Learning to count: a computational model of language acquisition

Abstract

Effective procedures are described by which a learner can discover how to name the numbers 1, 2,..., 99,... in an unfamiliar language from a representative set of numerals presented in association with their numerical values. These procedures have been implemented as a computer program which will learn to count, and to interpret well formed numerals, in languages as diverse as English, French, Japanese, Mixtec, Suppire and Biblical Welsh; their effectiveness confirms the view that semantic information can be of considerable assistance in the acquisition of syntax.