Semantic Restrictions Research Articles

Collapsing towers of interpreters

Given a tower of interpreters, i.e., a sequence of multiple interpreters interpreting one another as input programs, we aim to collapse this tower into a compiler that removes all interpretive overhead and runs in a single pass. In the real world, a use case might be Python code executed by an x86 runtime, on a CPU emulated in a JavaScript VM, running on an ARM CPU. Collapsing such a tower can not only exponentially improve runtime performance, but also enable the use of base-language tools for interpreted programs, e.g., for analysis and verification. In this paper, we lay the foundations in an idealized but realistic setting. We present a multi-level lambda calculus that features staging constructs and stage polymorphism: based on runtime parameters, an evaluator either executes source code (thereby acting as an interpreter) or generates code (thereby acting as a compiler). We identify stage polymorphism, a programming model from the domain of high-performance program generators, as the key mechanism to make such interpreters compose in a collapsible way. We present Pink, a meta-circular Lisp-like evaluator on top of this calculus, and demonstrate that we can collapse arbitrarily many levels of self-interpretation, including levels with semantic modifications. We discuss several examples: compiling regular expressions through an interpreter to base code, building program transformers from modi ed interpreters, and others. We develop these ideas further to include reflection and reification, culminating in Purple, a reflective language inspired by Brown, Blond, and Black, which realizes a conceptually infinite tower, where every aspect of the semantics can change dynamically. Addressing an open challenge, we show how user programs can be compiled and recompiled under user-modified semantics.

From KLM-style conditionals to defeasible modalities, and back

We investigate an aspect of defeasibility that has somewhat been overlooked by the non-monotonic reasoning community, namely that of defeasible modes of reasoning. These aim to formalise defeasibility of the traditional notion of necessity in modal logic, in particular of its different readings as action, knowledge and others in specific contexts, rather than defeasibility of conditional forms. Building on an extension of the preferential approach to modal logics, we introduce new modal osperators with which to formalise the notion of defeasible necessity and distinct possibility, and that can be used to represent expected effects, refutable knowledge, and so on. We show how KLM-style conditionals can smoothly be integrated with our richer language. We also propose a tableau calculus which is sound and complete with respect to our modal preferential semantics, and of which the computational complexity remains in the same class as that of the underlying classical modal logic.

Triviality Results for Probabilistic Modals

In recent years, a number of theorists have claimed that beliefs about probability are transparent. To believe probably p is simply to have a high credence that p. In this paper, I prove a variety of triviality results for theses like the above. I show that such claims are inconsistent with the thesis that probabilistic modal sentences have propositions or sets of worlds as their meaning. Then I consider the extent to which a dynamic semantics for probabilistic modals can capture theses connecting belief, certainty, credence, and probability. I show that although a dynamic semantics for probabilistic modals does allow one to validate such theses, it can only do so at a cost. I prove that such theses can only be valid if probabilistic modals do not satisfy the axioms of the probability calculus.

Contextualisation of Academic Terminology Collocations

This paper investigates the significant role of ' context' in the clarification and explication of words in English. It also sheds light on the linguistic environment within which the word operates, i- e- the collocates that occur in concomitance with this word .The research aims at exploring the formulation of words and vocables within the due context. This exploration, however, is conducted through the use of academic terminology in the framework of well-maintained context under certain semantic restrictions. Moreover, this work is an attempt to come up with answers to such questions as : What is meant by 'context'? How important is 'contextualization' for the clarification of words ? Do 'context' and 'collocationality' both contribute to the full understanding of words ?
 The objective of the study is to investigate, explore and probe into the unraveling role of 'context' and 'contextualisation'. The study is a two– fold investigation aimed at getting acquainted with on- campus terms as well as the framework within which such terms operate and perform their communicative function . The study concludes that "context" is inevitable for the conscious awareness desperately required by learners of English to fully grasp the sense intended. This, above all , saves the learner both the effort and time that may be consumed in the quest for the meaning of a word out of context.

The needs of the relatives in the adult intensive care unit: cultural adaptation and psychometric properties of the Chilean-Spanish version of the Critical Care Family Needs Inventory

Introduction The admission of a patient to an intensive care unit is an extraordinary event for their family. Although the Critical Care Family Needs Inventory is the most commonly used questionnaire for understanding the needs of relatives of critically ill patients, no Spanish-language version is available. The aim of this study was to culturally adapt and validate theCritical Care Family Needs Inventory in a sample of Chilean relatives of intensive care patients. Methods The back-translated version of the inventory was culturally adapted following input from 12 intensive care and family experts. Then, it was evaluated by 10 relatives of recently transferred ICU patients and pre-tested in 10 relatives of patients that were in the intensive care unit. Psychometric properties were assessed through exploratory factor analysis and Cronbach's α in a sample of 251 relatives of critically ill patients. Results The Chilean-Spanish version of the Critical Care Family Needs Inventoryhad minimal semantic modifications and no items were deleted. A two factor solution explained the 31% of the total instrument variance. Reliability of the scale was good (α=0.93), as were both factors (α=0.87; α=0.93). Conclusion The Chilean-Spanish version of theCritical Care Family Needs Inventory was found valid and reliable for understanding the needs of relatives of patients in acute care settings.

