15.2214, Calls: General Ling/Canada; General Linguistics

Tue Aug 3 19:06:07 UTC 2004

LINGUIST List:  Vol-15-2214. Tue Aug 3 2004. ISSN: 1068-4875.

Subject: 15.2214, Calls: General Ling/Canada; General Linguistics

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            Helen Dry, Eastern Michigan U. <hdry at linguistlist.org>

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	Sheila Collberg, U. of Arizona
	Terence Langendoen, U. of Arizona

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1)
Date:  Mon, 2 Aug 2004 07:51:03 -0400 (EDT)
From:  nerbonne at let.rug.nl
Subject:  Progress in Dialectometry: Toward Explanation

2)
Date:  Mon, 2 Aug 2004 10:49:13 -0400 (EDT)
From:  acangelosi at plymouth.ac.uk
Subject:  Connection Science

-------------------------------- Message 1 -------------------------------

Date:  Mon, 2 Aug 2004 07:51:03 -0400 (EDT)
From:  nerbonne at let.rug.nl
Subject:  Progress in Dialectometry: Toward Explanation

Progress in Dialectometry: Toward Explanation

Date: 01-Aug-2005 - 05-Aug-2005
Location: Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada
Contact: John Nerbonne
Contact Email: nerbonne at let.rug.nl

Linguistic Sub-field: General Linguistics
Call Deadline: 01-Oct-2004

Meeting Description:

Progess in Dialectometry will be a workshop at the Methods XII
Conference on Methods in Dialectology, Aug. 1-5, 2005 at the
Université de Moncton, New Brunswick.  The workshop aims to feature
original computational work in dialectolgy, and most particularly work
aimed at explanations of dialectal facts and patterns in various
languages.

In dialectology computational techniques have brought improvement
especially with respect to analytical tools, data archives, and the
amount of data which can be subjected to analysis. The wealth of
potentially competing methods, and the initial computational
enthusiasm has also inspired careful examination and evaluation of
competing methods and techniques with an eye to letting dialectology
benefit maximally from the new technology.

The purpose of this workshop is to bring researchers together who are
working to harness computational power as a source of improvement in
dialectology.  Our focus is on dialectometry, e.g., the use of exact
measurements to determine dialect differences and/or similarities,
geographic or social distribution, or the incorporation of frequency
analysis or psychological findings. This workshop continues an
exchange begun at the Methods XI conference (and published as a
special issue of ''Computers and the Humanities 2003 (3)) and aims to
further this tradition of examining alternative techniques critically.

The workshop is particularly interested in contributions demonstrating
the utility of dialectometry in explaining linguistic variation,
either with recourse to extralinguistic determinants (esp. geography),
or on the basis of internal linguistic structure, e.g., the role of
pronunciation versus lexis (vs. syntax, etc.), or the degree to which
dialectal variation is linguistically regular.

Prof. Hans Goebl, Salzburg, has agreed to speak as a keynote, and
Literary and Linguistic Computing has agreed to publishing a selection
of the papers in a special issue.

Title:      Progress in Dialectometry: Toward Explanation
Organizers: John Nerbonne and Bill Kretzschmar
Time:       During Methods XII 1-5 Aug, probably at the end
Place:      Université de Moncton, New Brunswick

Abstracts:  400 wd. plain (ascii or Latin 1) text to nerbonne at let.rug.nl
Deadline:   Oct. 1 for Abstracts

Special:    There may be two 750-Euro bursaries available to students (before
            the award of the PhD) whose papers are accepted.  Note with
            your abstract if you wish to be considered for one of these
            (should they materialize).

Acknowledgement:  We are grateful to The Association for Literary and
                  Linguistic Computing for support

-------------------------------- Message 2 -------------------------------

Date:  Mon, 2 Aug 2004 10:49:13 -0400 (EDT)
From:  acangelosi at plymouth.ac.uk
Subject:  Connection Science

Connection Science	

Call Deadline: 01-DEC-2004

Call for Papers - Special Issue on:

The Emergence of Language:
Neural and Adaptive Agent Models

Connection Science Journal

- ------------------------------------

Studies of the emergence of language focus on the evolutionary and/or
developmental factors that affect the acquisition and
auto-organisation of a linguistic communication system. Both
language-specific abilities (e.g. speech, semantics, syntax) and other
cognitive, sensorimotor and social abilities (e.g. category learning,
action and embodiment, social networks) contribute to the emergence of
language.

Key research issues and topics in the area include:

- Emergentism as an alternative to the nativism/empiricism dichotomy
- Identification of basic processes producing language complexity
- Grammaticalization and emergence of syntax
- Emergent models of language acquisition
- Evolution and origins of language
- Pidgin, creole and second language acquisition
- Neural bases of emergent language processes
- Auto-organization of shared lexicons in groups of individuals/agents
- Grounding of symbols and language in perception and action

The main aims of this special issue are to foster interdisciplinary
and multi-methodological approaches to modelling the emergence of
language, and to identify key research directions for the
future. Models based on neural networks (connectionism, computational
neuroscience) and adaptive agent methodologies (artificial life,
multi-agent systems, robotics), or integrated neural/agent approaches,
are particularly encouraged.

The submitted papers are expected to: (i) focus on one or more related
research issues (see list above), (ii) explain the importance of the
topic, the open problems and the different approaches discussed in the
literature, (iii) discuss the advantages and drawbacks of the neural
and adaptive agent approaches with respect to other methodologies
(including experimental research) and (iv) present original models
and/or significant new results. Review papers may also be considered.

Invited Papers

The special issue will include two invited papers, one from Brian
MacWhinney (Carnegie Mellon University) and one from Luc Steels (VUB
University Brussels and SONY Computer Labs Paris). The invited papers
are:

- Brian MacWhinney, "Emergent Linguistic Structures and the
Problem of Time" (focus on neural network modeling)

- Luc Steels, "Mirror Learning and the Self-Organisation of Languages"
(focus on adaptive agent modeling)

Submission Instructions and Deadline

Manuscripts, either full papers or shorter research notes (up to 4000
words), following the Connection Science guidelines
(http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/authors/ccosauth.asp) should be
emailed to the guest editor (acangelosi at plymouth.ac.uk) by December 1,
2004. Reviews will be completed by March 1, 2005, and final drafts
will be accepted no later than May 1, 2005. The special issue will be
published in September 2005.

Guest Editor

Angelo Cangelosi
Adaptive Behaviour and Cognition Research Group
School of Computing, Communication & Electronics
University of Plymouth, Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1752 232559
Fax: +44 (0) 1752 232540
E-mail: acangelosi at plymouth.ac.uk
Web: http://www.tech.plym.ac.uk/soc/staff/angelo

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