A Simple Syntax for Complex Semantics

As pact of a long-ranged project that aims at establishing database-theoretic semantics as a model of computational semantics, this presentation focuses on the development of a syntactic component for processing strings of words or sentences to construct semantic data structures. For design arid modeling purposes, the present treatment will be restricted to the analysis of some problematic constructions of Korean involving semi-free word order, conjunction arid temporal anchoring, and adnominal modification and antecedent binding. The present work heavily relies on Hausser's (1999, 2000) SLIM theory for language that is based on surface compositionality, time-linearity arid two other conditions on natural language processing. Time-linear syntax for natural language has been shown to be conceptually simple and computationally efficient. The associated semantics is complex, however, because it must deal with situated language involving interactive multi-agents. Nevertheless, by processing input word strings in a time-linear mode, the syntax cart incrementally construct the necessary semantic structures for relevant queries and valid inferences. The fragment of Korean syntax will be implemented in Malaga, a C-type implementation language that was enriched for both programming and debugging purposes arid that was particluarly made suitable for implementing in Left-Associative Grammar. This presentation will show how the system of syntactic rules with constraining subrules processes Korean sentences in a step-by-step time-linear manner to incrementally construct semantic data structures that mainly specify relations with their argument, temporal, and binding structures.