Semantic Interpretation and the Resolution of Ambiguity

Graeme Hirst (Author)

9780521428989, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 19 March 1992

280 pages
22.8 x 15.2 x 2.4 cm, 0.388 kg

'The book gains very much by [Graeme Hirst's] ability to concentrate on important problems, by the clarity of his expositions and also by his open-minded presentation of points his approach is not yet able to solve.' Studies in Language

Semantic interpretation and the resolution of ambiguity presents an important advance in computer understanding of natural language. While parsing techniques have been greatly improved in recent years, the approach to semantics has generally improved in recent years, the approach to semantics has generally been ad hoc and had little theoretical basis. Graeme Hirst offers a new, theoretically motivated foundation for conceptual analysis by computer, and shows how this framework facilitates the resolution of lexical and syntactic ambiguities. His approach is interdisciplinary, drawing on research in computational linguistics, artificial intelligence, montague semantics, and cognitive psychology.

Preface
1. Introduction
2. Semantic interpretation
3. The Absity semantic interpreter
4. Lexical disambiguation
5. Polaroid words
6. Structural disambiguation
7. The semantic enquiry desk
8. Conclusion
9. Speculations, partially baked ideas, and exercises for the reader
References
Index of names
Index of subjects.

Subject Areas: Computational linguistics [CFX]