Report Number: CS-TR-68-111
Institution: Stanford University, Department of Computer Science
Title: Analysis in transformational grammar
Author: Friedman, Joyce
Author: Martner, Theodore S.
Date: August 1968
Abstract: In generating sentences by means of a transformational grammar, it is necessary to analyze trees, testing for the presence or absence of various structures. This analysis occurs at two stages in the generation process -- during insertion of lexical items (more precisely, in testing contextual features), and during the transformation process, when individual transformations are being tested for applicability. In this paper we describe a formal system for the definition of tree structure of sentences. The system consists of a formal language for partial or complete definition of the tree structure of a sentence, plus an algorithm for comparison of such a definition with a tree. It represents a significant generalization of Chomsky's notion of "proper analysis", and is flexible enough to be used within any transformational grammar which we have seen.
http://i.stanford.edu/pub/cstr/reports/cs/tr/68/111/CS-TR-68-111.pdf