Course syllabus

Basic information

Schedule: TimeEdit

Teachers:

• Aarne Ranta (examiner)
• Arianna Masciolini

Programme Coordinator: Rasmus Blanck (e-post: rasmus.blanck@gu.se)

Study administrator: flov@flov.gu.se

Course notes: http://www.cse.chalmers.se/~aarne/grammarbook.pdf

Official course plan: http://kursplaner.gu.se/pdf/kurs/en/LT2214

Github repository for the course: https://github.com/GrammaticalFramework/comp-syntax-gu-mlt

Reading list: https://www.gu.se/en/study-gothenburg/study-options/find-syllabus-and-reading-list?hits=25

 

Goals and prerequisites

The goal of the course is to develop some hands-on skills for linguistic syntax and its applications. This is done by means of two software tools:

• GF, Grammatical Framework, for generating languages
• UD, Universal Dependencies, for analysing languages

A particular focus is multilinguality: we will look at examples from several languages and encourage students to work on their own languages in their labn work.

We expect you to know

• programming in Python
• use of basic programming tools: the command-line shell, a code editor (such as VS Code or Emacs), version control with Git

The most radically new thing may be functional programming in GF, and we will support this with all help you may need. 

Resources

UD, Universal Dependencies https://universaldependencies.org/

GF, Grammatical Framework http://www.grammaticalframework.org/

Machamp https://github.com/machamp-nlp/machamp 

Deptreepy https://github.com/aarneranta/deptreepy 

Inari's video tutorials http://www.grammaticalframework.org/doc/gf-video-tutorials.html

VSCode extension for syntax highlighting https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=lgrobol.vscode-conllu

More resources will be uploaded to Files on this Canvas page.

Programme (updates possible)

The sessions marked as Lab consist mainly of students' own work with a possibility to get supervision. The other sessions are more like lectures, but will include interaction and live coding. 

 

Linguistic syntax block

• 30/3: The big picture, basic syntax hands on (Aarne; Chapter 1 of lecture notes)
• 1/4 Lab: Install GF, get started with syntax implementation (Aarne, Arianna; Chapter 5)
• EASTER WEEK, no teaching
• 14/4: Parts of speech and morphology (Aarne; Chapter 2)
• 15/4: More on GF language, morphology implementation (Aarne; Chapter 5)
• 20/4: Agreement, morphology and syntax interplay (Aarne; Chapter 6) 
• 21/4 Lab: Syntax implementation, help with Lab 1 (Arianna, Aarne)
• 27/4: RGL, the GF Resource Grammar Library (Aarne)
• 28/4 Lab: Install RGL, more help on GF and Lab 1 (Aarne)
• 30/4: LAB 1 DEADLINE

Grammar applications block

• 4/5: Natural Language Generation from data, intro to Lab 2 (Arianna)
• 5/5; Lab: Install pgf library in Python, prepare for Lab 2 (Arianna)
• 11/5: Grammars in Python: pgf library examples (Aarne)
• 12/5: Lab: more help with Lab 2 (Aarne)
• 17/5: LAB 2 DEADLINE

Universal dependencies block

• 18/5: Universal Dependencies for syntax analysis (Arianna; Chapter 3)
• 19/5 Lab: Writing UD annotations (Arianna)
• 20/5: Training and evaluating dependency parsers (Arianna)
• 25/5 Lab: Help with parser training, Lab 3 (Arianna)
• 26/5: Lab Help with Lab 3 (Arianna)
• 1/6: Our ongoing research in computational syntax (Arianna, Aarne)
• 2/6: Recap and training for exam (Aarne)
• 4/6: Exam (8:00-12:00 paper, not digital)
• 8/6: LAB 3 DEADLINE

Each  session is 2x45 minutes, with a break in the middle. (The exam is longer, without breaks.) 

To get accepted for the course, one has to do the assignments and pass an exam. 

Examination

Assignments: three assignments, to be submitted in Canvas, graded U/G.

Exam: graded U/G/VG and determining the final grade for the course. The exam will be digital. Basic information about GF and UD will be given as a memory aid. This information, as well as questions, are similar to old exams. The last lecture will go through the exam and provide more advice.