Modificación preverbial recibida e innovada: estudio semántico del esp. ante-, pre-, pos(t)- y sub- a partir de sus orígenes en latín

This paper analyses the continuity of verbs formed with the preverbs (preverbal morphemes) ante-, pre-, pos(t)- and sub- during the way from Latin to present-day Romance, in particular for Spanish. Without changing the grammatical meaning of the lexical stem, preverbs operate a semantic modification, as Coseriu coined it. The common analysis as the derivational counterpart of suffixation is misleading since preverbs are essentially an instance of composition including an adverb and a verb. Consequently, preverbs are not simple affixes but basic components in semantic terms. This paper shows how the semantic values of the preverbs transcend the verbs which currently contain them in their morpheme structure, independently of being inherited or learned words, or even verbs newly created in Romance.

Modality, Weights and Inconsistent Premise Sets

This paper investigates two types of data that appear to motivate complicating the semantics for weak necessity modals. I argue that these data can be captured using the same conceptual resources within a conservative extension of the standard quantificational semantics. The resulting analysis illuminates previously puzzling and underappreciated semantic and pragmatic properties of weak and strong necessity modals, and clarifies the special role that expressions of weak necessity play in conversation, deliberation, and planning.

The needs of the relatives in the adult intensive care unit: Cultural adaptation and psychometric properties of the Chilean-Spanish version of the Critical Care Family Needs Inventory

IntroductionThe admission of a patient to an intensive care unit is an extraordinary event for their family. Although the Critical Care Family Needs Inventory is the most commonly used questionnaire for understanding the needs of relatives of critically ill patients, no Spanish-language version is available. The aim of this study was to culturally adapt and validate theCritical Care Family Needs Inventory in a sample of Chilean relatives of intensive care patients. MethodsThe back-translated version of the inventory was culturally adapted following input from 12 intensive care and family experts. Then, it was evaluated by 10 relatives of recently transferred ICU patients and pre-tested in 10 relatives of patients that were in the intensive care unit. Psychometric properties were assessed through exploratory factor analysis and Cronbach’s α in a sample of 251 relatives of critically ill patients. ResultsThe Chilean-Spanish version of the Critical Care Family Needs Inventoryhad minimal semantic modifications and no items were deleted. A two factor solution explained the 31% of the total instrument variance. Reliability of the scale was good (α=0.93), as were both factors (α=0.87; α=0.93). ConclusionThe Chilean-Spanish version of theCritical Care Family Needs Inventory was found valid and reliable for understanding the needs of relatives of patients in acute care settings.

English Sentential Subject Extraposition: Toward a ‘How Far' and ‘Why' View

English sentential subject extraposition is a marked feature, but it is quite a systematic structure. This study aims to provide an extraposition occurrence environment and a plausible trigger for the extraposition of a sentential subject. To this end, we first identify a total of 414 examples of COCA corpus, and then discuss their predicates as well as sentential types. An adjectival predicate (52.2%) is frequently employed without a strict semantic restriction, whereas that-clause (55.8%) and to-infinitival clause (35.5%) are mostly extraposed at the sentence-final position. From this corpus data, we suggest that the extraposition occurs across no more than the first complement of a head verb if and only if the complement is not a clause. In addition, the extraposition is assumed to be triggered in order to maximize focus effect (i.e., degree of pitch increase) rather than its grammatical weight, information structure, or BNFC constraint. The essence of the extraposition can be interpreted without solely grounds of the complex syntactic constituents or the discourse-new/old structures. In other words, in order to achieve a speaker's desired result to put an emphasis on a main predicate, he or she employs the rise of pitch on the main predicate, thereby extraposing a sentential subject.

BELIEVING EPISTEMIC CONTRADICTIONS

AbstractWhat is it to believe something might be the case? We develop a puzzle that creates difficulties for standard answers to this question. We go on to propose our own solution, which integrates a Bayesian approach to belief with a dynamic semantics for epistemic modals. After showing how our account solves the puzzle, we explore a surprising consequence: virtually all of our beliefs about what might be the case provide counterexamples to the view that rational belief is closed under logical implication.

