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astronomy

William C. Mann

William C. Mann is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand William C. Mann rather than just read about it. In short: William C. "Bill" Mann (died August 13, 2004, aged 69) was a computer scientist and computational linguist, the originator of rhetorical structure theory (RST) and a president of the Association for Computational Linguistics (1987–1988). He is especially well known for his work in text generation.

Key takeaways

  • William C. Mann belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect William C. Mann to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of William C. Mann from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

William C. "Bill" Mann (died August 13, 2004, aged 69) was a computer scientist and computational linguist, the originator of rhetorical structure theory (RST) and a president of the Association for Computational Linguistics (1987–1988). He is especially well known for his work in text generation. He received a Ph.D. in artificial intelligence and computer science at Carnegie Mellon University under Herbert Simon and Allen Newell. From the mid-1970s until 1990, he was a researcher at the Information Sciences Institute of the University of Southern California. From 1990 to 1996, he was a consultant with the Summer Institute of Linguistics, based in Nairobi. William C. Mann died on August 13, 2004, after a long struggle with leukemia.

Publications William C. Mann and Sandra A. Thompson, "Rhetorical structure theory: toward a functional theory of text organization", Text 8:243-281 (1988). Maite Taboada, William C. Mann, "Applications of Rhetorical Structure Theory", Discourse Studies 8:3:567-588 (2006)

Notes

Bibliography Christian M.I.M. Matthiessen, "Remembering Bill Mann", Computational Linguistics 31:2:161-171

External links Bibliography of publications and reports by the creators of RST

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with William C. Mann

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what William C. Mann claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to William C. Mann before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about William C. Mann ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of William C. Mann

In research
William C. Mann appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses William C. Mann in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
William C. Mann is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2004 deaths, Carnegie Mellon University alumni, Computer scientist stubs, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for William C. Mann outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.
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How to study William C. Mann in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what William C. Mann means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain William C. Mann out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is William C. Mann in simple terms?

William C. "Bill" Mann (died August 13, 2004, aged 69) was a computer scientist and computational linguist, the originator of rhetorical structure theory (RST) and a president of the Association for Computational Linguistics (1987–1988). He is especially well known for his work in text generation.

Why does William C. Mann matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study William C. Mann?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on William C. Mann.

Tags

  • 2004 deaths
  • Carnegie Mellon University alumni
  • Computer scientist stubs
  • Natural language processing researchers

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