W. C. Watt (949)-824-7272 wcwatt@uci.edu

I am currently studying the cognitive dimensions of writing systems, particularly as disclosed by the 'mistakes' and learning progress of modern schoolchildren and by the similar 'mistakes' of ancient Greeks and of the ancient Semites when the alphabet was new to them. I'm also interested in the evolutionary trends these 'mistakes' - in fact, inadvertent generalizations - constitute when not 'corrected.'

Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania, 1967 (Linguistics). Editorial board: American Journal of Semiotics, 1987-present; Linguistics and Philosophy, 1976-1986, Mouton D'Or Award, 1989.

Selected Publications

Books

Texts

(3) English II (with J. Young and B.K. Rankin III) Tokyo: Tokyo English Center, 1963 (in Japanese).

Monographs

(5) Concordance to the Rules of PLACEBO V (with R.W. Hsu). National Bureau of Standards (Report 8934), 1965.

(6) PLACEBO IV: Rules, Concordance, Sample Computer Generation. Washington: National Bureau of Standards (Technical Note 255) l965.

(7) A Prerequisite to the Utility of Microgrammars. Washington: National Bureau of Standards (Technical Note 258), l965.

(8) Materials for PLACEBO V. Washington: National Bureau of Standards (Technical Note 281), 1966.

(9) Morphology of the Nevada Cattlebrands and Their Blazons, I. Washington: National Bureau of Standards (Report 9050), l966.

(10) Acceptance, Acceptability, Grammaticality, Sentencehood. Washington: National Bureau of Standards (Report 905l), l966.

(11 Morphology of the Nevada Cattlebrands and Their Blazons, II. Pittsburgh: Carnegie-Mellon University, Computer Science Dpartment, l967.

(12) Some Remarks on Iconic Grammar. Pittsburgh: Carnegie-Mellon University , Computer Science Department, 1969.

Articles

(14) "Structural Properties of the Nevada Cattlebrands," Computer Science Research Review 2, 21-27, 1967.

(15) "Habitability." American Documentation 19, 338-351, l968.

(16) "English Reduplication," Journal of English Linguistics 2, 96-129, 1968.

(l7) "On Two Hypotheses Concerning Psycholinguistics." In J. R. Hayes (ed), Cognition and the Development of Language. New York: Wiley, l970.

(l8) "Comments on the Brown and Hanlon Paper," in J. R. Hayes (ed.), Cognition and the Development of Language. New York: Wiley, l970.

(l9) "Autonomous Linguistics, Psycholinguistics, Cognitive Linguistics." Paris: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, conference paper.

(20) "Late Lexicalizations." In K.J.J. Hintikka, J.M.E. Moravscik, and P. Suppes (eds.), Approaches to Natural Language. Dordrecht: Reidel, 1973.

(21) "Competing Economy Criteria," in F. Bresson (ed.), Problemes actuels en psycholinguistique. Paris: CNRS, l974.

(22) "Strangely-Preposed Complements." Papers in Linguistics 7, 521-530, 1974.

(23) "Mentalism in Linguistics, II." Glossa 8, 3-40, 1974.

(24) "On the Notion that Sense is in the Eye of the Beholder, with Special Reference to the Horror Movie." In 38th Yearbook, Claremont Reading Conference, 1974.

(25) "The Child's Conception of the Alphabet" (with D. F. Jacobs as second author). In 39th Yearbook, Claremont Reading Conference , 1975.

(26) "The Indiscreteness with which Impenetrables are Penetrated." Lingua 37, 95-128, 1975.

(27) "What is the Proper Characterization of the Alphabet? I: Desiderata." Visible Language 9, 293-327, 1975.

(28) "Grammaticality," in B. B. Wolman (ed.), International Encyclopedia of Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychoanalysis, and Neurology. New York: Van Nostrand, 1977.

(29) "Good Intensions." Journal of Linguistics 14, 83-88, 1978.

(30) "Iconic Equilibrium." Semiotica 28, 31-62, 1979.

(31) "Against Evolution." Linguistics and Philosophy 3, 121-137, 1979.

(32) "Iconic Perspectives on Linguistic Explanation." In G. Prideaux (ed.), Perspectives on Experimental Linguistics (Amsterdam Studies in the Theory and History of Linguistic Science, Series IV: Current Issues in Linguistic Theory, Vol. 10). Amsterdam: John Benjamins B.V., 1979.

(33) "What is the Proper Characterization of the Alphabet? II: Composition." Ars Semeiotica 3, 3-46, 1980.

(34) "What is the Proper Characterization of the Alphabet? III: Appearance." Ars Semeiotica 4, 269-313, 1981.

(35) "Preliterate Literacy" (with A. Frostholm and D. F. Jacobs as first and third authors). In 46th Yearbook, Claremont Reading Conference, 1982.

(36) "Grade der Systemhaftigkeit." Zeitschrift fur Semiotik 5, 371-399, 1983 (in German).

(37) "Mode, Modality, and Iconic Evolution." In T. Borbe (ed.), Semiotics Unfolding. Amsterdam: Mouton (Approaches to Semiotics, 68), 1983.

(38) "As to Psychosemiotics." In R. P. Fawcett, M. A. K. Halliday, S. M. Lamb, and A. Makkai (eds.), The Semiotics of Culture and Language, Vol. II. London: Frances Pinter, 1984.

(39) "Signs of the Times." Semiotica 50, 97-155, 1984.

(40) "The Byblos Matrix." Journal of Near Eastern Studies 46, 1-14, 1987.

(41) "Sign and Signifex." In R. Steele and T. Threadgold (eds.), Language Topics (Vol. I, pp.333-345). Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 1987.

(42) "What is the Proper Characterization of the Alphabet? IV: Union." Semiotica 70.199-241, 1988.

(43) "Canons of Alphabetic Change." In D. De Kerckhove and C.J. Lumsden (eds.), The Alphabet and the Brain. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1988.

(44) "Semiotic Evolution as a Vindication of Lamarck." In I. Rauch and G.F. Carr (eds.), The Semiotic Bridge. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 1989.

(45) "The Ras Shamra Matrix." Semiotica 74, 61-108, 1989.

(46) "666." Semiotica 77, 369-392, 1989.

(47) "Secrets of the Letter-Order." In J. Bernard, J. Deely, V. Voight, and T. Prewitt (eds), Symbolicity (Sources in Semiotics, IX). Lanham, Md.: University Press, 1993.

(48) "Signification and its Discontents." Semiotica 97.427-437, 1993.

(49) "Curves as Angles." In W.C. Watt (ed.), Writing Systems and Cognition. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1994.

(50) "Transient Ambiguity." Semiotica 101, 1994.

(51) "Towards a Semiotic Calculus." Cruzeiro Semiotico, 222/225.151-160, 1995.

(52) "Codes" (with Gavin Watt as first author). In R. Posner, K. Robertus, and T.A. Sebeok, (eds.), Semiotics: A Handbook on the Sign-Theoretic Foundation of Nature and Culture. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.

(53) "Writing as a Sense of Sound." In I. Rauch and G.T. Carr, (eds.), Semiotics Around the World: Synthesis in Diversity. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 1997.

Articles in Press

(55) "On the Visual and Kinetic Constitution of the Alphabet." In press in Peter Ruck, ed., Methoden der Schriftbeschreibung.

(56) "The Synesthon." In press in G.F. Carr, W. Harbert, and L. Zhang (eds.), Interdigitations: Essays for Irmengard Rauch.

(57) "Semiotics." In press in E.J. Craig (ed.), . London: Routledge.