Influence of loanwords on English usage by Japanese learners of English

This study explores the impact of learners' pre-existing knowledge of loanwords on their English usage. An error identification and correction task, and a questionnaire were assigned to 86 high school students (27 first-year and 59 second-year high school students) and 34 university students in Japan. The data was analyzed in terms of the following two aspects: (a) influence of Japanese EFL learners' knowledge of English-derived words on their English usage and (b) a hierarchy of word difficulty among the five different types of loanwords. The finding has shown that negative transfer of English loanwords could be seen in learners' English usage. The study also found the existence of words' difficulty among different types of loanwords: Speech Modification > Semantic Modification > Wasei Eigo (Janglish) > Morphological Modification > Straightforward Loanwords ('>' means 'is more difficult than').; ;

PHRASEOLOGICAL NEOLOGISMS AND OCCASIONALISMS IN MODERN CZECH LITERATURE (in a novel “Night in Meidlovarna” by czech writer Eva Hauserova )

Introduction. Language is stipulated with the operation and interaction betweenthe traditional, regulatory signs and non-traditional, innovative units in it. Pre-requisites andconsequences of unconventional use of established collocations, as well as the linguisticpotential of phraseological units with the modified form / semantics / context are activelystudied by linguists working in a topical communicative-and-pragmatic field of linguistics.While the study of the factors, which stipulate the choice of phraseological units in the courseof arranging the formulation, and the motives or reasons of a speaker’s non-compliance withthe established convention while their use, the researchers focus on various communicative areas,i.e. the areas of phraseological units operation. Phraseological innovation should be deemed,based on the experience of the major Czech phraseological school, as any transformation,which makes any deviations from the modern Czech phraseological standard established inthe codification sources obvious in the semantic and / or formal structure of a traditionalphraseological unit. In belles-lettres texts, phraseological units serve as a valuable source ofbackground information about the national culture and mentality. The writers, in their searchfor unique means for expression of their thoughts, attempt to expand the expressive ability ofthe phraseological units, therefore they tend to offer the readers the modified variants of themmore and more often. Such creative modification of a phraseological unit makes a text uniqueand novel. The paper focuses on determining the idioms and phraseological units transformationsin the novel “Night in Meidlovarna” by Czech writer Eva Hauserová. The paper suggeststhe ways of idioms and phraseological units author’s transformations.Purpose. Comparison of phraseological stock in various languages primarily witnessesof historical contacts, the unity of geographical territory or – vice versa – of various natural orsocialcircumstances. Comparative analysis of two languages can reveal abundant linguoculturologicaland folklore information. Methods. The research is grounded on the methods of componental analysis, structuraland semantic analysis, and contextual analysis.Results. The article deals with issues of transformation of Czech phraseological unitsin belles-lettres texts and their translation into Ukrainian. Modern Czech literature is rich inthe examples of structural and semantic modifications of the phraseological units. As an exampleof author’s interpretation, a novel by Czech writer Eva Hauserova “Night in Meidlovarna” (Nightsat Party Central) has been studied. The collected material enabled to determine how oftenthe author applied the method of author’s transformation of the Czech phraseological units, howmuch the author’s substitution of the phraseological units’ content differs from the commonlyused one, and to identify the methods of phraseological unit transformation in the text. Thearticle also analyzes the difficulties the interpreter faces while translating the Czech author’sphraseological units into Ukrainian.

Plantinga’s Haecceitism and Simple Quantified Modal Logic

In a series of papers Alvin Plantinga argued for a serious actualist modal semantics based on the notions of possible world, understood as maximal possible state of affairs, and of individual essence (haecceity). Plantinga’s actualism is known as haecceitism. In spite of the fact that haecceitism has been thought by Plantinga to require a Kripke-style semantics, the aim of this paper is to show that it is compatible with constant domains semantics and the simplest quantified modal logic. I will argue that not only does this approach have all the advantages of a greater simplicity in combining quantification and modalities, but also it better conforms to the actualist program.

Clause-final particles and focus in Eastern Cham

We demonstrate that clause-final particles in Eastern Cham (Austronesian: Vietnam) are right-branching syntactic heads that trigger predicate raising. This provides support for Simpson (2001)’s analysis of a clause-final modal found in Vietnamese, Thai, and other Southeast Asian languages, and militates against a mixed-headed analysis (pace Kayne 1994). Evidence for predicate raising comes from a novel diagnostic: the interaction between focus-driven object shift and multiple clause-final particles in one clause. Finally, we propose that clause-final particles are VP-level focus phrases, which divide a sentence into a focus and presupposition (cf. Rizzi 1997) and incidentally contribute modal or aspectual semantics.

