Graduate Program

Fall Term Schedule

Fall 2023

Number	Title	Instructor	Time
LING 406-1 History of the English Language Steven Rozenski TR 11:05AM - 12:20PM
All languages change over time, often in predictable patterns. Where did today’s standard English come from, and how is our sense of that standard tied to assumptions about race, class, gender, and nationality? To find out, we will begin roughly 5,000 years ago, studying the common ancestor of languages as different as English, Hindi, and Polish: Proto-Indo-European. We will learn about the prehistoric roots of English, then turn to the earliest written evidence of it: “Anglo-Saxon” or “Old English,” ca. 600-1100.The language was transformed in the wake of the Norman Invasion of 1066, as English became lower in status than both Anglo-Norman French and Latin for a few centuries. Next, we will learn about the growth of English, and its changes, in the age of Chaucer (Middle English) and Shakespeare (Early Modern English). Finally, we will explore processes of standardization, hybridization, and diffusion in the complex effects of English’s spread across the globe over the course of the past 450 years. Location Bausch & Lomb Room 270 (TR 11:05AM - 12:20PM)
LING 410-2 Introduction to Language Sound Systems Joyce McDonough MW 10:25AM - 11:40AM
The goal of this course is to provide a background for understanding the principles that underlie the structure of sound systems in human languages. Starting with the notion phoneme, the course focuses on acoustic and articulatory phonetics, as a basis for understanding phonological processes and change in linguistic sound forms. Students will acquire skills in the production, recognition, and transcription of sounds in various languages of the world. The course will serve as a foundation for work in language documentation, sociolinguistics and sociophonetics, morphology. Location Gavett Hall Room 310 (MW 10:25AM - 11:40AM)
LING 420-2 Intro to Grammatical Systems Joanna Pietraszko TR 3:25PM - 4:40PM
This course examines the grammatical structure of sentences from the standpoint of transformational grammar. The course develops the basic techniques of syntactic analysis in order to develop a working theory of a (fragment of) English. The theory is then tested against data from other languages and revised accordingly. Location Hylan Building Room 201 (TR 3:25PM - 4:40PM)
LING 425-1 Intro to Semantic Analysis Mary Moroney MW 2:00PM - 3:15PM
This course introduces students to the basics of the analysis of meaning in natural language. The first section focuses on devices that motivate certain forms to take on the meanings they have. The second section of the course moves on to discuss how meanings combine to form meanings for larger unitshow words and phrases combine to form sentences meanings. Using logical notation we illustrate the formal analysis of natural language meaning in terms of truth-conditions. We will discuss the basics of set theory, and investigate how meanings represented in these terms correlate with the syntactic and lexical structures of sentences of natural language. Students of graduate standing or those with strong formal backgrounds may consider starting with LING 265/465 instead, for which this course is ordinarily a prerequisite. This course counts towards satisfying the core course requirement for majors. Location Morey Room 525 (MW 2:00PM - 3:15PM)
LING 426-1 Morphology JC Wamsley MW 3:25PM - 4:40PM
The course examines the structure and definition of the linguistic unit 'word'' its typology and the relationship of the morphological component to other levels in the grammar. The course includes an introduction to analytical techniques with emphasis placed on an examination of data from a range of languages. The building blocks of words will be analyzed and topics such as affixation, reduplication and inflectional and derivational morphology will be covered. We will examine the properties of words and how they fit into the larger structure of linguistic knowledge, including the relationship between words and syntactic structure (ex., phrases and sentences) and the relationship between words and phonological structure (ex., phonological rules and prosodic structure). Location Lattimore Room 513 (MW 3:25PM - 4:40PM)
LING 440-1 Topics in Lang. Variation & Change Andrew Bray MW 12:30PM - 1:45PM
This course offers an overview of the study of language variation and change. We will examine some of the ways that spoken language varies according to the social characteristics and social motivations of its speakers. Methods for quantitative analysis of linguistic variation will be introduced. LING 410 or 420 recommended but not required. Location Lattimore Room 513 (MW 12:30PM - 1:45PM)
LING 445-1 Philosophy of Language Jens Kipper TR 11:05AM - 12:20PM
General nature of language and specific puzzles about language: the nature of truth and meaning, speech acts, reference, propositional attitudes, metaphor, understanding, interpretation, indeterminacy, etc. (PHIL 110 is recommended prior to taking this course.) Location Morey Room 525 (TR 11:05AM - 12:20PM)
LING 447-1 Natural Language Processing Hangfeng He MW 4:50PM - 6:05PM
