[Attempto] @anaphoric reference

[Norbert E. Fuchs]

On 2 Jul 2009, at 23:07, Simon Spero wrote:

> On Thu, Jul 2, 2009 at 5:54 AM, Norbert E. Fuchs <fuchs at ifi.uzh.ch>  
> wrote:
>
> Previous versions of ACE allowed proper names in apposition to  
> common nouns, but that led to problems as, for instance
>
> A woman John sleeps.
>
>  I can see why using an indefinite article  doesn't work with ACE.  
> since that wants parenthetical commas, which break conjunctions:

The problem I was alluding to is not the indefinite determiner but the  
conflict of gender between "woman" (feminine) and "John" (masculine).

> (1) [[[A woman, John], and [a dog]] slept.]
> (2)  [[A woman],[John], and [a dog]] slept].

For the above reason (1) is not ACE.

(2) in ACE would be

A woman and John and a dog sleep.	(Note the present tense.)

> Is there also a problem with "The woman John sleeps." / "John the  
> woman sleeps."?

Both are not ACE, but not because of the definite determiner. The  
first is excluded because the current version of ACE does not allow  
proper names in apposition to a common noun. The second was never part  
of ACE.

> Also, since something is the top type, it subsumes any more specific  
> type that is bound to a variable;  would allowing variables of other  
> types to to match with it break things?

Let me try to answer your question from various points of view.

First, variables serve only for anaphoric reference; once introduced  
they always refer to the same item.

Second, variables do not appear in the DRS generated from an ACE text.

Third, variables per se do not have a type. A variable in apposition  
to a common noun has all the features of this common noun.  A bare  
variable - interpreted as the variable in apposition to "something" -  
introduces a singular object with undetermined gender. The gender will  
be determined once the variable is anaphorically referenced by a  
pronoun.

Here is an example.

X sleeps.						(gender of X undetermined)
X sleeps. He is tired. 				(gender of X is now determined as masculine)
X sleeps. He is tired. She ...		(generates an error message for the  
unresolved "she")
X sleeps. They ...					(generates an error message for the unresolved  
"they")

Fourth, subsuming a common noun to "something" is reasoning that is  
not done by the ACE parser APE, but for instance by the ACE reasoner  
RACE that lets you prove that "John has something." follows logically  
from  "John has an apple.".
Regards.

    --- nef