric and cataphoric expressions, and deixis directed towards the reader, i.e. to the reader’s engagement in the text. This appears in Marulic in two main forms, which we may call the dialogic (when the writer simulates a dialogue with the reader as motivation for the continuation of the discourse) and final (the writer states what he wants to achieve in the book). Deictic strategies show a certain regularity in their distribution, correlated with the nature of the work in which they appear.
Marulic’s remarks about prolixity and concision of expression are shown in Table 1. From a quantitative analysis of his evaluations, it would be hard to conclude anything more precise about his stylistic preferences. However, an outline image certainly appears suggesting his textual ideal was an adroitly achieved balance between ornament and simplicity, resulting in an easily intelligible and yet substantial and attractive text.
When he evaluates quality of language, in his praises he mirrors familiar stylistic ideals of humanism and antiquity: elegantia, claritas, puritas, ornatus, uetustas, congruitas, uenustas, lepos, breuitas, simplicitas, while in his criticism he makes use of no less well-worn concepts such as rusticitas, barbaries, inconcinnitas, sophisma, obscuritas and prolixitas. Aware, however, of the special position and nature of Biblical language as reflection of the word of God, he expressly exempts it from the stylistic criteria that he applies to other texts.
Blubber fats from six fin whales, four sei whales, and one humpbacked whale taken in Nova Scotian waters have been studied. Dorsal, lateral, and ventral samples were compared for thickness, fat contents of inner and outer layers, and the iodine values of the recovered fats. The concept that in "fat" mysticeti whales the iodine value is higher in the inner blubber than in the outer blubber was supported by the results. It is concluded that iodine value fluctuations in one animal in a fattening stage represent surplus polyunsaturated acids deposited first in the inner layer and first in the ventral area. Correspondingly, the outer dorsal blubber is the most stable. Species differences correspond to those for Antarctic animals.
Abstract Semi‐natural habitats in Europe host a substantial proportion of biodiversity, but they experience biodiversity loss due to ongoing agricultural changes. We regard the Rattle grasshopper ( Psophus stridulus ) as a charismatic species of species‐rich submontane xerothermic grasslands. To enable conservation of the species and its habitat, we studied the habitat preferences of this formerly abundant grasshopper, now threatened and declining in many European countries. In 2011, we applied capture‐mark‐recapture method to sample adults at four localities (Czech Republic), each divided into two subplots with different management and character of vegetation. In 2012, we carried out a more extensive study on habitat preferences, evaluating 179 grassland patches (24% of them occupied by P. stridulus ). For each site, we recorded vegetation characteristics (sward height and density, cover of vegetation components, percentage of bare ground), slope, inclination and agricultural management. We used multistate models in MARK software to analyse survival and movement probabilities between different subplots. Data from the 2012 large‐scale study were analysed by fitting several regression models. The results show that the species preferred south‐facing slopes with sparse, short vegetation and with patches of bare ground. Sward density was the most important predictor of species presence. For species conservation, we recommend controlling succession on the localities by regular management (grazing or cautious mowing) to maintain optimal habitat with sparse sward. We promote P. stridulus as a flagship and umbrella species of species‐rich submontane xerothermic pastures.
All-metal connecting tubing leading from wall-coated open-tubular columns to detectors is shown to be a source of tailing and absorption of small components. Replacement with glass-lined metal-tubing eliminates these problems.
