Works on constructing a computational model of phonological short-term memory. Initial goals include performing large-scale research for data on the characteristics of phonological retention and retrieval, learning existing theoretical constructs, exploring alternative computational methods, and gathering experimental evidence to constrain the…

Using data from a large second-language (L2) text analysis (160 texts, 62 variables) in which automatic analysis was not used, it is demonstrated that a computer program designed for first-language texts is not accurate enough to capture completely the structures used by L2 writers. Suggestions are offered for an L2 text analysis program. (17…

Ways for using computer-generated concordances in language teaching are suggested, specifically, a typology of exercise types. Kinds of information to be derived from a concordance (e.g., keyword-in-context type) are considered, followed by a discussion of the rationale and technical problems encountered. (10 references) (LB)

Reviews corpus-based research that draws on theoretical insights from systemics, genre, and discourse analysis for exploration of small-scale specialized corpora of academic writing. (Author/VWL)

Reports the results of experiments with MEDLINE that used lexical statistics such as word-frequency counts to discover hidden connections in medical literature. Discusses problems with relying on bibliographic citations or standard indexing methods to establish a relationship between topics that might profitably be explored by scientific research.…

Develops a model of language change characterizing the dynamic interaction between internal universal grammar and external linguistic evidence, as mediated by language acquisition. Borrows insights from the study of biological evolution, where internal and external forces interact in similar fashion. Applies the model to explore the loss of the…

Raises questions regarding the classification system Darwin and Gray offer for phrasal verbs on the basis of utility in the classroom. Darwin and Gray clarify the purpose of their classification system and provide additional corpus-based data. (Author/VWL)

Presents a method for extracting maximal frequent sequences in a set of documents. A maximal frequent sequence is a sequence of words that is frequent in the document collection and is not contained in any other longer frequent sequence. Frequent maximal sequences can be used as content descriptors for documents. (MES)

Highlights modes of evidence in large corpus research that may be significant for Sociolinguistics. Suggests that corpus data can help Sociolinguistics engage with issues and variations in usage that are less abstract then phonetics, phonology, and grammar but more proximate to the socially vital issues of the 20th century. (Author/VWL)

Uses the concept of "emergent texture" to analyze the corpus behavior of the four nominal demonstratives--"this,""that,""these," an "those"--in an interlanguage corpus created at Yonsei University in Korea in 1999. Investigates a corpus of 109 single paragraphs. The concept of markedness is…

In recent years, research has progressed steadily in regard to the use of computers to recognize and render sign language. This paper reviews significant projects in the field beginning with finger-spelling hands such as "Ralph" (robotics), CyberGloves (virtual reality sensors to capture isolated and continuous signs), camera-based…

This essay by Truscott and Sharwood-Smith is a valiant attempt with a laudable goal. It seeks to show how different perspectives and disciplines can capture what is happening in acquisition and notably in L2 acquisition. Nonetheless, I think that the results are much closer to an elaborated grammatical theory than an elaborated processing theory…

This paper describes a set of simulations which explore the way different features of lexical organisation affect the probability of finding a pair of associated words in a set of five randomly selected words. The simulation is equivalent to giving Ss a set of five words and asking if they can identify a pair of associated words among them. The…

We develop the view that inflection is driven partly by non-phonological analogy and that non-phonological information is of particular importance to the inflection of non-canonical roots, which in the view of [Marcus, G. F., Brinkmann, U., Clahsen, H., Wiese, R., & Pinker, S. (1995). "German inflection: the exception that proves the rule."…

Hesitation disfluencies after phonetically prominent stranded function words are thought to reflect the cognitive coding of complex structures. Speech fragments following the Swedish function word "att" "that" were analyzed syntactically, and divided into two groups: one with "att" in disfluent contexts, and the other with "att" in fluent…