The Interpretation of Functional Relations (Natural Language Processing, Case, Semantics, Knowledge Representation)

Abstract

This thesis deals with the representation of the functional relations such as agent, instrument, source and so on that are assigned to the various participants in a situation. It can be viewed as an investigation of that conceptual knowledge which defines what is and what is not a conceivable situation and how such knowledge is applied in the interpretation of natural language utterances.

The main body of the study concerns two interrelated topics. First, it contains a discussion of those functional relations that are the most likely to have universal application in the conceptual representation of situations. This discussion includes a concise definition of each of the functional relations proposed as well as a number of examples demonstrating the range of situations that it is intended to cover. Second, there is a description of the way in which this class of knowledge contributes to the interpretation of natural language utterances. The approach requires that a distinction be made between the literal interpretation of an utterance and its ultimate interpretation. Functional structure directly determines the former interpretation. However, the literal interpretation may be incomplete or ill-formed and, as a result, further processing on the basis of domain specific kinds of knowledge is required.

The general approach differs from others in that functional structure is viewed as but one of various levels or components of conceptual knowledge that effect both the form of linguistic expressions as well as the complexity of their associated conceptual representations. This enriched representation allows for directed inferencing with respect to particular domains of knowledge.