This course addresses issues of representing computing meaning from natural language, especially issues of understanding language in context using commonsense knowledge of the world. Topics will include a survey of English phrase structure and parsing, semantic representation (e.g., events, semantic roles, time, causality and speech acts), and theories and techniques for understanding language in context, including intention recognition, text understanding using knowledge of scripts and plans, and models of spoken dialogue systems (e.g., conversational agents such as Siri). CSC447, the graduate level version of the course, requires a substantial individual project. Prerequisite: CSC 242 Location Computer Studies Room 209 (MW 4:50PM - 6:05PM)
LING 460-1 Syntactic Theory Joanna Pietraszko TR 11:05AM - 12:20PM
This course picks up where LING 420 leaves off, though focusing more on topics in natural language syntax from a cross-linguistic perspective. The goal of the course is an approach to syntax that accounts for both language-particular as well as universal constraints on language. Among the topics studied are head and phrase movement, constraints on co-reference (anaphora), elipsis, and agreement (phi features). Prerequisite: LING 420 recommended. Location Lattimore Room 513 (TR 11:05AM - 12:20PM)
LING 461-1 Constraint Based Syntax Arshia Asudeh TR 9:40AM - 10:55AM
This syntactic theory course examines syntactic phenomena from the perspective of phrase structure and lexicalist grammar as opposed to transformational grammar. The course will examine and develop phrase structure grammar (specifically Head-driven Phrase Structure Grammar) approaches to standard syntactic problems, contrasting them where appropriate with transformational approaches. No background in non-transformational approaches will be assumed. This course can be taken as LIN 261 or as LIN 461 and is meant for linguistics majors and non-majors alike. Location Lattimore Room 513 (TR 9:40AM - 10:55AM)
LING 468-1 Computational Semantics Julian Grove MW 10:25AM - 11:40AM
This course explores how functional programming, and specifically the λ-calculus, can be used as a powerful tool in the semantic analysis of natural language, as well as the computational modeling of linguistic behavior. The general trajectory of the course will be as follows. In the first part, we'll cover the untyped λ-calculus and type theory. This will take a little bit of time because we'll be building everything from the ground up, covering the syntax of each, as well as their operational semantics and the so-called ``Curry-Howard correspondence''. In the second part, we'll use the tools developed in the first part in order to study the compositional semantics of natural language (English) by building fragments. We'll enrich our semantic fragments with theories of computational effects; and finally, things will culminate in an approach to theorizing about human linguistic behavior (in an experimental setting) in terms of Bayesian computational models. As we'll see, the theories of computational effects we'll have investigated will be important here. Location Lattimore Room 513 (MW 10:25AM - 11:40AM)
LING 470-1 Preserving diversity in language and culture Jessica Charest TR 12:30PM - 1:45PM
This class is addressed to anyone interested in fieldwork involving data collection of spoken language, including for instance linguists, anthropologists, or historians. Languages and cultures are currently disappearing on an unprecedented level due to the effects of globalization and displacement of people. Minority groups are often the most affected. As languages and cultures die, we lose entire knowledge systems and communities an integral part of their identity. This class introduces you to major techniques and tools of collecting and curating language data, using it for your research purposes, and making it useful to speech communities and other scholars. We will investigate the importance of language as a social convention from an interdisciplinary perspective, including, e.g., issues in intercultural research and ethics in fieldwork. Students will design their own projects, depending on their personal interests, and receive hands-on training in audio and video recording, time-aligned annotations, data management, and archiving. Location Lattimore Room 513 (TR 12:30PM - 1:45PM)
LING 482-1 Deep Learning Methods in Comp Ling Aaron White TR 3:25PM - 4:40PM
This course covers advanced topics in computational linguistics, with a focus on the deployment of deep learning methods for advancing linguistic theory as well as the use of linguistic theory for designing deep learning models. Topics include phonotactic, morphological, and syntactic grammar induction as well as morphological, syntactic and semantic parsing. Prerequisite: LING 424 or CSC 447, Recommended Prerequisite: LING 481 or CSC 488. Location Lattimore Room 513 (TR 3:25PM - 4:40PM)
LING 495-1 Master's Research in Ling Joyce McDonough –
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LING 495-2 Master's Research in Ling Scott Grimm –
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LING 495-3 Master's Research in Ling Nadine Grimm –
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LING 495-5 Master's Research in Ling Maya Abtahian –
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LING 495-6 Master's Research in Ling Joanna Pietraszko –
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LING 495-7 Master's Research in Ling Aaron White –
