Second Workshop on Computational Methods for Endangered Languages

Event Notification Type: 
Call for Papers
Abbreviated Title: 
ComputEL-2
Location: 
University of Hawaii
Monday, 6 March 2017 to Tuesday, 7 March 2017
State: 
Hawaii
Country: 
USA
City: 
Honolulu
Contact: 
Lane Schwartz
Alexis Palmer
Lane Schwartz
Mans Hulden
Jeff Good
Antti Arppe
Submission Deadline: 
Saturday, 1 October 2016

ComputEL-2
A Workshop on Computational Methods for Endangered Languages
Honolulu, Hawaii, March 6-7, 2017

The ComputEL-2 workshop will focus on the use of computational methods in the study, support, and revitalization of endangered languages. The primary aim of the workshop is to continue narrowing the gap between computational linguists interested in working on methods for endangered languages, field linguists working on documenting these languages, and the language communities who are striving to maintain their languages.

We take seriously the goal of reaching all relevant communities. To support this goal, ComputEL aims to alternate between co-location with computational linguistics conferences and with language documentation conferences. ComputEL-2 will immediately follow the International Conference on Language Documentation and Conservation (ICLDC) hosted by the University of Hawaii, March 2-5, 2017.

The first ComputEL workshop was co-located with the main conference of the Association for Computational Linguistics in Baltimore in 2014. (http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~jcgood/ComputEL.html) . The proceedings of ComputEL-1 were published online by ACL and are available at: http://aclweb.org/anthology/W/W14/#2200

Call for Papers

Papers are invited which explore the interface and intersection of computational linguistics, documentary linguistics, and community-based language revitalization efforts. The committee encourages submissions which:

  1. examine the use of specific methods in the analysis of data from low-resource languages, with a focus on endangered languages, or propose new methods for analysis of such data,
  2. propose new models for the collection, management, and deployment of data in endangered language settings, or
  3. consider what concrete steps are required to allow for a more fruitful interaction between computer scientists, documentary linguists, and language communities.

The intention of the workshop is not merely to allow for the presentation of research on these topics, but also to continue building a network of computational linguists, documentary linguists, and community language activists who are able to effectively join together to serve their common interests.

Presentations

Presentations will be 20 minutes long, with 10 minutes for discussion.

Submissions

In line with our goal of reaching different academic communities, we offer two different modes of submission. The mode of submission does not influence likelihood of acceptance. Camera-ready versions will be the same length for both submission modes.

Submissions must be uploaded to (link to be provided soon) no later than October 1, 2016, 11:59PM (UTC-11, time zone of American Samoa).

All submissions must be anonymous and will be peer-reviewed by the scientific committee. Notification of acceptance will be sent out by November 1, 2016.

A. Extended abstract:

Please submit anonymous abstracts of up to 1500 words.

B. Full paper:

Please submit (anonymously) either long papers (max. 8 pages plus references) or short papers (max. 4 pages plus references) according to the style and formatting guidelines provided. Authors will be allowed one extra page for the final version.

Proceedings

Authors whose presentations are selected for the conference will be eligible to submit their papers for online publication via the open-access ACL Anthology. Camera-ready version of the articles will be due on January 31, 2017.

Funding

We anticipate being able to support travel costs in some cases for students whose papers are accepted as well as scholars from lower income countries. Please contact the organizers at computel [at] ualberta.ca for further information.

Important Dates:

Paper/abstract submission deadline: October 1, 2016
Notification of acceptance: November 1, 2016
Deadline for camera-ready articles for proceedings: January 31 2017
Workshop dates: March 6-7, 2017

Organizing Committee
Antti Arppe (University of Alberta)
Jeff Good (University at Buffalo)
Mans Hulden (University Colorado at Boulder)
Jordan Lachler (University Alberta)
Alexis Palmer (University of North Texas)
Lane Schwartz (University of Illinois)

For more information, see our website: http://altlab.ualberta.ca/computel-2