photographist

“Automatic language processing, or computational linguistics, concerns everything related to processing language by computer. Computing can be used to test linguistic theories, but also to analyse the mass of textual information we have to deal with. We can also inject linguistics into software aimed to facilitate communication for users, because we can communicate far more things with natural language than with formal languages such as programming languages! I first studied literature and then quickly became interested in linguistics and computing. I explored, and liked it, so I carried on! First linguistics, but then more and more computing, until I tipped over into computing! I am currently professor of IT at university and my students are budding computer engineers.

Analysing the semantics of natural languages... To understand a text, you have to understand how meaning is constructed in the language. This involves identifying key words and analysing references and all of these mechanisms that allow us to express ourselves and understand each other. We need to analyse the entire network of relations which allow a human to interpret a text or a message in a given context. I try to model and simulate these interpretation mechanisms on "specialised" texts – scientific or legal, for example. With my PhD students, we often work on real problems put forward by partner companies and sometimes we have to revise our entire analysis strategy! For me, analysing meaning is the key to processing and accessing information. The digital revolution is technical, yes, but it is above all content offered to humans and the services that go with it!"

Adeline Nazarenko
Professor of IT, University Paris 13

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