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LING 501-1 Linguistics Graduate Proseminar Scott Grimm M 6:15PM - 7:30PM
No description Location Lattimore Room 513 (M 6:15PM - 7:30PM)
LING 590-1 Supervised Teaching Aaron White –
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LING 590-2 Supervised Teaching Scott Grimm –
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LING 590-3 Supervised Teaching Nadine Grimm –
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LING 590-5 Supervised Teaching Joanna Pietraszko –
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LING 590-7 Supervised Teaching Maya Abtahian –
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LING 590-8 Supervised Teaching Karl Sarvestani –
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LING 595-1 PhD Research in Ling Aaron White –
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LING 595-2 PhD Research in Ling Scott Grimm –
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LING 595-3 PhD Research in Ling Arshia Asudeh –
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LING 595-4 PhD Research in Ling Nadine Grimm –
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LING 897-1 Master's Dissertation Aaron White –
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Number	Title	Instructor	Time
Monday
LING 501-1 Linguistics Graduate Proseminar Scott Grimm
No description
Monday and Wednesday
LING 410-2 Introduction to Language Sound Systems Joyce McDonough
The goal of this course is to provide a background for understanding the principles that underlie the structure of sound systems in human languages. Starting with the notion phoneme, the course focuses on acoustic and articulatory phonetics, as a basis for understanding phonological processes and change in linguistic sound forms. Students will acquire skills in the production, recognition, and transcription of sounds in various languages of the world. The course will serve as a foundation for work in language documentation, sociolinguistics and sociophonetics, morphology.
LING 468-1 Computational Semantics Julian Grove
This course explores how functional programming, and specifically the λ-calculus, can be used as a powerful tool in the semantic analysis of natural language, as well as the computational modeling of linguistic behavior. The general trajectory of the course will be as follows. In the first part, we'll cover the untyped λ-calculus and type theory. This will take a little bit of time because we'll be building everything from the ground up, covering the syntax of each, as well as their operational semantics and the so-called ``Curry-Howard correspondence''. In the second part, we'll use the tools developed in the first part in order to study the compositional semantics of natural language (English) by building fragments. We'll enrich our semantic fragments with theories of computational effects; and finally, things will culminate in an approach to theorizing about human linguistic behavior (in an experimental setting) in terms of Bayesian computational models. As we'll see, the theories of computational effects we'll have investigated will be important here.
LING 440-1 Topics in Lang. Variation & Change Andrew Bray
This course offers an overview of the study of language variation and change. We will examine some of the ways that spoken language varies according to the social characteristics and social motivations of its speakers. Methods for quantitative analysis of linguistic variation will be introduced. LING 410 or 420 recommended but not required.
LING 425-1 Intro to Semantic Analysis Mary Moroney
This course introduces students to the basics of the analysis of meaning in natural language. The first section focuses on devices that motivate certain forms to take on the meanings they have. The second section of the course moves on to discuss how meanings combine to form meanings for larger unitshow words and phrases combine to form sentences meanings. Using logical notation we illustrate the formal analysis of natural language meaning in terms of truth-conditions. We will discuss the basics of set theory, and investigate how meanings represented in these terms correlate with the syntactic and lexical structures of sentences of natural language. Students of graduate standing or those with strong formal backgrounds may consider starting with LING 265/465 instead, for which this course is ordinarily a prerequisite. This course counts towards satisfying the core course requirement for majors.
LING 426-1 Morphology JC Wamsley
The course examines the structure and definition of the linguistic unit 'word'' its typology and the relationship of the morphological component to other levels in the grammar. The course includes an introduction to analytical techniques with emphasis placed on an examination of data from a range of languages. The building blocks of words will be analyzed and topics such as affixation, reduplication and inflectional and derivational morphology will be covered. We will examine the properties of words and how they fit into the larger structure of linguistic knowledge, including the relationship between words and syntactic structure (ex., phrases and sentences) and the relationship between words and phonological structure (ex., phonological rules and prosodic structure).
