User:Cdorists/sandbox

Labels
Labeling(also called "projection") refers to the identification of the category of a phrase. When two objects α and β are merged, a subset of the features of either α or β become the label of the syntactic object {α, β}. It is a theory-internal notion driven by traditional and structuralist grammar that is not virtually detectable by direct inspection of expressions. It is a process of providing information about a syntactic object for it to be interpreted.

According to the labeling algorithm proposed by Chomsky, when the syntactic object = {H,XP}, where H is a head and XP is not a head, the labelling algorithm will select H as the label, making the syntactic object [HP]. This algorithm is based on an intuitive sense that if two merged elements show asymmetry and one of them is structurally simpler, then the system will automatically selects the structurally simpler element as the label. For instance, for the syntactic object = V eat][DP an apple, the head [V eat] will be selected as the label of this phrase, making it [VP eat an apple].

However, this labeling algorithm is only applicable to the case where one of the merged elements is a word. If neither of the objects is a word, the algorithm will not be able to choose the structurally simpler element as the label of the phrase. For cases like this, Cecchetto proposed "The Probing Algorithm" to solve this problem. The Probing Algorithm states that The label of a syntactic object {α, β} is the feature(s) that act(s) as a probe for the merging operation creating {α, β}. This algorithm is applicable with both structurally simple and structurally complex constituents. For a structurally simpler constituent such as V run][DP a race, the verb "run" selects (i.e. probes) the DP "a race". Therefore the phrase "run a race" is a VP. On the other hand, for a structurally more complex string such as DP The girls][VP run a race, the verb phrase "run a race" is the probe for the merging operation that forms the constituent, therefore DP The girls][VP run a race is a VP.