Aboutness in imagination

I present a formal theory of the logic and aboutness of imagination. Aboutness is understood as the relation between meaningful items and what they concern, as per Yablo and Fine’s works on the notion. Imagination is understood as per Chalmers’ positive conceivability: the intentional state of a subject who conceives that p by imagining a situation—a configuration of objects and properties—verifying p. So far aboutness theory has been developed mainly for linguistic representation, but it is natural to extend it to intentional states. The proposed framework combines a modal semantics with a mereology of contents: imagination operators are understood as variably strict quantifiers over worlds with a content-preservation constraint.

Processing epistemic modality in a second language: a self-paced reading study

AbstractThe current study brings together two novel perspectives: one is concerned with second language acquisition of complex modal semantics by learners of a Slavic (Croatian) language, and the other relates to online processing of modal auxiliary verbs in L2 English. The study sought to examine how English L2 learners process modal verbs

СТРУКТУРНО-СЕМАНТИЧНИЙ АНАЛІЗ ФРАЗЕОЛОГІЧНИХ ТЕРМІНОСПОЛУК У НАУКОВІЙ МОВІ СУЧАСНОЇ ЕКОНОМІКИ

The article analyzes the structural features of economic terminological syntagm of idiomatic type. The author defined semantic and grammatical modifications in economic terminological syntagm that underlie in their creation. The research shows that terminological word-combinations that appeared as a result of translation from English with the conservation of secondary nomination are selected and analyzed.

Класифікація засобів та методів семантичного пошуку в Web

Problems associated with the improve ment of information retrieval for open environment are considered and the need for it’s semantization is grounded. Thecurrent state and prospects of development of semantic search engines that are focused on the Web information resources processing are analysed, the criteria for the classification of such systems are reviewed. In this analysis the significant attention is paid to the semantic search use of ontologies that contain knowledge about the subject area and the search users. The sources of ontological knowledge and methods of their processing for the improvement of the search procedures are considered. Examples of semantic search systems that use structured query languages (eg, SPARQL), lists of keywords and queries in natural language are proposed. Such criteria for the classification of semantic search engines like architecture, coupling, transparency, user context, modification requests, ontology structure, etc. are considered. Different ways of support of semantic and otology based modification of user queries that improve the completeness and accuracy of the search are analyzed. On base of analysis of the properties of existing semantic search engines in terms of these criteria, the areas for further improvement of these systems are selected: the development of metasearch systems, semantic modification of user requests, the determination of an user-acceptable transparency level of the search procedures, flexibility of domain knowledge management tools, increasing productivity and scalability. In addition, the development of means of semantic Web search needs in use of some external knowledge base which contains knowledge about the domain of user information needs, and in providing the users with the ability to independent selection of knowledge that is used in the search process. There is necessary to take into account the history of user interaction with the retrieval system and the search context for personalization of the query results and their ordering in accordance with the user information needs. All these aspects were taken into account in the design and implementation of semantic search engine "MAIPS" that is based on an ontological model of users and resources cooperation into the Web.

How to embed an epistemic modal: Attitude problems and other defects of character

This paper develops a contextualist account of certain recalcitrant embedding phenomena with epistemic modals. I focus on three prominent objections to contextualism from embedding: first, that contextualism mischaracterizes subjects’ states of mind; second, that contextualism fails to predict how epistemic modals are obligatorily linked to the subject in attitude ascriptions; and third, that contextualism fails to explain the persisting anomalousness of so-called “epistemic contradictions” (Yalcin 2007) in suppositional contexts. Contextualists have inadequately appreciated the force of these objections. Drawing on a more general framework for implementing a contextualist theory (Silk 2016a), I argue that we can derive the distinctive embedding behavior of epistemic modals from a particular contextualist interpretation of a standard semantics for modals, general mechanisms of local interpretation, and typical features of discourse contexts. Examining embedding phenomena with epistemic modals raises difficult broader issues about conventionalization and pragmatic reasoning, the varieties of context-sensitive language, and the roles of context in interpretation. The paper concludes by briefly examining how the proposed contextualist account compares with certain relativist/expressivist accounts.

On the argument structure of raising-to-subject with passive predicates in Swedish

This paper concerns the argument structure analysis of raising-to-subject with passive predicates in Swedish and other Germanic languages. Support is given for the analysis in which the raising-to-subject construction constitutes a regular passive, the passive counterpart of active raising-to-object. The fact that there does not seem to be an active counterpart for certain predicates, such as the predicate say, as well as the fact that raising-to-subject does not seem to be possible with the periphrastic passive in Swedish is attributed to certain semantic restrictions on the raising-to-object construction and the periphrastic passive construction, respectively.