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Carstairs-McCarthy’s Morphological Rules of English Language in RDFCFL

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Conference Paper · January 2018

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-53934-8_20

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Alena Lukasová Martin Žáček

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 Carstairs-McCarthy´s morphological rules of English
language in RDFCFL graphs

Alena Lukasová, Martin Žáček, Marek Vajgl

Department of Computers and Informatics, University of Ostrava

{martin.zacek, alena.lukasova, marek.vajgl}osu.cz

Abstract. The article presents an approach to express morphology and syntax

rules or specifications of basic terminology of the English language in RDFCFL
graphic metalanguage following the methodology of Andrew Carstairs-
McCarthy´s book. The formal modelling of English linguistics follows here two
levels: syntactical (investigating lexical and functional categories of speech, in
particular rules of their merging into larger units) and
semantic-based morphology of the English language which covers the
importance of language morphemes.

Keywords: RDF model, Clausal Form Logic (CFL), RDFCFL formal system.

1 Motivation

An RDF modelling principle of real world and human activities has become more
or less one of the leading approaches within artificial intelligence in the last decade.
Databases of RDF-linked basic statements describe a lot of most important areas of
real life. RDF modelling of a domain of real life has brought into knowledge
representation a strong demand on precise specifications of concepts within their
broader connections with other concepts of a modelled domain. From the point of
view of precise concept formal representation, Linguistics generally belongs to the
same category as exact sciences like Mathematics or Computer Science. No wonder
that some specialists in formal modelling of human thinking did not miss a possibility
to make an experiment with meta-language expressing basic linguistic concepts and to
formulate linguistic research methodology by the RDF model formal tools.

2 Introduction

The authors of the paper completed the original RDF model by introducing general
or existential statements (see [2]) as necessary conditions of formal deduction
corresponding to the natural human mental activity. Moreover, they have extended the
RDF model with ”if – then” form of sentences following the Richard´s method known
as “clausal form logics” (CFL).
2 Alena Lukasová, Martin Žáček, Marek Vajgl

We present here an experiment to express ground terminology of the English

language morphology and syntax on the base of first order logic’s graphic tools
RDFCFL. It seems that our meta-language representation of English grammatical
rules taking into account predicate logic´s semantic principle with its high
expressivity and easy-to-read graph-based form could generally bring new aspects
into language theory.
The aim of this paper is modelling of linguistics at two levels
─ syntactical: investigating lexical and functional categories of speech, in
particular rules of their merging into higher units; here a graph-based tool of
formal expressing became the RDFCFL metalanguage,
─ semantical: semantic-based morphology of a particular language which covers
the importance of language morphemes; here it is better to use simple semantic
(associative) networks together with some explaining by example.
All the life people learn to form sentences according to certain rules. Any natural
language has its own rules, e.g. the English language form sentences using a simple
formula SVOMPT (Subject, Verb, Objects, Manner, Place, Time), while the Czech
language has a structure that is much more complicated.
In order to odel a natural language, it is necessary to find suitable means in the
form of a formal system. As a default, the English language with its fairly simple
morphology rules has been chosen for our experiment.

3 Drawing sentences about English linguistics by means of

RDFCFL graph language or semantic network

T. Richards [4] proposed the Clausal Form Logic (CFL) built on the base of the
FOPL and well corresponding with common using of the conditional „if – then
“statement. Generally, a conditional statement (clause) says that the consequent
composed as a disjunction of some predicate atoms follows from the antecedent
composed as a conjunction of some predicate atoms.
The approach allows us to formulate clauses in the form
<antecedent> < implies> <consequent> (1)
Selecting a formal language for a knowledge representation is crucial. The formal
basis should become here the first order predicate logic (FOPL) base for its high
expressivity and a wide range of already developed formal deduction tools.
Knowledge Representation (originally those contained in Web resources), which
are based on a domain ontology usually has been created in the framework of RDF
(Resource Description Framework) model. An RDF model manipulates the semantic
aspect of terms specified through URI references to resources in which their meanings
are always elucidated by means of a certain position in a relevant ontology. The
graphic RDF model in its form is easy and simple to understand even for the users
who do not have experience with formal modelling. The idea is based on a simple
 Carstairs-McCarthy´s morphological rules of English language in RDFCFL graphs
3

statement concerning relations between items (resources) in the form of basic vector
(Fig. 1):

