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61A logic of intentions and beliefsJournal of Philosophical Logic 22 (5). 1993.Intentions are an important concept in Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science. We present a formal theory of intentions and beliefs based on Discourse Representation Theory that captures many of their important logical properties. Unlike possible worlds approaches, this theory does not assume that agents are perfect reasoners, and gives a realistic view of their internal architecture; unlike most representational approaches, it has an objective semantics, and does not rely on an ad hoc la…Read more
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53The Knower's Paradox and Representational Theories of AttitudesJournal of Symbolic Logic 53 (2): 666. 1988.
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50
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47A large view of linguistic contentPragmatics and Cognition 15 (1): 17-39. 2007.This essay lays out a view of linguistic content in which discourse context plays an essential role. It provides a role for sentential content by using underspecification but argues that discourse level phenomena are essential not only to determining content but even grammaticality judgments in certain cases. It is thus argued that the traditional view which separates very strictly the areas of semantics — a context insensitive notion of meaning — and pragmatics — a non linguistic notion of spea…Read more
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41Strategic Conversations Under Imperfect Information: Epistemic Message Exchange GamesJournal of Logic, Language and Information 27 (4): 343-385. 2018.This paper refines the game theoretic analysis of conversations in Asher et al. by adding epistemic concepts to make explicit the intuitive idea that conversationalists typically conceive of conversational strategies in a situation of imperfect information. This ‘epistemic’ turn has important ramifications for linguistic analysis, and we illustrate our approach with a detailed treatment of linguistic examples.
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41BridgingJournal of Semantics 15 (1): 83-113. 1998.In this paper, we offer a novel analysis of bridging, paying particular attention to definite descriptions. We argue that extant theories don't do justice to the way different knowledge resources interact. In line with Hobbs (1979), we claim that the rhetorical connections between the propositions introduced in the text play an important part. But our work is distinct from his in that we model how this source of information interacts with compositional and lexical semantics. We formalize bridgin…Read more
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38Bias in semantic and discourse interpretationLinguistics and Philosophy 45 (3): 393-429. 2022.In this paper, we show how game theoretic work on conversation combined with a theory of discourse structure provides a framework for studying interpretive bias and how bias affects the production and interpretation of linguistic content. We model the influence of author bias on the discourse content and structure of the author’s linguistic production and interpreter bias on the interpretation of ambiguous or underspecified elements of that content and structure. Interpretive bias is an essentia…Read more
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34Preference ChangeJournal of Logic, Language and Information 24 (3): 267-288. 2015.Most models of rational action assume that all possible states and actions are pre-defined and that preferences change only when beliefs do. But several decision and game problems lack these features, calling for a dynamic model of preferences: preferences can change when unforeseen possibilities come to light or when there is no specifiable or measurable change in belief. We propose a formally precise dynamic model of preferences that extends an existing static model. Our axioms for updating pr…Read more
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31Context in content compositionIn Ruth M. Kempson, Tim Fernando & Nicholas Asher (eds.), Philosophy of Linguistics, North Holland. pp. 229. 2012.
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30Metaphor in DiscourseIn Pierrette Bouillon & Federica Busa (eds.), The Language of Word Meaning, Cambridge University Press. pp. 262-289. 2001.
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30Message Exchange Games in Strategic ContextsJournal of Philosophical Logic 46 (4): 355-404. 2017.When two people engage in a conversation, knowingly or unknowingly, they are playing a game. Players of such games have diverse objectives, or winning conditions: an applicant trying to convince her potential employer of her eligibility over that of a competitor, a prosecutor trying to convict a defendant, a politician trying to convince an electorate in a political debate, and so on. We argue that infinitary games offer a natural model for many structural characteristics of such conversations. …Read more
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25Discourse representation theory and belief dynamicsIn André Fuhrmann & Michael Morreau (eds.), The Logic of Theory Change, Springer. pp. 282--321. 1991.
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20Correction to: Message Exchange Games in Strategic ContextsJournal of Philosophical Logic 47 (6): 1085-1085. 2018.Our paper, ‘Message Exchange Games in Strategic Contexts’ lost the funding information and acknowledgments. We had put in it on its way to publication. We include them in this erratum here.
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18A Large View Of Linguistic ContentPragmatics and Cognition 15 (1): 17-39. 2007.This essay lays out a view of linguistic content in which discourse context plays an essential role. It provides a role for sentential content by using underspecification but argues that discourse level phenomena are essential not only to determining content but even grammaticality judgments in certain cases. It is thus argued that the traditional view which separates very strictly the areas of semantics — a context insensitive notion of meaning — and pragmatics — a non linguistic notion of spea…Read more
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11Aspectual coercions in content compositionIn L. Filipovic & K. M. Jaszczolt (eds.), Space and Time in Languages and Cultures: Language, Culture, and Cognition, John Benjamins. pp. 55. 2012.
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9Temporal modificationIn Kasia M. Jaszczolt & Louis de Saussure (eds.), Time: Language, Cognition & Reality, Oxford University Press. pp. 1--15. 2013.
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2Dynamic discourse semantics for embedded speech actsIn Savas L. Tsohatzidis (ed.), John Searle's Philosophy of Language: Force, Meaning and Mind, Cambridge University Press. 2007.
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1Grammaticality and meaning shiftIn Gil Sagi & Jack Woods (eds.), The Semantic Conception of Logic : Essays on Consequence, Invariance, and Meaning, Cambridge University Press. 2021.
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1The semantics and pragmatics of metaphorIn Pierrette Bouillon & Federica Busa (eds.), The Language of Word Meaning, Cambridge University Press. pp. 262--289. 2001.
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Roundtable discussionIn Philip P. Hanson (ed.), Information, Language and Cognition, University of British Columbia Press. pp. 198--216. 1990.
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What Some Generic Sentences MeanIn Greg N. Carlson & Francis Jeffry Pelletier (eds.), The Generic Book, University of Chicago Press. pp. 300--339. 1995.
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Modality, Morality and Belief: Essays in Honor of Ruth Barcan MarcusPhilosophy 71 (275): 167-172. 1996.
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Philosophy of Language |
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Pragmatics |
Truth |
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Philosophy of Language |
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