Solved

The Northern Cities Vowel Shift and Speakers That Adopt It

question 13

Multiple Choice

The Northern Cities Vowel Shift and Speakers That Adopt It "The Northern Cities Vowel Shift" is not adopted by all speakers that live in the geographic regions where it is in progress. Studies (1) illustrate that it is mostly European Americans who show evidence of taking on the shift; however, there is little to no research indicating that speakers of African American Vernacular English employ the shift in their speech. Canadians that share proximity to the Great Lakes with speakers that live in the United States also show no evidence of adopting the shift.
This shift, also called "The Northern Cities Shift" (NCS) , is a (2) linguistic phenomenon that occurs in the northern geographic area of the United States known as the Inland North, which includes such cities as Rochester, Buffalo, Detroit, and Chicago. Although prominent among some urban inhabitants of the region, NCS is not considered the standard. (3) Linguists describe one change that occurs in speakers of NCS in which the vowel in milk (4) "shifts" down and back (the tongue is lowered and travels back) from a short "i" to a short "e" that could be represented as melk.
William Labov, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, is one of the largest contributors to research on the subject of the NCS. His theory is that the shift possibly started when speakers from different (5) language varieties were brought together in the early 1800's when the Erie Canal was being constructed. People from the East Coast moved to the Great Lakes region, and their dialects mixed resulting in an ongoing shift. However, not all speakers of the Great Lakes region participate in this linguistic variation.
The word "illustrate", in bold after the (1) in the first paragraph, is closest in meaning to

Definitions:

Demographics

Statistical data relating to the population and particular groups within it, often used for market research, policy-making, and understanding societal trends.

Top Management Support

Refers to the commitment and involvement of an organization's highest level of leadership in guiding and championing project or strategic initiatives.

Stakeholders

Individuals or groups that have an interest or stake in the success and activities of an organization, including employees, customers, shareholders, and suppliers.

Training and Development

Organizational activities aimed at enhancing the skills, knowledge, and capabilities of employees.