Landman (2020): Iceberg Semantics for Mass Nouns and Count Nouns #
Landman interprets a noun phrase as an i-set, a body together with a base that generates the body under sum. Counting is relative to the base, and it is correct when the base is disjoint, whether or not the algebra has atoms. An i-set is count when its base is disjoint and neat when its base is generated by a disjoint set of base-atoms, and a non-null i-set is mass when it is not count and mess when it is not neat. The Head principle computes the base of a complex noun phrase from the base of its head, so modification, pluralization and numerals preserve count and neat.
Main definitions #
sumClosure: the closure*Xof a set under arbitrary sums, as a closure operator.Generates X Y:XgeneratesYunder sum.atomsIn Z,Atomistic Z: theZ-atoms and atomisticity relative toZ.card Z x: the number ofZ-parts ofx.ISet, withISet.IsCount,ISet.IsMass,ISet.IsNeatandISet.IsMess.ISet.restrict: the Head principle;ISet.sep,ISet.plurandISet.numberare its instances for modifiers, the plural and numerals.ISet.IsSumNeutral: the sum neutral i-sets of nouns like poultry.
Main results #
sumClosureOrderIso: over a disjoint base without⊥, the sums of base elements correspond to the sets of base elements, so a sum counts as many as it sums (card_sSup).ISet.isNeat_iff: an i-set is neat iff its base is generated by a disjoint set of its objects.ISet.IsCount.isNeat,ISet.IsMess.isMass: count i-sets are neat, and mess i-sets are mass.ISet.IsCount.restrict,ISet.IsNeat.restrict: the Head principle preserves count and neat.ISet.mem_number_plur_sep_singular: three white cats denotes the sums of three white cats.Pottery.isNeat,Ironware.not_atomistic: a neat mass noun, and the atomic base that is not neat because it is not atomistic.
Implementation notes #
Landman works in a complete Boolean algebra. The definitions need only a complete lattice and the
counting results only the frame law, so they are stated at those levels. card is total; its
presupposition that the base is disjoint is a hypothesis of the theorems about it, as is ⊥ ∉ Z,
without which ⊥ would count as a base element. The pottery and ironware models take items to be
singletons of a power set.
TODO #
The intensional layer of §6.1.3–6.1.4 (count, neat and mess intensions, conceptual and contextual disjointness) and the i-objects that interpret definite DPs are not formalized.
References #
Closure and generation under sum (ch. 2) #
The closure *X of X under sum is the set of sums of subsets of X. It contains
⊥ = ⊔∅.
Equations
- Landman2020.sumClosure = ClosureOperator.ofPred (fun (X : Set B) => sSup '' 𝒫 X) (fun (S : Set B) => ∀ T ⊆ S, sSup T ∈ S) ⋯ ⋯ ⋯
Instances For
Discarding ⊥ from the generators does not change their sums.
X generates Y under sum if every element of Y is a sum of elements of X and Y and X
have the same sum.
- subset_sumClosure : Y ⊆ sumClosure X
- sSup_eq : sSup Y = sSup X
Instances For
A subset of Y that generates every element of Y generates Y.
Sums of elements of X are sums of elements of any set that generates X.
Relative atoms (ch. 2) #
The Z-atoms are the minimal elements of Z \ {⊥}, the objects of Z.
Equations
- Landman2020.atomsIn Z = {a : B | Minimal (fun (x : B) => x ∈ Z \ {⊥}) a}
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An atom of the algebra that lies in Z is a Z-atom.
Relative to the whole algebra, the Z-atoms are the atoms.
Z is atomistic if every element of Z is the sum of the Z-atoms below it.
Equations
- Landman2020.Atomistic Z = ∀ b ∈ Z, sSup (Set.Iic b ∩ Landman2020.atomsIn Z) = b
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Z is atomic if every object of Z has a Z-atom below it.
Equations
- Landman2020.Atomic Z = ∀ b ∈ Z \ {⊥}, (Set.Iic b ∩ Landman2020.atomsIn Z).Nonempty
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Z is atomless if it has no Z-atoms.
Equations
- Landman2020.Atomless Z = (Landman2020.atomsIn Z = ∅)
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A disjoint set has its objects as atoms.
A disjoint set of objects of Z that generates every element of Z is the set of
Z-atoms.
Restricting Z to the parts of c keeps exactly the Z-atoms below c.
An atomless set with an object is not disjoint.
Distribution sets and cardinality (§5.2) #
The distribution set of x relative to Z is Iic x ∩ Z, the book's (x] ∩ Z.
