MCC 101 Talk to Me
Assignment 6: due
Read Chapter 5 in Fromkin book.
This week, we will look at Semantics, the subject of Chapter 5. This chapter describes how words, alone and in phrases, impart meaning. The Big Point will be that much of the meaning of any sentence comes from
a) details about what the words really mean (e.g. some adjectives give more detail about their nouns; others change their meaning. Note the difference between “red balloon” and “counterfeit dollar”).
b) the underlying syntax of the sentences – how the words combine to make a distinct meaning (e.g. the different readings of “I saw the boy with the telescope”)
c) subtle differences between the reference of a sentence and the sense of the sentence (“the red brick” might be the same as “the third brick on the left” but they have different senses) .
d) the thematic roles of words in a sentence or series of sentences that describe their interdependencies.
To look at these issues, please answer the following questions at the end of the chapter, starting on page 222:
#1 (do as many as you need to do to get the gist), #3, #5 if you want to try to become famous, #7, #10, #18.
We will also look at Eliza, a computer program that acts like a therapist. There are several Eliza’s online. One is
http://www.manifestation.com/neurotoys/eliza.php3
A description of Eliza can be found at http://i5.nyu.edu/~mm64/x52.9265/january1966.html.
Give her a try and look up how she runs. (You know I’m in need of an actual therapist when I begin to refer to a computer program as “she”)