Originally published in 1974, this volume presents empirical and theoretical investigations of the role of meaning in psychological processes. A theory is proposed for the representation of the meaning of texts, employing ordered lists of propositions. The author explores the adequacy of this representation, with respect to the demands made upon such formulations by logicians and linguists. A sufficiently large number of problems are encompassed by the propositional theory to justify its use in psychological research into memory and language comprehension. A number of different experiments are reported on a wide variety of topics, and these test central portions of this theory, and any that purports to deal with how humans represent meaning. Among the topics discussed are the role of lexical decomposition in comprehension and memory, propositions as the units of recall, and the effects of the number of propositions in a text base upon reading rate and recall. New problems are explored, such as inferential processes during reading, differences in levels of memory for text, and retrieval speed for textual information. On the other hand, a study of retrieval from semantic memory focusses on a problem of much current research. The final review chapter relates the present work to other current research in the area at the time.

The Handbook of Latent Semantic Analysis is the authoritative reference for the theory behind Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA), a burgeoning mathematical method used to analyze how words make meaning, with the desired outcome to program machines to understand human commands via natural language rather than strict programming protocols. The first book of its kind to deliver such a comprehensive analysis, this volume explores every area of the method and combines theoretical implications as well as practical matters of LSA. Readers are introduced to a powerful new way of understanding language phenomena, as well as innovative ways to perform tasks that depend on language or other complex systems. The Handbook clarifies misunderstandings and pre-formed objections to LSA, and provides examples of exciting new educational technologies made possible by LSA and similar techniques. It raises issues in philosophy, artificial intelligence, and linguistics, while describing how LSA has underwritten a range of educational technologies and information systems. Alternate approaches to language understanding are addressed and compared to LSA. This work is essential reading for anyone-newcomers to this area and experts alike-interested in how human language works or interested in computational analysis and uses of text. Educational technologists, cognitive scientists, philosophers, and information technologists in particular will consider this volume especially useful.

Originally published in 1974, this volume presents empirical and theoretical investigations of the role of meaning in psychological processes. A theory is proposed for the representation of the meaning of texts, employing ordered lists of propositions. The author explores the adequacy of this representation, with respect to the demands made upon such formulations by logicians and linguists. A sufficiently large number of problems are encompassed by the propositional theory to justify its use in psychological research into memory and language comprehension. A number of different experiments are reported on a wide variety of topics, and these test central portions of this theory, and any that purports to deal with how humans represent meaning. Among the topics discussed are the role of lexical decomposition in comprehension and memory, propositions as the units of recall, and the effects of the number of propositions in a text base upon reading rate and recall. New problems are explored, such as inferential processes during reading, differences in levels of memory for text, and retrieval speed for textual information. On the other hand, a study of retrieval from semantic memory focusses on a problem of much current research. The final review chapter relates the present work to other current research in the area at the time.

In 1932, Cambridge University Press published Remembering, by the psychologist Frederic Bartlett. The landmark book described fascinating studies of memory and presented the theory of schema which informs much of cognitive science and psychology today. In Bartlett's most famous experiment, he had subjects read a Native American story about ghosts and had them retell the tale later. Because their backgrounds were so different from the cultural context of the story, the subjects changed details in the story that they could not understand. Besides containing important seminal concepts, Remembering is fascinating from an historical perspective. Bartlett discusses the ideas and research of Ebbinghaus, Freud, Jung, and Spearman. In addition, his comparison of Swazi African culture and British culture is a study in cross-cultural psychology that was ahead of its time.

In this book, Walter Kintsch presents a theory of human text comprehension and extends his analysis to related areas. Comprehension is conceptualized as a two-stage process: first, approximate, inaccurate representations are constructed via context insensitive construction rules, which are then integrated via a spreading activation constraint satisfaction process. In Part I, the general theory is presented and an attempt is made to situate it within the current theoretical landscape in cognitive science. The second part addresses many of the topics that are typically found in a cognitive psychology text, including how word meanings are identified in a discourse context; how words are combined to form coherent representations of texts, both at the local and global level; what the role is of working memory in comprehension; how relevant knowledge is activated during reading; and what is the distinction between remembering a text and learning from a text. Researchers in the fields of psychology and linguistics will find this to be a most welcome contribution from one of the discipline's most celebrated scholars.

