Information Density in English Scientific Writing: A Diachronic Perspective (B01)

• Subject Area: Applied Linguistics, Computational Linguistics ; General and Comparative Linguistics, Experimental Linguistics, Typology, Non-European Languages
• Term: since 2014
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 232722074

B1 investigates the role of rational communicative concerns in diachronic language change. Specifically, we are interested in the emergence of sublanguages or registers, i.e. distinctive, fairly persistent functional varieties, focusing on scientific English and its development in the late modern period up to modern time. Using a combined corpus-based and experimental information-theoretic approach, we pursue the hypothesis of communicative optimization over time for scientific expert-to-expert communication.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1102: Information Density and Linguistic Encoding
• Applicant Institution: Universität des Saarlandes
• Project Heads: Privatdozentin Stefania Degaetano-Ortlieb, Ph.D.; Dr. Hannah Kermes, until 6/2018; Dr. Noam Ordan, Ph.D., until 10/2015; Professorin Dr. Elke Teich