Ontology of Communication: Agent-Based Data-Driven or Sign-Based Substitution-Driven?

ISBN-13: 9783031227387 / Angielski / Twarda / 2023 / 258 str.

Roland Hausser

Opis

The book gives a comprehensive discussion of Database Semantics (DBS) as an agent-based data-driven theory of how natural language communication essentially works. In language communication, agents switch between speak mode, driven by cognition-internal content (input) resulting in cognition-external raw data (e.g. sound waves or pixels, which have no meaning or grammatical properties but can be measured by natural science), and hear mode, driven by the raw data produced by the speaker resulting in cognition-internal content.

The motivation is to compare two approaches for an ontology of communication: agent-based data-driven vs. sign-based substitution-driven. Agent-based means: design of a cognitive agent with (i) an interface component for converting raw data into cognitive content (recognition) and converting cognitive content into raw data (action), (ii) an on-board, content-addressable memory (database) for the storage and content retrieval, (iii) separate treatments of the speak and the hear mode. Data-driven means: (a) mapping a cognitive content as input to the speak-mode into a language-dependent surface as output, (b) mapping a surface as input to the hear-mode into a cognitive content as output. Oppositely, sign-based means: no distinction between speak and hear mode, whereas substitution-driven means: using a single start symbol as input for generating infinitely many outputs, based on substitutions by rewrite rules.

Collecting recent research of the author, this beautiful, novel and original exposition begins with an introduction to DBS, makes a linguistic detour on subject/predicate gapping and slot-filler repetition, and moves on to discuss computational pragmatics, inference and cognition, grammatical disambiguation and other related topics. The book is mostly addressed to experts working in the field of computational linguistics, as well as to enthusiasts interested in the history and early development of this subject, starting with the pre-computational foundations of theoretical computer science and symbolic logic in the 30s.

