COMPUTER APPLICATIONS OF LINGUISTIC THEORY
1.1. FACT AND FICTION
Natural language vs. computer language, language is the basis of
communication and computer language is not just a different language.
The syntax of both can be modeled on the same types of formal systems.
But in natural language syntax is constrained by semantic ambiguities and
computer language is designed to avoid this ambiguity and sensitivity. So,
theres no formal system capable of enduring a perfect semantic account
for both languages.
The range of computer natural language applications are now easily
available and used in personal home computers allowing PC users to
interact with relational databases leaning on natural language.
1.2. THE LEAP FROM LINGUISTIC THEORY TO PROGRAMS
Linguistic theory vs. computational applications.
Generative linguistics has aimed to characterize the linguistic knowledge
of an idealized speaker-hearer.
Computational linguistics tries to mediate between competence theory
and the particular type of linguistic performance attributable to machines
by turning linguistic theory into algorithms. That is to permit the
simulation of linguistic behavior while obeying the linguistic constrains and
generalizations implied in both linguistic theory and competence
grammars.
The machine does not encode the knowledge that underlies the behavior in
humans. Computer applications need a theoretical base, which can endure
the desired behavior.
Programs of the complexity of natural language understanding systems are
focused on linguistic technology, which is derived from linguistic theory.
The limit between theory and application is in computational linguistics.
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1.3. COMPUTATIONAL LINGUISTICS
It is the branch of artificial intelligence (AI) which is concerned with the
investigation and modeling of a cognitive capacity.
The goal is to identify and characterize the classes of processes and the
types of knowledge, which are implied in the ability to communicate and
assimilate information using natural language.
There are two problems in embedding a linguistic knowledge in a computer
implementation:
1 1. Conversion of a competence grammar to a parser.
2 2. How multiple linguistic knowledge sources can be integrated in the
analysis process.
Computational linguistics relies on insights from a number of disciplines
within both computer science and linguistics. Its major areas of activity are
parsing, language generation, natural language understanding, machine
translation and speech.
1.4. TEXT-TO-SPEECH CONVERSION (speech synthesis)
The best examples of commercially available linguistic technology are found
in the area of speech synthesis and text-to-speech conversion.
Several linguistic theories have contributed to the text-to-speech
conversion:
Speech synthesis: a theory of speech production.
Morphophonemic, phonological and prosodic rules.
The conversion has to be indirect: a text-to-speech device requires a
specification of the correspondences between letters and sounds.
Major advances are dependent on the availability of explicit linguistic rules
for allophonic variation and prosody and efficient implementations of these
in synthesis devices.
1.5. SPEECH RECOGNITION
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It is the problem of identifying the segments, words or phrases in spoken
utterances. General-purpose patter-matching techniques have made it
possible to recognize an increasing number of isolated words. But
unknown techniques are necessary to recognize ordinary connected
speech.
Projects to recognize a limited vocabulary of isolated words are:
HARPY project connected speech with vocabulary from five different
speakers after training of those speakers.
HEARSAY and HWIM contributed to the study of different control
structures for natural language.
At present, a balanced picture has replaced the view that acoustic signal is
impoverished and that speech recognition is impossible without constant
support from semantics, syntax and pragmatics.
1.6. MACHINE TRANSLATION
It has enjoyed increasing attention and advances as progress in semantic,
syntactic and morphological processing. Also, more powerful computers
have made the dream of automatic translation possible.
The belief that translation was a problem of code-breaking was soon
abandoned as the properties of the linguistic code came to be more
recognized.
1.7. CONCLUSION
String manipulation now includes ambitious attempts at simulation of
complex linguistic behavior. Linguistic science is being reshaped by the
growing understanding of cognitive processes, which flows from joint
together artificial intelligence, psychology and linguistics.
Computer applications of linguistic theory will also improve in quality and
increase in number.
