Search

The subject of this book is how human beings construe their experience of the world. The construction of experience is usually thought of as knowledge, represented in the form of conceptual taxonomies, schemata, scripts and the like. The authors offer an interpretation that is complementary to this, treating experience not as knowing but as meaning; and hence as something that is construed in language. In other words, the concern is with the construal of human experience as a semantic system; and since language plays the central role not only in storing and exchanging experience but also in construing it, language is taken as the interpretative base. The focus of the book is both theoretical and descriptive. The authors consider it important that theory and description should develop in parallel, with constant interchange between the two. The major descriptive component is an account of the most general features of the ideational semantics of English, which is then exemplified in two familiar text types (recipes and weather forecasts). There is also a brief reference to the semantics of Chinese. Theoretical issues are raised throughout as they become relevant to the discussion, with the theoretical base being drawn from systemic functional linguistics. Both the theoretical and descriptive proposals offered in the book are compared and contrasted with approaches deriving from AI, cognitive science and cognitive linguistics.

Programming a computer to write text which meets a prior need is a challenging research task. As part of such research, Nigel, a large programmed grammar of English, has been created in the framework of systemic linguistics begun by Halliday. In addition to specifying function and structures of English, Nigel has a novel semantic stratum which specifies the situations in which each grammatical feature should be used. The report consists of three papers on Nigel: an introductory overview, the script of a demonstration of its use in generation, and an exposition of how Nigel relates to the systemic framework. Although the effort to develop Nigel is significant both as computer science research and as linguistic inquiry the outlook of the report is oriented to its linguistic significance.

"This book is intended as a survey of the major regions of the 'meaning-making' space of English grammar".

Text generation is the processing of information that is stored at a higher level than grammatical structures and lexical items (such as sentences and words), organizing and re-expressing it so that it can appear as a worded text. Of course it interests those working on artificial intelligence, but it should also interest linguists as a linguistic research task.

This book was conceived in response to the increasing recognition of the central role of communication in effective healthcare delivery, particularly in high-stress contexts. Over a three-year period, the research team investigated communication between patients and clinicians in five representative emergency departments (EDs). The book describes the communicative complexity and intensity of work in the ED and identifies the features of successful patient-clinician interactions. Drawing on authentic examples of communication within the ED, the book provides comprehensive communication strategies for healthcare professionals that can be readily integrated into everyday practice. ‘Professor Diana Slade and her colleagues have written an innovative and practical book on communication and relationships in emergency departments and their effects on the patient experience. Rarely does one find a book that so seamlessly translates research findings into practical action strategies. The book is an invaluable resource for the training of physicians, nurses, hospital administrators and others in healthcare.’ - Elizabeth A. Rider, MSW, MD, FAAP, Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School ‘My participation in the UTS Emergency Communication project provided extraordinary insights into the complexities and subtleties of communication encounters during a patient’s emergency department journey. This project has made a lasting impact on my daily work, and I hope will improve emergency patient care into the future.’ - Dr Nick Taylor, Emergency Medicine Specialist, The Canberra Hospital ‘The captured clinical conversations between doctors, nurses and patients are fascinating... The discussion and conclusions provide a rare insight into an integral and critical component of Emergency Medicine practice. The team, led by Professor Slade, was truly unobtrusive, professional and personable.’ - Dr Marian Lee, Emergency Physician, Director of Emergency Medicine Training