Reference and Computation: An Essay in Applied Philosophy of Language (Studies in Natural Language Processing) - Hardcover

Kronfeld, Amichai

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0521366364 ISBN 13: 9780521366366

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 1990

Synopsis

This book deals with a major problem in the study of language: the problem of reference. The ease with which we refer to things in conversation is deceptive. Upon closer scrutiny, it turns out that we hardly ever tell each other explicitly what object we mean, although we expect our interlocutor to discern it. Amichai Kronfeld provides an answer to two questions associated with this: how do we successfully refer, and how can a computer be programmed to achieve this? Beginning with the major theories of reference, Dr Kronfeld provides a consistent philosophical view which is a synthesis of Frege's and Russell's semantic insights with Grice's and Searle's pragmatic theories. This leads to a set of guiding principles, which are then applied to a computational model of referring. The discussion is made accessible to readers from a number of backgrounds: in particular, students and researchers in the areas of computational linguistics, artificial intelligence and the philosophy of language will want to read this book.

About this title

Book Description

On scrutinising how we refer to things in conversation, we find that we rarely state explicitly what object we mean, although we expect an interlocutor to discern it. Dr Kronfield provides an answer to the two questions; how do we successfully refer; and how can a computer be programmed to achieve this?.

Edition details

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 1990
• ISBN 10: 0521366364
• ISBN 13: 9780521366366
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 206