Re: New Try from a New Guy

----- Original Message -----
From: "Josh Roth" <Fuscian@...>
Sent: Saturday, December 14, 2002 10:38 PM
Subject: Re: New Try from a New Guy


> but what I think you (Michael) are saying is that you want this to
> be one sound, but you can't quite pin down an IPA letter to represent it
> with. If you want it to be like a certain English sound you're thinking
of,
> it's probably either [V] (as in the first syllable of 'butter') or [@] (as
in
> the first syllable of 'potato' - both of those in 'standard' American
> pronunciation at least). Or you might want the first pronunciation when
it's
> stressed, and the second when it's not, or something similar.
>
    When I listened to the examples for [@], [3], [6] and [V] they sounded
enough alike that I'd consider them the same *letter* if I heard someone
else say a word with those sounds. I guess I could just pick one and say
that's how it always pronounced. That may be better. Afterall, if the actual
possibilities of differences in pronunciation are actually infinite then
you'd need to define an infinite number of allophones. But how far away from
a sound can you get before it becomes recognizable as a different sound?
    I think I'm beginning to understand why IPA and SAMPA can only ever be
approximations; and maybe I just shouldn't worry about being exact.


----------------------------------------
Michael David Martin, Master Mason
Temecula/Catalina Island Lodge #524
Free & Accepted Masons of California