Information-based approach to punctuation

Abstract

This thesis analyzes, in an information-based framework, the semantic and discourse aspects of punctuation, drawing computational implications for Natural Language Processing (NLP) systems. The Discourse Representation Theory (DRT) is taken as the theoretical framework of the thesis. By following this analysis, it is hoped that NLP software writers will be able to make use of the punctuation marks effectively as well as reveal interesting linguistic phenomena in conjunction with punctuation marks.