Final

Due Thursday 12/17, to Canvas by 11:59pm (pdf only).

This exam counts for 35% of your course grade.

No late finals will be accepted.

Note: You may not discuss the final with other students (until after everyone has turned it in). Please send any questions about the final directly to me (via email) rather than posting on Canvas. I will respond by email and post answers as appropriate on the Canvas. Please read the Canvas discussion.

Note 2: Finals will be graded exactly as turned in via Canvas. It is the student's responsibility to double check that the pdf file is correct and legible.

Problem 1. A Tree (60pts)

A. Draw a tree for the following sentence, using the grammar from the textbook (Appendix A, plus the answer to Ch 8 Problem 2, available through the answer keys page on Canvas) and according to the instructions below. (NB: This problem is not only about long distance dependencies, but also about multiple phenomena involving the rules and principles of our grammar.)

Instructions

  1. Show the whole tree (i.e., no triangles under nodes).
  2. Assume lexical entries for the words instantiating appropriate types from the grammar. Specific tips:
  3. Label each node with an appropriate abbreviation (e.g., NP). Use CONJ as the abbreviation for a feature structure that is [HEAD conj].
  4. Show the values of SPR, COMPS, GAP, and STOP-GAP where they are non-empty. These values should include tags where they are identified with other structures in the tree (whole nodes or the value of SPR, COMPS, GAP and/or STOP-GAP on other nodes). At least one instance of each tag should be associated with a category abbreivation (e.g. NP). If the grammar requires coindexing (but not complete identification), show that with a subcript (NP_i).
  5. Please do NOT show the value for any other features. The tree is big enough as it is!
  6. Check your work: The correct tree has 23 nodes, not counting the leaves (word forms). I found 33 non-empty values for SPR, COMPS, GAP and STOP-GAP collectively. I used tags numbered 1-11, plus the index i. (You don't have to use the exact same numbers in the same places; this is meant to help you check that you have the right number of sets of identities.)

B. Describe each step in the cascade of identities that link the INST value of the formula predication to the DERIVED value of derive predication. Your answer should take the form of an enumerated list. Each item in the list should describe one step, i.e., state which features are required to have the same value and state which lexical entry, rule or principle of the grammar requires this.

Hints:

  1. I found 28 steps in this chain.
  2. You do not need to mention any lexical rules, nor any specific lexical types. Identities that come from either can be described as enforced by the lexical entries themselves.
  3. You should, however, account for identities required by the ARP (I found 9 of those).
  4. The Semantic Compositionality Principle is not involved at any point in this chain.

Please format your answer as a table, following the example below, where I given you the first and last links in the chain, plus one from the middle. (NB: The assignment of members of the identity as 'first' and 'second' is arbitrary, and either order is acceptable. Similarly, the steps can be listed in any order, though the problem should be easier if you follow the chain step by step.)

Number each step and do not give more than 28. (I will only grade the first 28 that you list.)

If you are formatting your exam in latex, please use this template for the table.

 Grammar entity (lex entry, phrase structure rule, principle) First member of identitySecond member of identity
1.Lexical entry for formulaThe INDEX value of N formulathe INST value of the formula predication
...   
N.ARPthird element of the ARG-ST of the V expectsole element of the COMPS list of the V expect
...   
28. Lexical entry for derive INDEX value of the second element of the ARG-ST of the V derive DERIVED value of the derive predication

Problem 2. Some Lexical Rules (40pts)

A. For each word in the following sentence, list the lexical rules involved in licensing its word structure.

Notes:

Check your work: Though there are 13 words in the sentence, they collectively represent 16 applications of lexical rules. One lexical rule is used 8 times.

B. Show the word structure for didn't as it appears in this sentence. Include the effects of the lexical rule(s) it undergoes as well as constraints inherited from types (e.g., those on auxv-lxm and its supertypes, as well as those on word). You don't need to show the RESTR values of the elements of the ARG-ST and valence lists or any other information that is underspecified by the combination of the lexical entry and lexcial rules but rather 'unifed in' from other parts of the tree.


Back to course page