Fig. 1. Basic vector

The vector pattern corresponds with the SVO part of the general SVOMPT pattern
of the English grammar.
The graph version of the vector representation uses notation of the Clausal Form
Logic (CFL [6]).
Developments in the field of formal knowledge representation clearly show that
the language of the FOPL and specifically its clausal form (in text or graph version) is
an appropriate formal language that can virtually represent any assertion formulated
in a natural language.
The graphic form of the CFL language [4] became the main idea of the RDFCFL
graph language used here. Clauses use dashed lines in the cases of antecedent vectors
and full lines for vectors of clause consequent.
By means of adding elements of Description logic [6] into the RDF model it has
been possible to communicate with the web language OWL that also increases its
expressiveness. Both languages in their text format are based on the XML syntax,
making it easy for their machine processing.
Besides the RDFCFL representation of a clause we also use a simpler tool
semantic network expressing interrelations of concepts in English linguistic known a
long time before informatics ordered them among formal modelling tools. We use
here the semantic network principle in the cases where the semantics of clauses is
more important than syntax of their corresponding rules.

Example
The RDFCFL graphic clausal statement of the form (1) in the following figure
expresses the fact:
4 Alena Lukasová, Martin Žáček, Marek Vajgl

Fig. 2. “Words are building blocks of a language.”

Words as building blocks of a language collected in its vocabulary expressed:

─ by a collection of simple atomic statements of the form (1) like “word1 is item
of a vocabulary”,
─ by means of an advanced RDF constructor rdf : bag (thick full line)
To each name of the graph items RDF CFL orders a URI identifier within a chosen
ontology (top-level or domain specified) conventional to the topic of linguistics.
In the book [1] Andrew Carstairs-McCarthy specifies the concept of word as
follows:
“Words are units of language which are basic in two senses:
─ in that they have meanings that are unpredictable and so must be listed in
dictionaries and
─ in that they are the building-blocks out of which phrases and sentences are
formed.”
 Carstairs-McCarthy´s morphological rules of English language in RDFCFL graphs
5

Fig. 3. 2 Ad 1 semantic network expressing the role of dictionary to explain an unpredictable

word.

Fig. 4. Ad 2 pattern of the role of words as building blocks of phrases or sentences.

Acknowledgments

The research described here has been financially supported by University of

Ostrava grant SGS13/PŘF/16. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or
recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not reflect
the views of the sponsors.
 6 Alena Lukasová, Martin Žáček, Marek Vajgl

Conclusion

We see a usability of our RDFCFL approach in two directions:

1. As an easy-to-understand tool of representation of language grammatical rules. It is
possible to use only a simple semantic network.
2. The approach based on logical principles could push authors of definitions or
specifications of rules to hold within special grammar categories to specify
carefully what are items of clauses, antecedents – prerequisites and consequents –
conclusions of clauses represented truth-full general sentences.
3. As a part of the knowledge base of general rules in domain ontology for concrete
natural language because it gives a possibility of rewriting also into OWL
language.
4. As a general part of the knowledge base together with further clauses describing
the represented world gives a possibility to obtain new conclusions by means of the
RDFCFL formal system.
Further work will be in this area: Creating words would inflexion and derivation,
work with morphemes.

References
1. Andrew Carstairs-McCarthy: An Introduction to English Morphology: Words and
Their Structure. Edinburgh University Press 2002, ISBN 0748613269.
2. Lukasová, A., Vajgl, M., Žáček, M.: Reasoning in RDF graphic formal system with
quantifiers.Proceedings of the International Multikonference on Computer Science
and Information Technology. 2010. pp. 67-72.
3. Lukasová, A., Žáček, M., Vajgl, M., Kotyrba, M.: Resolution Reasoning by RDF
Clausal Form Logic. IJCSI International Journal of Computer Science Issues, Vol. 9,
Issue 3, No 1, May 2012. ISSN (Online): 1694-0814. www.IJCSI.org, 2012.
4. Lukasová, A., Žáček, M., Vajgl, M.: Reasoning in Graph-based Clausal Form Logic.
IJCSI International Journal of Computer Science Issues, Vol. 9, Issue 1, No 3, 2012,
pp. 37-43. ISSN (Online) 1694-0814.
5. Richards, T.: Clausal Form Logic. An Introduction to the Logic of Computer
Reasoning. Addison – Wesley, 1989.
6. Baader, F., D. Calvanese,D.,D. McGuinness, D., Nardi, D., Patel-Schneider,P.: The
Destription Logic Handbook, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2004.

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