In today's article we are going to talk about Controlled natural language. This is a topic that has gained great relevance in recent years and has aroused the interest of many people. Controlled natural language is a topic that covers a wide range of aspects and can be applied to different areas of life. In this article we will explore different aspects of Controlled natural language, from its historical origin to its impact on today's society. Furthermore, we will analyze how Controlled natural language has evolved over time and what are the future perspectives on this topic. Do not miss it!
Subset of a natural language
Controlled natural languages (CNLs) are subsets of natural languages that are obtained by restricting the grammar and vocabulary in order to reduce or eliminate ambiguity and complexity. Traditionally, controlled languages fall into two major types: those that improve readability for human readers (e.g. non-native speakers),
and those that enable reliable automatic semantic analysis of the language.
The first type of languages (often called "simplified" or "technical" languages), for example ASD Simplified Technical English, Caterpillar Technical English, IBM's Easy English, are used in the industry to increase the quality of technical documentation, and possibly simplify the semi-automatic translation of the documentation. These languages restrict the writer by general rules such as "Keep sentences short", "Avoid the use of pronouns", "Only use dictionary-approved words", and "Use only the active voice".
^Kowalski, R., Dávila, J., Sartor, G. and Calejo, M., 2023. Logical English for law and education. In Prolog: The Next 50 Years (pp. 287-299). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.