Haskins Publications

Number	148
Year	1974
Drawer	3
Entry Date	05/21/1998
Authors	Gay, T., Ushijima, T., Hirose, H., & Cooper, F. S
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Publication	Journal of Phonetics, 2, 47-63.
url	http://www.haskins.yale.edu/Reprints/HL0148.pdf
Abstract	A report of an experiment studying the effect of speaking rate on the articulation of the consonants /p/ and /w/ in combination with the vowels /i/, /a/, and /u/. Two subjects read a list of nonsense syllables containing /p/ and /w/ in all possible vowel-consonant-vowel combinations with /i/, /a/, and /u/ at both moderate and fast speaking rates. Electromyographic recordings from muscles that control movements of the lips, tongue, and jaw were recorded simultaneously with high-speed, full-face motion pictures of the lips. For labial consonant production, an increase in speaking rate is accompanied by an increase in the activity level of the muscle (orbicularis oris) and slightly faster rates of lip movement (both closing and opening). Vowel production, however, shows opposite effects: an increase in speaking rate is accompanied by a decrease in the activity level of the genioglossus muscle and, as shown by the X-ray films, evidence of target undershoot. Jaw movement data reveal more variable, context-dependent effects on speaking rate. Observed differences are explained in terms of the muscle systems involved.
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