Conclusion

In the previous chapters, we have explored the use of Generalized Quantifica- tion in practical applications. We have centered the work on query languages, but have progressively extended the scope to deal with questions and (limited) natural language analysis, as it is used in Question Answering. After intro- ducing the basic logical concepts in chapter 2 and the concept of Generalized Quantifier in chapter 3, we presented the query language QLGQ in chapter 4. This language was conceived basically as a vehicle to explore the use of general- ized quantification, and is not very different from existing (logic-based) query languages, but it allow us to explore adding (and efficiently implementing) standard (type (1, 1)) quantifiers to the language in chapter 5, and complex quantifier prefixes in chapter 6. We then took a linguistic turn ¹ in chapter 7 by introducing pragmatic considerations in query processing, and completed the transition from queries to questions in chapter 8 by focusing in Question Answering. Throughout, the use of Generalized Quantification provided the glue that held all the material together as a coherent whole -hopefully!