The field of language processing quite literally did not exist 50 years ago. Today, it is a lively research area characterized by the rapid development of novel techniques and clever experimental paradigms that allow researchers to tap into how we generate and understand language on a timescale of tens of milliseconds. How do we organize our knowledge about the sound structure and meanings of words? What causes speech errors and what can they tell us about language production in general? How do we rapidly coordinate our knowledge of the structure of language and what we know about the world or the immediate context? How do our expectations of how rational speakers behave influence the way we process language? These are just some of the questions that we address in the class.

The primary goal of this course is to provide students with foundational background in the major research questions in language production and comprehension. Emphasis will be placed on the connections between research in language production and language comprehension, which have traditionally been quite separate, but have recently begun to move closer together in theory and methods. The course is intended to equip students with the tools they need to be able to conduct independent inquiry in the field of language processing. As the semester progresses, the course will transition from greater emphasis on textbook and general readings to more technical specialized readings written by and for practitioners in the field of language processing. Similarly, the course evaluation moves from guided take-home exams in the first half, to an independent research paper in the second half of the course in which students motivate and propose their own research project.