Janet Pierrehumbert
Encyclopedia
Janet Pierrehumbert pɪərˈhʌmbərt is a professor of linguistics
at Northwestern University
whose research uses experimental and computational methods to study the sound structure of language. She developed an intonational model
which includes a grammar of intonation patterns and an explicit algorithm for calculating pitch contour
s in speech, as well as an account of intonational meaning. It has been widely influential in speech technology
, psycholinguistics
, and theories of language form and meaning. She is also one of the founders of the Association for Laboratory Phonology
, an interdisciplinary initiative to develop advanced scientific methods for studying language sound structure.
At Northwestern, Pierrehumbert is also affiliated with the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, the Music Cognition Program, and the French Interdisciplinary Group. Her current research, funded by the Studying Complex Systems Program of the James S. McDonnell Foundation
, uses agent-based modeling of speaker populations to model the formation of language sound systems in individuals and populations. She has held visiting appointments at Stanford University
, Oxford
, the Royal Institute of Technology
, the École nationale supérieure des télécommunications
, and the École Normale Supérieure
. She received a Guggenheim Fellowship
in 1996, and
is also a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
.
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
whose research uses experimental and computational methods to study the sound structure of language. She developed an intonational model
Intonation (linguistics)
In linguistics, intonation is variation of pitch while speaking which is not used to distinguish words. It contrasts with tone, in which pitch variation does distinguish words. Intonation, rhythm, and stress are the three main elements of linguistic prosody...
which includes a grammar of intonation patterns and an explicit algorithm for calculating pitch contour
Pitch contour
In linguistics, speech synthesis, and music, the pitch contour of a sound is a function or curve that tracks the perceived pitch of the sound over time....
s in speech, as well as an account of intonational meaning. It has been widely influential in speech technology
Speech technology
Speech technology relates to the technologies designed to duplicate and respond to the human voice. They have many uses, including to aid the voice-disabled, the hearing-disabled, the blind, and to communicate with computers without a keyboard, to market goods or services by telephone and to...
, psycholinguistics
Psycholinguistics
Psycholinguistics or psychology of language is the study of the psychological and neurobiological factors that enable humans to acquire, use, comprehend and produce language. Initial forays into psycholinguistics were largely philosophical ventures, due mainly to a lack of cohesive data on how the...
, and theories of language form and meaning. She is also one of the founders of the Association for Laboratory Phonology
Association for Laboratory Phonology
The Association for Laboratory Phonology is a non-profit professional society for researchers interested in the sound structure of language. It was founded to promote the scientific study of all aspects of phonetics and phonology of spoken and signed languages through scholarly exchange across...
, an interdisciplinary initiative to develop advanced scientific methods for studying language sound structure.
At Northwestern, Pierrehumbert is also affiliated with the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, the Music Cognition Program, and the French Interdisciplinary Group. Her current research, funded by the Studying Complex Systems Program of the James S. McDonnell Foundation
James S. McDonnell Foundation
The James S. McDonnell Foundation was founded in 1950 by aerospace pioneer James S. McDonnell. It was established to "improve the quality of life," and does so by contributing to the generation of new knowledge through its support of research and scholarship. Originally called the McDonnell...
, uses agent-based modeling of speaker populations to model the formation of language sound systems in individuals and populations. She has held visiting appointments at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, the Royal Institute of Technology
Royal Institute of Technology
The Royal Institute of Technology is a university in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH was founded in 1827 as Sweden's first polytechnic and is one of Scandinavia's largest institutions of higher education in technology. KTH accounts for one-third of Sweden’s technical research and engineering education...
, the École nationale supérieure des télécommunications
École Nationale Supérieure des Télécommunications
Télécom ParisTech is one of the most prestigious and selective grandes écoles in France and one of the finest institutions in the field of Telecommunications...
, and the École Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure
The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...
. She received a Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
in 1996, and
is also a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
.