LING 447-1 Natural Language Processing Hangfeng He
This course addresses issues of representing computing meaning from natural language, especially issues of understanding language in context using commonsense knowledge of the world. Topics will include a survey of English phrase structure and parsing, semantic representation (e.g., events, semantic roles, time, causality and speech acts), and theories and techniques for understanding language in context, including intention recognition, text understanding using knowledge of scripts and plans, and models of spoken dialogue systems (e.g., conversational agents such as Siri). CSC447, the graduate level version of the course, requires a substantial individual project. Prerequisite: CSC 242
Tuesday
Tuesday and Thursday
LING 461-1 Constraint Based Syntax Arshia Asudeh
This syntactic theory course examines syntactic phenomena from the perspective of phrase structure and lexicalist grammar as opposed to transformational grammar. The course will examine and develop phrase structure grammar (specifically Head-driven Phrase Structure Grammar) approaches to standard syntactic problems, contrasting them where appropriate with transformational approaches. No background in non-transformational approaches will be assumed. This course can be taken as LIN 261 or as LIN 461 and is meant for linguistics majors and non-majors alike.
LING 406-1 History of the English Language Steven Rozenski
All languages change over time, often in predictable patterns. Where did today’s standard English come from, and how is our sense of that standard tied to assumptions about race, class, gender, and nationality? To find out, we will begin roughly 5,000 years ago, studying the common ancestor of languages as different as English, Hindi, and Polish: Proto-Indo-European. We will learn about the prehistoric roots of English, then turn to the earliest written evidence of it: “Anglo-Saxon” or “Old English,” ca. 600-1100.The language was transformed in the wake of the Norman Invasion of 1066, as English became lower in status than both Anglo-Norman French and Latin for a few centuries. Next, we will learn about the growth of English, and its changes, in the age of Chaucer (Middle English) and Shakespeare (Early Modern English). Finally, we will explore processes of standardization, hybridization, and diffusion in the complex effects of English’s spread across the globe over the course of the past 450 years.
LING 445-1 Philosophy of Language Jens Kipper
General nature of language and specific puzzles about language: the nature of truth and meaning, speech acts, reference, propositional attitudes, metaphor, understanding, interpretation, indeterminacy, etc. (PHIL 110 is recommended prior to taking this course.)
LING 460-1 Syntactic Theory Joanna Pietraszko
This course picks up where LING 420 leaves off, though focusing more on topics in natural language syntax from a cross-linguistic perspective. The goal of the course is an approach to syntax that accounts for both language-particular as well as universal constraints on language. Among the topics studied are head and phrase movement, constraints on co-reference (anaphora), elipsis, and agreement (phi features). Prerequisite: LING 420 recommended.
LING 470-1 Preserving diversity in language and culture Jessica Charest
This class is addressed to anyone interested in fieldwork involving data collection of spoken language, including for instance linguists, anthropologists, or historians. Languages and cultures are currently disappearing on an unprecedented level due to the effects of globalization and displacement of people. Minority groups are often the most affected. As languages and cultures die, we lose entire knowledge systems and communities an integral part of their identity. This class introduces you to major techniques and tools of collecting and curating language data, using it for your research purposes, and making it useful to speech communities and other scholars. We will investigate the importance of language as a social convention from an interdisciplinary perspective, including, e.g., issues in intercultural research and ethics in fieldwork. Students will design their own projects, depending on their personal interests, and receive hands-on training in audio and video recording, time-aligned annotations, data management, and archiving.
LING 420-2 Intro to Grammatical Systems Joanna Pietraszko
This course examines the grammatical structure of sentences from the standpoint of transformational grammar. The course develops the basic techniques of syntactic analysis in order to develop a working theory of a (fragment of) English. The theory is then tested against data from other languages and revised accordingly.
LING 482-1 Deep Learning Methods in Comp Ling Aaron White
This course covers advanced topics in computational linguistics, with a focus on the deployment of deep learning methods for advancing linguistic theory as well as the use of linguistic theory for designing deep learning models. Topics include phonotactic, morphological, and syntactic grammar induction as well as morphological, syntactic and semantic parsing. Prerequisite: LING 424 or CSC 447, Recommended Prerequisite: LING 481 or CSC 488.
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday