CoSLI 2011 Computational Models of Spatial Language Interpretation and Generation { Preface { Joana Hois joana@informatik.uni-bremen.de 2 Robert J. Ross robert.ross@dit.ie 0 John D. Kelleher johnd.kelleher@dit.ie 0 John A. Bateman bateman@uni-bremen.de 1 Arti cial Intelligence Group, Dublin Institute of Technology , Ireland English Department and Research Center on Spatial Cognition (SFB/TR8), University of Bremen , Germany University of Bremen , Germany -

Competence in spatial language modeling is a cardinal issue in disciplines including Cognitive Psychology, Computational Linguistics, and Computer Science. Within Cognitive Psychology, the relation of spatial language to models of spatial representation and reasoning is considered essential to the development of more complete models of psycholinguistic and cognitive linguistic theories. Meanwhile, within Computer Science and Computational Linguistics and Engineering, the development of a wide class of so-called situated systems such as robotics, virtual characters, and Geographic Information Systems is heavily dependent on the existence of adequate models of spatial language use.

Achieving competence in spatial language requires that appropriate meanings be assigned to spatial terms used in language, such as location, motion, orientation, perspective, projective, topological, distance, or path descriptive markers. The computational modeling of such spatial language meanings in turn supports the interpretation of an intended spatial meaning as well as the generation of adequate linguistic expressions in certain situations and contexts. While early computational models for spatial language interpretation and generation primarily focused on a geometric understanding of spatial terms, it is now widely recognized that spatial term meaning depends on functional and pragmatic features in many ways. Competent models of spatial language interpretation and generation must thus draw on complex models of situated meaning by developing heterogeneous approaches with qualitative and quantitative models and by combining geometric, functional, pragmatic, and cognitive features in multi-modal contexts and applications.

Drawing together theories and results in spatial language modeling is a critical research topic for a range of research disciplines. These includes not only Psychology where computational theories can be used to bind experimental results and models, but also disciplines from the wider community, including: Arti cial Intelligence, Computational Linguistics, Human-Robot Interaction, Ontology Engineering, the Semantic Web, and Geographic Information Systems.

The main objective of the CoSLI-2 workshop is to foster computational formalisms and approaches for interpreting or generating spatial language that take into account cognitive, functional, or embodiment criteria in modeling. In particular, this years workshop theme is \Function in Spatial Language: From evidence to execution", and we welcome in particular any contributions which aim to address the issues of modeling function or pragmatic features in spatial language interpretation or generation. More generally, the workshop also welcomes contributions that address symbolic and embodied spatial language interpretation and generation. This topic remains an ongoing issue in both natural language processing and cognitive science, and novel work is encouraged. Such work includes both formal and empirical models of spatial language templates and linguistic calculi, corpus-based and statistical methods, combinations of symbolic and sub-symbolic representations, and aspects of sensory-motor and multi-modal information. Contributions to spatial language interpretation and generation that integrate results from empirical and psychological frameworks for spatial language and that can improve and support situated natural language systems are also particularly welcomed.

 Workshop Organization Co-Chairs Joana Hois Robert J. Ross John D. Kelleher John A. Bateman Program Committee Marios Avraamides Kenny Coventry Alexander Klippel Alexander Koller Gerard Ligozat Matt Mac Mahon Amitabha Mukerjee Philippe Muller Robert Porzel David Schlangen Emile van der Zee Joost Zwarts Invited Speaker University of Bremen, Germany Arti cial Intelligence Group, Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland Arti cial Intelligence Group, Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland English Department and Research Center on Spatial Cognition (SFB/TR8), University of Bremen, Germany University of Cyprus, Cyprus Northumbria University, UK Penn State, USA University of Potsdam, Germany University of Paris-Sud, France Google, USA Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India Universite Paul Sabatier, France University of Bremen, Germany University of Potsdam, Germany University of Lincoln, UK Universiteit Utrecht, Netherlands Kenny Coventry Northumbria University, UK VI Acknowledgements

We acknowledge generous nancial support from the DFG-funded Research Center on Spatial Cognition (SFB/TR 8) situated at the Universities of Bremen & Freiburg, Germany, and from the Arti cial Intelligence Group situated at the Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland. We would like to thank the PC members for their timely reviewing work, our invited speaker, Kenny Coventry, for delivering the keynote presentation at the workshop, and especially Barbara Landau and Kenny Coventry for contributing to our panel session during the workshop.

We would also like to thank the organizers of the 33rd annual meeting of the Cognitive Science Society for hosting the CoSLI-2 workshop, in particular, Duncan Brumby, Kevin Gluck, Andy Stull, and Nicole Dillon for their support. July 2011 J. Hois, R. Ross, J. Kelleher, J. Bateman

CoSLI 2011 Program Chair

VII Workshop Schedule 9:00 - 9:05 9:05 - 10:00 10:00 - 10:30 10:30 - 11:00 11:00 - 11:30 11:30 - 12:00 12:00 - 13:00 13:00 - 14:00 14:00 - 14:30 14:30 - 15:00 15:00 - 15:30 15:30 - 16:00 16:00 - 17:00