linguistlist.org>
Editor for this issue: Jody Huellmantel <jodylinguistlist.org>
crl.nmsu.edu>Attention: workshop DEADLINE EXTENDED Call for papers Analysis for Generation a Workshop in conjunction with The International Conference on Natural Language Generation INLG'2000 (June 13-14) June 12, 20000, Mitzpe Ramon, Israel 1. The reasons why the workshop is of interest at this time. The last decade has seen an explosion in the work done in the field of NLG with the emphasis on the development of independent NLG applications rather than generation modules of MT systems. While it seems natural to consider problems of analysis and generation as two sides of a coin in such NLP applications as MT, researchers working on "pure" generation systems sometimes treat problems arising at every stage of generation--content specification, sentence planning, and surface realization--as independent. Time may be ripe for examining the mutual utility of analysis and generation in greater detail. The impetus is, as can be expected, the goal of minimizing system-building efforts in language engineering. 2. A brief technical description of the issues the workshop will address. The workshop proposes to address: o issues connected to the needs of analysis in generation systems as well as o issues of interrelation between generation and analysis from the standpoint of reusability and adaptability of analysis techniques and tools for generation. o issues of reusability of analysis knowledge and methodology of its acquisition for generation. Analysis as part of generation. A wide range of complex problems which are considered to be specific for generation--content specification, planning, and grammaticalization--may lead one to believe that generation is completely independent of analysis. Most generators tacitly assume that an intermediate system module can use the output of the preceding module as its input without any processing (that is, analysis) of this output. This is not, however, the case in practice. A modicum of analysis is, in fact, an essential part of every generation system. The input to generation systems such as raw data in tables, lists, diagrams, elements of various databases or even text snippets that are fed into the system directly by a user still must first be somehow processed, that is, analyzed. The analysis is needed to provide both the necessary content and, often, format for the content specification (see, for example, Dale 1995, Robin 1994, Kukich 1988, McKeown et al. 1994, Bateman and Teich 1995). This problem becomes especially important in those applications (including multilingual ones) in which at least some input to generation is in textual form (e.g., Sheremetyeva and Nirenburg 1996). Many NLG systems often use a variety of analysis techniques. The question arises whether it is possible to develop criteria to better choose and integrate analysis techniques which could be efficiently applied at different stages of generation. Reusability and adaptability of analysis techniques and tools for generation. While it is not uncommon to believe that generation and analysis are not reversible, a number of contributions over the years have discussed reversibility of analysis and generation resources, especially the grammars. Appelt 1987, Barnett and Mani 1990 and van Noord 1993, among others, demonstrate how the use of reversible grammars may lead to efficient and flexible natural language parsing and generation systems. It is worth discussing constraints on reversibility. Reusability of analysis knowledge and methodology of its acquisition for generation. Generation and analysis are closely related in that both processes use many similar resources, and often it is less expensive to reorganize an existing "analysis" resource (e.g., an analysis lexicon) than to acquire one for generation from scratch. (Allgayer et al. 1989, Viegas and Beale 1996, Sheremetyeva and Nirenburg 1999a, 1999b). It is worth discussing how to establish whether a resource built for analysis can be used for generation and at what price. In particular the workshop will seek to address the following issues: I. Applications of analysis in generation and types of analysis techniques used in NLG. II. Reusability and adaptability of knowledge resources in generation and analysis - knowledge representation - lexicon format and indexing - rule writing format - knowledge acquisition and adaptation - reversibility of grammars - use of microtheories - architectural issues - converting (morphological, syntactic, semantic, etc.) analyzers into generator modules - architectural peculiarities of systems involving both analysis and synthesis and reusability of their modules. FORMAT FOR SUBMISSION Paper submissions should consist of full papers (maximum of 12 pages, including references, 12pt font size). Each submission should include a separate title page providing the following information: the title, a short abstract, names and affiliations of all the authors, the full address of the primary author (or alternate contact person), including phone, fax, and email. Please send your electronic submission (PostScript or PDF format) until March 20 to: Svetlana Sheremetyeva Computing Research Laboratory, New Mexico State University USA Box30001/Dept.3CRL/Las Cruces New Mexico 88003-8001 505 646 5466 (voice) 505 646 6218 (fax) lanaMail to author|Respond to list|Read more issues|LINGUIST home page|Top of issue
club-internet.fr>Enseignement et acquisition des langues minoritaires de l'Europe : Colloque multinational Appel communications - avec chance du 20 avril 2000 L'Institut Britannique de Paris, en collaboration avec el Instituto Cervantes et l'Institut finlandais de Paris, organise un colloque sur deux journes portant sur les questions sociolinguistiques, psycholinguistiques et pdagogiques poses par l'enseignement de langues europennes autochtones minoritaires. Nous entendons par langues minoritaires des langues associes des rgions spcifiques de l'Europe, qui ont lutt dans le pass pour leur survie, qui ne sont pas en rgle gnrale la langue, ou l'une des langues officielles des pays o ils sont pratiqus, et qui n'ont pas t introduites la suite de mouvements rcents d'immigration. Elles sont considres comme faisant partie du patrimoine de la rgion o on les parle. On peut citer comme exemples, entre bien d'autres, le basque, le sami, l'occitan. A la diffrence d'importants travaux r rnts portant sur l'enseignement dispens aux enfants dans les langues en question, ce colloque se proccupera de l'enseignement de ces langues aux adultes de tous de tges, dZ^fis d'un enseignement, du rle qu'il joue dans la conservation de la langue, et de l'valuation des enseignements, tant au niveau rgional qu'au niveau europen. Cet appel communications porte sur tout sujet se rapportant la situation qui vient d'crite, et notamment sur : - la situation sociolinguistique de groupements autochtones minoritaires en Europe et son rapport l'acquisition et /ou la pdagogie de la langue ; - le rle des programmes d'enseignement aux adultes dans la conservation de la langue ; - les facteurs psycholinguistiques (ex: motivation, typologie et traitement langagiers, style l'apprentissage) qui influent sur les apprenants des langues en question ; - des comparaisons entre l'acquisition et/ou la pZ^dagoge ces langues et celles de langues de grande communication ou appartenant des groupements d'immigrs au sein d'un pays ou d'une zone langagire europenne ; - l'laboration des programmes, les m modes ps pogiques et la conception d'outils pour les apprenants des langues en question, considres d'un point de vue thorique ; - les diffrences entre la pZ^et l'acquisition d'une deuxime langue et la pdagogie et l'acquisition d'une langue trangtrangre se rapportant aux situations que l'on vient de dcrire. Ce colloque se tiendra l'Institut Britannique de Paris, 11 rue de Constantine, 75340 Paris Cedex 07, France [Esplanade des Invalides, Mtro/RER Invalides]. Dates du colloque : les vendredi 7 et samedi 8 juillet 2000 NB: La langue de travail sera le franais. Les auteurs de communications sont vivement encourags les prsenter en franais. Toutes les communications (sauf celles de personnalits invites) auront une dure de 20 minutes maximum, suivie de 10 minutes consacres aux questions. Les propositions de communications devront tre faites sous la forme d'un rsum d'une page, adress (en franais ou en anglais) : Dr. Susan Foster-Cohen, English Department, The British Institute in Paris, 75340 Paris Cedex 07, France, ceci pas plus tard que le 20 avril 2000. (Propositions sous forme lectronique adresser l'une des adresses suivantes: fostercoMail to author|Respond to list|Read more issues|LINGUIST home page|Top of issue