The present study investigated Korean-accented English (KoE) intelligibility and conducted experiments in Korea, Japan, and the USA to test the benefits of listener’s familiarity and identify the key phonological features of KoE. In the experiments, the participants were asked to transcribe the target (KoE) of 100 English statements each containing a target word representing one of the nine features. The transcription data were administered to four groups, depending upon the degree of KoE familiarity (length of exposure). The results indicated that KoE was most intelligible to native English speakers with lower familiarity and least intelligible to the Japanese participants with low KoE familiarity. Although the listeners’ familiarity did not necessarily either facilitate or impede the intelligibility of KoE, the listeners with higher familiarity with KoE tended to recognize the voiced consonants of KoE better. The findings also indicated which KoE characteristics affected the overall intelligibility level, suggesting ways to prioritize KoE features in English language learning in Korean classrooms.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the intelligibility and attitude towards four English varieties to Korean-speaking learners (KSLs) of English, who have been exposed mainly to General American (or Korean-accented English) in their English language learning classrooms throughout the primary and secondary schools. A total of 105 Korean undergraduate students listened to a recording in one of the four accents (General American, British, Australian, and Korean-accented English) and completed an intelligibility test followed by a questionnaire survey on attitudes. Analysis revealed that British English was most intelligible to KSLs among four varieties whereas that of Australian was least intelligible. Attitudes toward an English variety did not exert a strong force that may contribute to the level of intelligibility. The findings also showed at which phonological features identified KSLs were most sensitive to intelligibility differences. We conclude that the more exposed English variety to KSLs, the more favorable attitudes can be formed, but is not necessarily intelligible. What the findings demonstrate is that attitudes are not the best explanation of intelligibility and call for improvement in ways of directing KSLs’ attention to some phonological features in a learnability perspective.

Y-type barium ferrite was prepared by the glass-ceramic method. Glasses with composition of were prepared, and the precipitation behavior of Y-type ferrite from the glass matrix was investigated by heating glass specimens at various temperature. which is a precursor of M-type ferrite was precipitated at about 813 K and an unknown compound, phase X, was precipitated at about 850 K. M-type ferrite and Y-type ferrite started to form at about 923 K and 1103 K, respectively. The formation of Y-type ferrite was int erpreted as the result of the reaction of M-type ferrite with a melt of phase X.

Y-type barium ferrite ( Me=Zn, Co, Cu) expected as an electromagnetic wave absorber were prepared by the glass-ceramic method. The glasses with composition of were prepared. Single-phase powders of Y type barium ferrite were obtained with the composition . The shape of Y-type crystals depended strongly on the heating temperature and changed from a plate-like hexagon to a complex polyhedron with increasing heating temperature. Correlation was recognized between saturation magnetization and crystal shape. Electromagnetic wave absorption characteristics was affected by the saturation magnetization and crystal shape.