Two studies compared the effects of imagery-based instruction and rote learning on the long-term recall of English translations of Chinese ideographs. In no instance was there any indication that imagery-based mnemonics conferred an advantage beyond the immediate test of recall. (27 references) (Author/LB)

Describes the historical approaches to the decipherment of ancient Maya writing. Asserts that Mayan hieroglyphics are recognized as true writing because they represent the sounds and structure of spoken language. Discusses the history of Maya hieroglyphic writing and how it was used in that civilization. (PRA)

Reviews four sets of computer-mediated materials for Chinese character learning. These include the following: Write Chinese, Chinese Characters Primer, Animated Chinese Characters, and USC Chinese Character Page. (Author/VWL)

This manual presents a method of teaching cooking to nonreaders. The language of the method consists of visual symbols, such as drawings of bowls, spoons, and ingredients, and color. The "Simply Great" method consists of three basic formats: the one-step booklet, the full-page format, and the simply written for the student with some…

This is a collection of reference materials to be used with the Chinese-Mandarin Basic Course textbooks. This collection consists of information on romanization systems, indexes for reading and writing characters, and other tables for quick reference. (NCR)

Discusses two major questions in the study of reading Chinese characters from the viewpoint of experimental psychology: (1) Is there cerebral lateralization? (2) In progressing from the recognition of single characters to the comprehension of sentences, is phonetic recoding necessary? The answer to both is yes. (KM)

Two experiments were conducted with Chinese subjects to investigate whether phonemic similarity affected the visual information processing of Chinese characters. The first experiment used a short-term retention paradigm and the second, a sentence judgment task. Results were discussed with respect to the issues of orthographical differences and of…

Discusses the article in this journal by C. Cheng advocating teaching of simplified Chinese characters. This article agrees with his conclusions but finds fault with his methodology. It is felt that the sequence of learning simplified and complex characters should be determined by both a Chinese linguist and an experimental psychologist. (CHK)

Presents ideographic selections and class exercises from a Chinese first grade primer. Explanations in English are included. (Author/DB)

Defines the topic of Sino-Islamic linguistics, that is, the study of the Arabic and Persian norms of Chinese-speaking Muslims. The diffusion of Arabic and Persian to China, language contact and interference, and dialectology and functional variations of Chinese Arabic and Persian are among the topics covered. (CLK)

This paper compares the simplified characters of China, Japan and Singapore, based on China's list of 2295 simplified characters. Charts summarize the comparisons by numbers of characters in each country, and a comparative table lists and illustrates simplified characters in these countries. Taiwanese forms are summarized separately. (CHK)

Examines the role of sound in reading Japanese Script and evaluates arguments for semantic versus phonological identification to determine the relative importance of phonological processes in reading "kanji" and "kana." Implications for the teaching of kanji to learners of Japanese as a second language are explored. (Author/JL)

States that iconographic investigations of Olmec style art works have produced convincing evidence that rulership during the Early and Middle Formative Period of Mesoamerican prehistory was publicly legitimized by a visual charter. Shows that the charter's naturally derived symbols functioned within a system which stressed the human ruler's access…

Offers an overview of Later Formative period writing in Mesoamerica, and discusses recent findings. Asserts that analysis of the iconographic context of the script reveals considerable interdependence between text and context and provides a glimpse of the importance of cosmological considerations in the display of power. Discusses the importance…

Summarizes the nature of the pre-Hispanic pictorial communication system used by the Mixtec people of Mexico, who were creating manuscripts in which they recorded their histories, genealogies, and religious beliefs long before the Spanish reached the New World. Explains and illustrates the principal pictorial conventions. (PRA)