algorithm (n.)

An application in LINGUISTICS and PHONETICS of the general use of this term in cybernetics, computing, etc., referring to a procedure which applies mechanically in a finite number of precisely specified steps. Complex operations may frequently be characterized as algorithms by breaking them down into a sequence of simpler operations, as in the flow chart of a computer program. The main use of algorithmic reasoning in linguistics is found in the analytic statements of a GENERATIVE GRAMMAR.