Textual Processing and Contextual Exploration Method

Abstract: For several years there has been a research effort at La.L.I.C. aimed at describing how to use context to identify semantic information. From our point of view, all signs occurring in a text that we call textual context, must be taken into account to determine whether a specific semantic information is present in a sentence or not. We have developed the contextual exploration method which provides the framework for identifying specific semantic information contained in texts. In this paper, we lay the emphasis on internal contexts and give some examples of operational systems using contextual knowledge. We have developed the SECAT system which captures the aspectual value of a sentence in order to understand it and to infer other information that may ensue. We have also developed the SERAPHIN and the SAFIR systems which capture specific semantic information held in texts. The conceptual model and the general software architecture of a contextual exploration system are succintly described