Computational Linguistics: An Introduction (Studies in Natural Language Processing) (Paperback)

by Ralph Grishman (Author) "Computational linguistics is the study of computer systems for understanding and generating natural language..." (more)
Key Phrases: transformational decomposition, unrestricted rewriting rules, transformational parsers, Restriction Language, Central Park, Linguistic String Project (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Instructors looking for a good introductory text to use in a course devoted to computational linguistics should consider this book as a strong candidate if they wish to emphasize a linguistics approach.... The book is interestingly written with many insightful discussions, and it is the only (introductory) computational linguistics textbook that looks at the field from a linguist's point of view." John Roach, Computational Linguistics

Product Description
In spite of the rapid growth of interest in the computer analysis of language, this book is one of the first to provide an integrated introduction to the field. Inevitably, when many different approaches are still being considered, a straightforward work of synthesis would be neither possible nor practicable. Nevertheless, Ralph Grishman provides a valuable survey of various approaches to the problems of syntax analysis, semantic analysis, text analysis and natural language generation, while considering in greater detail those that seem to him most productive. The book is written for readers with some background in computer science and finite mathematics, but advanced knowledge of programming languages or compilers is not necessary and nor is a background in linguistics. The exposition is always clear and students will find the exercises and extensive bibliography supporting the text particularly helpful.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (November 28, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521310385
• ISBN-13: 978-0521310383
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #412,412 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #18 in

  Books > Computers & Internet > Software > Natural Language Processing

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A nice and concise introduction to rule-based NLP, December 20, 1999

By	Brad Cupp (Sterling, Virginia USA) - See all my reviews

Grishman offers a readable account of the issues faced by Natural Language Processing research. The discussion is bolstered by examples from some of the more interesting NLP systems. These examples are shallow, permitting a light read and keeping the focus of the book on linguistic issues. The majority of the book covers standard syntactic and semantic parsing techniques, while discourse analysis, anaphora resolution and text generation receive only a quick treatment. Although some attention is paid to alternative approaches, Grisham chooses to phrase most of his discussion in transformational terms.

The most serious weakness of this introduction is its age. Certain assertions, such as the claim that "a finite-state network (regular grammar) is unsuitable" for language processing (p. 18) are seen in hindsight as questionable. Further, the current trend towards statistical analysis is unaddressed.

Warning: some understanding of predicate calculus is necessary to follow the sections on semantic analysis.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Computational Linguistics, March 12, 2006

By	Stavros Vlachoyannis (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The fields of Computer Science and Mathematics allow us to explore the capabilities of the human brain. Part of this exploration includes the understanding of spoken languages processing and the automatic interpretation of these via computational machines. This book gives a solid foundation of the field and allows new researchers to put into perspective all new publications related to compilers design materials. I found a number of confusing concepts in new publications so I needed to buy this book to clear in my mind other author's ideas.

This is a book that I strongly recommend to anyone who is serious about languages, compilers, interpreters, etc.

Stavros Vlachoyannis
CS Graduate Student
Polytechnic University