Every sum of elements of Z is the sum of its distribution set.
card Z x is the cardinality of x relative to Z, the number of its Z-parts.
Equations
- Landman2020.card Z x = (Set.Iic x ∩ Z).ncard
Instances For
Over a disjoint base, a base object lies below a sum of base elements only if it is one of them.
Over a disjoint base without ⊥, the distribution set of a sum of base elements is the set
summed.
Over a disjoint base without ⊥, a sum determines its summands.
Over a disjoint base without ⊥, the sums of base elements are order-isomorphic to the sets of
base elements, as the elements of a complete atomic Boolean algebra are to the sets of its
atoms.
Equations
- One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.
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Over a disjoint base without ⊥, a sum counts as many as the base elements it sums.
A base element counts as one.
I-sets (§5.1, §6.1.2) #
An i-set is a body together with a base that generates it under sum.
- body : Set B
The body is the set the noun phrase denotes.
- base : Set B
The base is the set in terms of which the body is counted.
Instances For
The i-set ⟨Z, Z⟩ of a singular noun, such as ⟨CAT, CAT⟩ for cat.
Equations
- Landman2020.ISet.singular Z = { body := Z, base := Z, generates := ⋯ }
Instances For
The i-set ⟨*Z, Z⟩ generated by a base Z, such as ⟨*CAT, CAT⟩ for cats.
Equations
- Landman2020.ISet.ofBase Z = { body := Landman2020.sumClosure Z, base := Z, generates := ⋯ }
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An i-set is neat if its base is atomistic with disjoint base-atoms.
Equations
- X.IsNeat = (Landman2020.Atomistic X.base ∧ (Landman2020.atomsIn X.base).PairwiseDisjoint id)
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The body of a neat i-set consists of sums of base-atoms.
The Head principle (§5.3, §5.4) #
By the Head principle, a body C generated by the base of a head H has as base the elements
of H's base below its sum, (C] ∩ base(H).
Instances For
The Head principle preserves count.
The Head principle preserves neat.
Pluralization closes the body under sum.
Equations
- P.plur = P.restrict (Landman2020.sumClosure P.body) ⋯
Instances For
The numeral schema keeps the body elements whose cardinality relative to the base satisfies
the number predicate N.
Equations
- Landman2020.ISet.number N P = P.sep fun (x : B) => N (Landman2020.card P.base x)
Instances For
A numeral counts the base elements of a count i-set generated by its base, so three cats denotes the sums of three cats.
Three white cats denotes the sums of three white cats (§5.4).
Sum neutral neat mass nouns (§7.1) #
The i-set ⟨*X₀, *X₀⟩, whose body and base are both the sums of X₀.
Equations
Instances For
An i-set is sum neutral, like poultry, if it is ⟨*X₀, *X₀⟩ for a disjoint set X₀.
Equations
- X.IsSumNeutral = ∃ (X₀ : Set B), X₀.PairwiseDisjoint id ∧ X = Landman2020.ISet.sumNeutral X₀
Instances For
Sum neutral i-sets are neat.
An i-set ⟨*X₀, *X₀⟩ with two distinct objects in X₀ is not count, since its base
contains both objects and their sum.
Pottery and ironware (§7.1) #
Pottery is a group neutral neat mass noun. Its base adds the cup and saucer and the teaset to the basic items, so it overlaps, and the basic items generate it. The ironware of the Excursus to §7.1 has an atomic base with disjoint base-atoms, which is neat on the definition of [Lan11], but the hammer is not the sum of the base-atoms below it, so ironware is mess. The water of §8.1.5 has the same profile.
The basic items are the teapot, the cup, the saucer and the fruit bowl.
Equations
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Equations
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The basic items are the singletons.
Equations
- Landman2020.Pottery.items = Set.range fun (i : Fin 4) => {i}
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The items sold as one are the basic items, the cup and saucer, and the teaset.
Equations
- One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.
Instances For
Pottery denotes ⟨*BP, BP⟩.
Instances For
Pottery is not sum neutral, since the teapot and the fruit bowl are not sold as one.
The ironware items are the pliers, the hammerhead, and the hammer, which is the hammerhead
together with its wooden handle 2.
Equations
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Equations
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Equations
- Landman2020.Ironware.hammer = {1, 2}
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Equations
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Ironware denotes ⟨*base, base⟩.
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Every ironware item has a base-atom below it.
The hammer is not the sum of the base-atoms below it.