LINGUIST List 24.1036

Thu Feb 28 2013

Summer Schools: Bilingual Minds, Bilingual Machines/Plymouth, United Kingdom

Editor for this issue: Caylen Cole-Hazel <caylenlinguistlist.org>



Date: 16-Feb-2013
From: Laurence White <laurence.whiteplymouth.ac.uk>
Subject: Bilingual Minds, Bilingual Machines/Plymouth, United Kingdom
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Bilingual Minds, Bilingual Machines/Plymouth, United Kingdom

Host Institution: University of PlymouthCoordinating Institution: University of PlymouthWebsite: http://tinyurl.com/bilingualismsummerschool

Dates: 24-Jun-2013 - 28-Jun-2013Location: Plymouth, United Kingdom

Focus: The young human brain copes remarkably well with two or morelanguages, with early bilingualism often resulting in perfect parallel proficiency.In contrast, automatic translation and language recognition systems remainsub-optimal, despite powerful computing resources, large-scale corpora andincreasingly sophisticated training algorithms.

The summer school is a unique opportunity for postgraduate students andearly-career researchers in psychology and computer science to engage overcommon issues informed by both disciplines. How can we model bilingualprocessing? How are two phonologies represented? How is meaning related toword forms? How far can meanings be shared between languages in the humanmind and in machines?Minimum Education Level: Undergraduate

Special Qualifications:Postgraduate students and early-career researchers (i.e., not more than three years post-PhD).

Description:The school will feature interactive lectures from world-leading researchers:- Psychologists investigating early and late bilingualism- Cognitive scientists modelling the bilingual mental lexicon from phonologyto semantics- Computer scientists and roboticists designing automated translators andlanguage recognition/learning systems

Participants will also gain hands-on experience in computational modelling,cutting-edge robotic technology and advanced techniques of experimentalpsychology. They will also have the opportunity to submit an abstract forposter session that will take place during the week. Two submissions will beselected for a 20-minute conference-style presentation.

Confirmed speakers:Professor Tony Belpaeme, Plymouth University – developmental roboticsProfessor Marc Brysbaert, Ghent University – adult bilingualismDr Bill Byrne, University of Cambridge – automatic translationProfessor Angelo Cangelosi, Plymouth University – developmental roboticsProfessor Detmar Meurers, University of Tübingen – learner corpora andcomputational linguisticsDr Katerina Pastra, Cognitive Systems Research Institute, Athens – embodiedmachine translationDr Patrick Rebuschat, Bangor University – bilingual cognitionProfessor Majd Sakr, Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar – bilingual roboticsProfessor Nuria Sebastian-Galles, Universitat Pompeu Fabra – developmentalbilingualismDr Yinjang Wu, University of Sheffield – developmental bilingualism

The school is supported by EUCog (www.eucognition.org).

Linguistic Field(s): Computational Linguistics Language Acquisition Psycholinguistics Text/Corpus Linguistics Translation

Tuition: 400.00 GBP

Financial Aid: Applications accepted until 31-Mar-2013Places are limited to 30 and fees will be waived for up to five participants.

Financial Aid Instructions:If you wish to be considered for a fee waiver, then please additionally make a case forsupport with reference to your current funding (not more than one page). Your request fora fee waiver will not affect the outcome of your application to participate in the school.

Registration: 16-Feb-2013 to 31-Mar-2013

Contact Person: Organising Committee Bilingualism Summer School Email: bilingualismsummerschoolgmail.com

Registration Instructions:Registration fees for the week are £400, which includes accommodation,breakfasts, lunches, refreshments and a full social programme. Places arelimited to 30 and fees will be waived for up to five participants. To registeryour interest, please submit the following documents in PDF format, andindicate whether you wish to be considered for a fee waiver.

- Curriculum vitae (up to two pages), indicating level of English languageattainment.- Description of research interests and potential benefits of participation(one page).

Page Updated: 28-Feb-2013