A Theory of Language and Information

A Theory of Language and Information PDF

Author: Zellig Sabbettai Harris

Publisher:

Published: 1991

Total Pages: 456

ISBN-13:

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Written by one of the most respected figures in American linguistics, this book develops an approach to the analysis of language on a mathematical model. Harris presents a formal theory of language structure, in which syntax is characterized as an orderly system of departure from random combinings of sounds, words, and all the elements of language. He argues that the combining of words in a sentence constitutes a mathematical object, and that each departure from randomness is a contribution to the structure and meaning of a sentence. Discussing the differences in the structure and content of language, mathematics, and music, Harris shows that the use of language in a science constitutes a distinguishable sub-language. Remarkable and compelling, Harris's magnum opus will be considered the classical analysis of the structuring of information and development of language.

Information Theory and Language

Information Theory and Language PDF

Author: Łukasz Dębowski

Publisher: MDPI

Published: 2020-12-15

Total Pages: 244

ISBN-13: 3039360264

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“Information Theory and Language” is a collection of 12 articles that appeared recently in Entropy as part of a Special Issue of the same title. These contributions represent state-of-the-art interdisciplinary research at the interface of information theory and language studies. They concern in particular: • Applications of information theoretic concepts such as Shannon and Rényi entropies, mutual information, and rate–distortion curves to the research of natural languages; • Mathematical work in information theory inspired by natural language phenomena, such as deriving moments of subword complexity or proving continuity of mutual information; • Empirical and theoretical investigation of quantitative laws of natural language such as Zipf’s law, Herdan’s law, and Menzerath–Altmann’s law; • Empirical and theoretical investigations of statistical language models, including recently developed neural language models, their entropies, and other parameters; • Standardizing language resources for statistical investigation of natural language; • Other topics concerning semantics, syntax, and critical phenomena. Whereas the traditional divide between probabilistic and formal approaches to human language, cultivated in the disjoint scholarships of natural sciences and humanities, has been blurred in recent years, this book can contribute to pointing out potential areas of future research cross-fertilization.

Theory of Language

Theory of Language PDF

Author: Steven Weisler

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2000

Total Pages: 370

ISBN-13: 9780262731256

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Along with coverage of phonics, phonology, morphology, semantics and syntax, the text covers more unconventional topics including language and culture, and language evolution."--BOOK JACKET.

A Theory of Language and Information

A Theory of Language and Information PDF

Author: Zellig Sabbettai Harris

Publisher:

Published: 1991

Total Pages: 456

ISBN-13:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

Written by one of the most respected figures in American linguistics, this book develops an approach to the analysis of language on a mathematical model. Harris presents a formal theory of language structure, in which syntax is characterized as an orderly system of departure from random combinings of sounds, words, and all the elements of language. He argues that the combining of words in a sentence constitutes a mathematical object, and that each departure from randomness is a contribution to the structure and meaning of a sentence. Discussing the differences in the structure and content of language, mathematics, and music, Harris shows that the use of language in a science constitutes a distinguishable sub-language. Remarkable and compelling, Harris's magnum opus will be considered the classical analysis of the structuring of information and development of language.

The Information

The Information PDF

Author: James Gleick

Publisher: Vintage

Published: 2011-03-01

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 0307379574

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From the bestselling author of the acclaimed Chaos and Genius comes a thoughtful and provocative exploration of the big ideas of the modern era: Information, communication, and information theory. Acclaimed science writer James Gleick presents an eye-opening vision of how our relationship to information has transformed the very nature of human consciousness. A fascinating intellectual journey through the history of communication and information, from the language of Africa’s talking drums to the invention of written alphabets; from the electronic transmission of code to the origins of information theory, into the new information age and the current deluge of news, tweets, images, and blogs. Along the way, Gleick profiles key innovators, including Charles Babbage, Ada Lovelace, Samuel Morse, and Claude Shannon, and reveals how our understanding of information is transforming not only how we look at the world, but how we live. A New York Times Notable Book A Los Angeles Times and Cleveland Plain Dealer Best Book of the Year Winner of the PEN/E. O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award

A Theory of Predicates

A Theory of Predicates PDF

Author: Farrell Ackerman

Publisher: Stanford Univ Center for the Study

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 402

ISBN-13: 9781575860862

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When studying linguistics, it is commonplace to find that information packaged into a single word in one language is expressed by several independent words in another language. This observation raises an important question: how can linguistics research represent what is the same among languages while accounting for the obvious differences between them? In this work, two linguists-Farrell Ackerman and Gert Webelhuth-from different theoretical paradigms develop a new general theory of natural language predicates. This theory is capable of addressing a broad range of issues concerning (complex) predicates, many of which remain unresolved in previous theoretical proposals. The book focuses on cross-linguistically recurring patterns of predicate formation. It also provides a detailed implementation of Ackerman and Webelhuth's theory for German tense-aspect, passive, causative, and verb-particle predicates. In addition, a discussion of the extension of these representative analyses to the same predicate construction in other languages is presented. Beyond providing a formalism for the analysis of language-particular predicates, the authors demonstrate how the basic theoretical mechanism they develop can be employed to explain universal tendencies of predicate formation.

Signs, Mind, and Reality

Signs, Mind, and Reality PDF

Author: Sebastian Shaumyan

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 2006-01-01

Total Pages: 345

ISBN-13: 9027252017

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The book presents a new science of semiotic linguistics. The goal of semiotic linguistics is to discover what characterizes language as an intermediary between the mind and reality so that language creates the picture of reality we perceive. The cornerstone of semiotic linguistics is the discovery and resolution of language antinomies ­-contradictions between two apparently reasonable principles or laws. Language antinomies constitute the essence of language, and hence must be studied from both linguistic and philosophical points of view. The basic language antinomy which underlies all other antinomies is the antinomy between meaning and information. Both generative and classical linguistic theories are unaware of the need to distinguish between meaning and information. By confounding these notions they are unable to discover language antinomies and confine their research to naturalistic description of superficial language phenomena rather than the quest for the essence of language.(Series A)

The Psychology of Language

The Psychology of Language PDF

Author: Trevor A. Harley

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 2013-12-16

Total Pages: 1083

ISBN-13: 1317710029

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This thorough revision and update of the popular second edition contains everything the student needs to know about the psychology of language: how we understand, produce, and store language.

From Molecule to Metaphor

From Molecule to Metaphor PDF

Author: Jerome Feldman

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2008-01-25

Total Pages: 758

ISBN-13: 0262296888

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In From Molecule to Metaphor, Jerome Feldman proposes a theory of language and thought that treats language not as an abstract symbol system but as a human biological ability that can be studied as a function of the brain, as vision and motor control are studied. This theory, he writes, is a "bridging theory" that works from extensive knowledge at two ends of a causal chain to explicate the links between. Although the cognitive sciences are revealing much about how our brains produce language and thought, we do not yet know exactly how words are understood or have any methodology for finding out. Feldman develops his theory in computer simulations—formal models that suggest ways that language and thought may be realized in the brain. Combining key findings and theories from biology, computer science, linguistics, and psychology, Feldman synthesizes a theory by exhibiting programs that demonstrate the required behavior while remaining consistent with the findings from all disciplines. After presenting the essential results on language, learning, neural computation, the biology of neurons and neural circuits, and the mind/brain, Feldman introduces specific demonstrations and formal models of such topics as how children learn their first words, words for abstract and metaphorical concepts, understanding stories, and grammar (including "hot-button" issues surrounding the innateness of human grammar). With this accessible, comprehensive book Feldman offers readers who want to understand how our brains create thought and language a theory of language that is intuitively plausible and also consistent with existing scientific data at all levels.