Artificial Intelligence in Autonomous Language Learning

Computer hardware has advanced considerably, and so have software methods in fields like engineering diagnostics and video games, yet tools for teaching foreign languages on a computer have lagged well behind. The author notes that this gap persisted when the original text first appeared and remains today, so the long-anticipated leap that would combine artificial intelligence with object-oriented programming to produce genuinely effective tools for self-directed learners has not yet arrived.

This third edition captures the state of autonomous language learning software at an early point in its development, surveying the programs then available. It then considers how expert systems connect with recent developments in natural language processing, interactive games, online learning and virtual reality.