Spis treści

1. Introduction 

1.1 Ontology 

1.2 Computational Cognition

1.3 Agent-Based Data-Driven vs. Sign-Based Substitution-Driven 

1.4 Reconciling the Hierarchical and the Linear 

1.5 Speak Mode Converts Hierarchy into Linear Surface 

1.6 Hear Mode Re-Converts Linear Input into Hierarchical Output 

1.7 Derivation Order 

1.8 Type Transparency 

1.9 Four Kinds of Type-Token Relations 

1.10 Conclusion 

2. Laboratory Set-up of Database Semantics 

2.1 Early Times 

2.2 Study of the Language Signs 

2.3 Using Successful Communication for the Laboratory Set-Up 

2.4 From Operational Implementation to Declarative Specification 

2.5 Formal Fragments of Natural Language 

2.6 Incremental Upscaling Cycles 

2.7 Conclusion 

3. Outline of DBS 

3.1 Building Content in the Agent’s Hear Mode

3.2 Storage and Retrieval of Content in the On-Board Memory 

3.3 Speak Mode Riding Piggyback on the Think Mode 

3.4 Component Structure of Cognition 

3.5 Sensory Media, Processing Media, and Their Modalities 

3.6 Reference as a Purely Cognitive Process 

3.7 Grounding 

3.8 Conclusion 

4. Software Mechanisms of the Content Kinds 

4.1 Apparent Terminological Redundancy

4.2 Restriction of Figurative Use to Concepts 

4.3 Additional Constraint on Figurative Use 

4.4 Declarative Specification Of Concepts for Recognition 

4.5 Declarative Specification of Concepts for Action

4.6 Indirect Grounding of Indexicals and Names 

4.7 Conclusion 

5. Comparison of Coordination and Gapping 

5.1 Coordination of Elementary Adnominals 

5.2 Coordination of Phrasal Adnominal Modifiers 

5.3 Coordination of Phrasal Adverbial Modifiers 

5.4 Coordination of Elementary Nouns as Subject 

5.5 Intra- and Extrapropositional Verb Coordination 

5.6 Extrasentential Coordination 

5.7 Quasi Coordination in Subject Gapping 

5.8 Quasi Coordination in Predicate Gapping 

5.9 Quasi Coordination in Object Gapping 

5.10 Conclusion 

6. Are Iterating Slot-Filler Structures Universal? 

6.1 Language and Thought 

6.2 Slot-Filler Iteration 

6.3 Marked Slot-Filler Repetition in Infinitives

6.4 Marked Slot-Filler Repetition in Object Clauses 

6.5 Marked Slot-Filler Repetition in Adnominal Clauses 

6.6 Unmarked Slot-Filler Iteration in Gapping Constructions 

6.7 Long-Distance Dependency 

6.8 Conclusion 

7. Computational Pragmatics

7.1 Four Kinds of Content in DBS 

7.2 Coactivation Resulting in Resonating Content 

7.3 Literal Pragmatics of Adjusting Perspective

7.4 Nonliteral Pragmatics of Syntactic Mood Adaptation 

7.5 Nonliteral Pragmatics of Figurative Use

7.6 Conclusion

8. Discontinuous Structures in DBS and PSG

8.1 The Time-Linear Structure of Natural Language 

8.2 Constituent Structure Paradox of PSG

8.3 Suspension in Database Semantics 

8.4 Discontinuity with and without Suspension in DBS 

8.5 Conclusion 

9. Classical Syllogisms as Computational Inferences 

9.1 Logical vs. Common Sense Reasoning

9.2 Categorical Syllogisms 

9.3 Modus Ponendo Ponens 

9.4 Modus Tollendo Tollens 

9.5 Modi BARBARA and CELARENT

9.6 Modi DARII and FERIO 

9.7 Modi BAROCO and BOCARDO 

9.8 Combining S- and C-Inferencing 

9.9 Analogy 

9.10 Conclusion 

10. Grounding of Concepts in Science 

10.1 The Place of Concepts in a Content 

10.2 Definition of Concepts at the Elementary, Phrasal, or Clausal Level? 

10.3 Extending a Concept to its Class 

10.4 Language Communication

10.5 Combining Concepts into Content 

10.6 Language Surfaces and Meaning_1 Concepts in Communication 

10.7 Extero- and Interoception 

10.8 Emotion 

10.9 Conclusion 

11. Function Words 

11.1 Introduction

11.2 Interpreting Determiner Noun Combination in Hear Mode 

11.3 Producing Determiner Noun Combination in Speak Mode 

11.4 Prepositional Phrases

11.5 Auxiliaries 

11.6 Subordinating Conjunctions 

11.7 Coordinating Conjunctions 

11.8 Conclusion 

12. Language vs. Nonlanguage Cognition 

12.1 Building Blocks and Relations of Cognition 

12.2 Example of a Content 

12.3 Content as Input to the Speak Mode 

12.4 Content as Output of the Hear Mode 

12.5 Nonlanguage Cognition Provides Place Holder Values 

12.6 Function Word Absorbs Content Word

12.7 Type-Token Matching in Recognition and Action 

12.8 Language Communication 

12.9 Conclusion 

13. Grammatical Disambiguation 

13.1 Degrees of Computational Complexity 

13.2 Orthogonal LAG and PSG Complexity Hierarchies 

13.3 Comparing Explicitly Defined Examples in PSG and DBS 

13.4 Sub-Hierarchy of C1, C2, and C3 Lags

13.5 Applying LAG to Natural Language 

13.6 From LAG to the Hear Mode 

13.7 From the Hear Mode to the Speak Mode

13.8 Incremental Lexical Lookup in the Hear Mode .

13.9 Ambiguity in Natural Language 

13.10 Language Dependence of Grammatical Disambiguation 

13.11 Bach-Peters Sentence 

13.12 Conclusion 

14. Database Semantics vs. Predicate Calculus 

14.1 Definition of Predicate Calculus

14.2 PredC Overgeneration 

14.3 Determiners 

14.4 PredC Undergeneration 

14.5 Coreference by Address 

14.6 In PredC, Propositions Denote Truth Values

14.7 In Database Semantics, Propositions Are Content 

14.8 Extending PredC to Possible Worlds 

14.9 Semantic Relations of Structure 

14.10 Properties Common to Hear, Think, and Think-Speak Operations

14.11 Hear Mode Operations 

14.12 Activation in the Think and Think-Speak Modes

14.13 Inferencing 

14.14 Conclusion 

15. Agent-Based Memory as an On-board Database 

15.1 Input-Output of Conventional Database vs. On-Board Memory 

15.2 Data Structure and Operations in a Record-Based Database

15.3 Data Structure and Operations 

15.4 The On-Board Orientation System (OBOS) 

15.5 Loom-Like Clearance of the Now Front 

15.6 Resonating Content 1: Coactivation by Similarity 

15.7 Resonating Content 2: Coactivation by Token Line Intersection

15.8 Resonating Content 3: Coactivation by Continuation 

15.9 Memory-Based Concatenation in Nonlanguage Recognition 

15.10 Conclusion 

16. David Hume’s ‘Causation’ in Database Semantics 

16.1 Asymmetry in Natural Coordination 

16.2 Cause and Effect 

16.3 Necessary, Unnecessary, Sufficient, and Insufficient Causes 

16.4 Hume’s Copy Principle

16.5 Reconstruction of Elementary Recognition and Action

16.6 Computational Reconstruction of Complex Content 

16.7 From Individual Contents to a Content Class

16.8 Four Different Kinds of Content 

16.9 Accommodating Scenarios in DBS

16.10 Conclusion 

17. Concepts in Computational Cognition 

17.1 Concept-Based Interpretation of Indexicals and Names 

17.2 Concepts Grounded in Science 

17.3 ‘Natural Categories’ as Concepts 

17.4 Technical Concepts as a Subclass of ‘Natural Categories’ 

17.5 Grammatical Categories 

17.6 Hear Mode: Concatenating Proplets into Complex Content 

17.7 Speak Mode: Linearization of a Content by Navigation 

17.8 Natural Language Communication in Speech and Writing

17.9 Conclusion 

18. Paraphrase and ambiguity

18.1 Introduction: the Structure of Content 

18.2 Speak Mode Paraphrase: Different Surfaces for Same Content 

18.3 DBS Formalism for the Speak Mode (Language Production) 

18.4 Hear Mode Ambiguity: Different Contents for Same Surface

18.5 Ambiguity is Language-Dependent 

18.6 Grammatical Analysis of Ambiguity 

18.7 Local vs. Global Ambiguities

18.8 Iterating Local Ambiguities 

18.9 Conclusion

19. Recursion and Grammatical Disambiguation 

19.1 Speak Mode in Database Semantics 

19.2 Hear Mode in Database Semantics 

19.3 Recursion 

19.4 Conclusion 

Name Index

Bibliography 

O autorze

Roland Hausser is Professor Emeritus for Theoretical and Computational Linguistics at the University Erlangen-Nürnberg and former director of its Laboratory of Computational Linguistics (CLUE), between 1989 and 2011. After obtaining his PhD at the University of Texas at Austin, the author held various positions at Carnegie Mellon, Stanford University or Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.

Prof. Hausser has been active and made significant contributions in the fields of Theoretical and Computational Linguistics, Human-Computer Interaction, Formal Grammars and Database Semantics. His research resulted in around 40 journal papers and conference proceedings, and he is the author of the Springer books “Foundations of Computational Linguistics”, “A Computational Model of Natural Language Communication” and “Computational Linguistics and Talking Robots”.