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                  When semantics meets phonetics: 
           acoustical studies of second occurrence focus
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David I. Beaver (Stanford University)
Brady Z. Clark (Northwestern University)
Edward Flemming (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Florian Jaeger (Stanford University)
Maria Wolters (University of Edinburgh)

Contact: dib@stanford.edu

                             ABSTRACT

A second occurrence (SO) focus is the semantic focus of a focus
sensitive operator (e.g. {\em only}), but is a repeat of an earlier
focused occurrence. SO foci are intonationally distinct from the
original occurrence of the material, and are often claimed to lack any
intonational marking, e.g.  pitch accent (Partee 1999).  This apparent
dissociation of semantic and intonational focus is commonly used as an
argument against theories which make strong assumptions about the
representation of focus at the syntax-semantics interface,
e.g. Chomsky (1976), Jacobs (1983), Krifka (1992), Rooth (1985) and
von Sstechow (1989).  Contrarily, the phenomenon has been argued to
support pragmatic theories of focus, e.g. Roberts (1996),
Schwarzschild (1997).

We report on the first systematic production and perception
experiments to show that SO foci occurring after a nuclear accent are,
as Rooth (1996b) has claimed, prosodically marked. We find (i) there
is no mean pitch rise on SO foci; (ii) SO foci are marked by longer
duration and greater intensity; and (iii) listeners are able to detect
the difference between SO foci and non-foci. On the basis of these
results, we argue that SO focus is compatible with theories of focus
interpretation that it has been claimed to contradict. We also show
that the phenomenon is of significance for intonational phonology,
specifically as regards prosodic prominence in the post-nuclear domain
(e.g. Ladd 1996).