The" Handbook of Latent Semantic Analysis "is the authoritative reference for the theory behind Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA), a burgeoning mathematical method used to analyze how words make meaning, with the desired outcome to program machines to understand human commands via natural language rather than strict programming protocols. The first book of its kind to deliver such a comprehensive analysis, this volume explores every area of the method and combines theoretical implications as well as practical matters of LSA.

Readers will be introduced to a powerful new way of understanding language phenomena, as well as innovative ways to perform tasks that depend on language or other complex systems. The "Handbook "clarifies misunderstandings and pre-formed objections to LSA, and provides examples of exciting new educational technologies made possible by LSA and similar techniques. It raises issues in philosophy, artificial intelligence, and linguistics, while describing how LSA has underwritten a range of educational technologies and information systems. Alternate approaches to language understanding are addressed and compared to LSA.

This work" "is essential reading for anyone-- newcomers to this area and experts alike-- interested in how human language works or interested in computational analysis and uses of text. Educational technologists, cognitive scientists, philosophers, and information technologists in particular will consider this volume especially useful.

In 1932, Cambridge University Press published Remembering, by the psychologist Frederic Bartlett. The landmark book described fascinating studies of memory and presented the theory of schema which informs much of cognitive science and psychology today. In Bartlett's most famous experiment, he had subjects read a Native American story about ghosts and had them retell the tale later. Because their backgrounds were so different from the cultural context of the story, the subjects changed details in the story that they could not understand. Besides containing important seminal concepts, Remembering is fascinating from an historical perspective. Bartlett discusses the ideas and research of Ebbinghaus, Freud, Jung, and Spearman. In addition, his comparison of Swazi African culture and British culture is a study in cross-cultural psychology that was ahead of its time.

In this book, Walter Kintsch presents a theory of human text comprehension and extends his analysis to related areas. Comprehension is conceptualized as a two-stage process: first, approximate, inaccurate representations are constructed via context insensitive construction rules, which are then integrated via a spreading activation constraint satisfaction process. In Part I, the general theory is presented and an attempt is made to situate it within the current theoretical landscape in cognitive science. The second part addresses many of the topics that are typically found in a cognitive psychology text, including how word meanings are identified in a discourse context; how words are combined to form coherent representations of texts, both at the local and global level; what the role is of working memory in comprehension; how relevant knowledge is activated during reading; and what is the distinction between remembering a text and learning from a text. Researchers in the fields of psychology and linguistics will find this to be a most welcome contribution from one of the discipline's most celebrated scholars.

Beim Versuch, das menschliche Verhalten mit wissenschaftlichen Methoden zu studieren, muilten Experimentalpsychologen sich lange Zeit auf recht einfache Versuchsanordnungen beschranken. Es war nicht moglich, die ganze Komplexitat des Untersuchungsgegenstandes unter den eingeschrankten Bedingungen des psychologischen Labors zu fassen. Wir sind im- mer noch weit von diesem Ziel entfernt. Wie der vorliegende Band aber bezeugt, hat es auf einigen Teilgebieten der Psychologie, vorwiegend in der Kognitionspsychologie, in dieser Hin- sicht beachtliche Fortschritte gegeben. Ohne die strenge Kontrolle iiber Versuchsbedingungen aufzugeben - die ja das Wesentliche am experimentalpsychologischen Ansatz darstellt - ist es moglich geworden, relativ komplexe Vorgange, wie das bildhafte Vorstellen beim Textverste- hen, im Labor zu analysieren. Die Reihe von Versuchen, die hier dargestellt wird, zeigt, wie edolgreich diese Analyse sein kann. Worin besteht der Fortschritt in der Kognitionspsychologie, der diese reichhaltigen experi- mentellen Ergebnisse ermoglicht hat? Einerseits ist es natiirlich so, dafi die simplen, oft stark vereinfachenden Versuchsanordnungen unserer Vorganger eine Grundlage geliefert haben, auf der die neuere Forschung aufbauen kann. Dariiber hinaus lassen sich aber auch mehrere Fak- toren aufzeigen, die fiir den spezifischen Charakter der vorliegenden Arbeit verantwortlich sind. In erster Linie ist das Gewicht zu erwiihnen, welches hier auf den theoretischen Rahmen gelegt wird. Allzuoft wird der Fortschritt in unserer Disziplin dadurch gehemmt, dafi die For- schung sich ganz auf einzelne experimentelle Paradigmen und Miniatur-Modelle konzentriert.