Over the last 20 years, approaches to designing speech and language processing algorithms have moved from methods based on linguistics and speech science to data-driven pattern recognition techniques. These techniques have been the focus of intense, fast-moving research and have contributed to significant advances in this field. Pattern Recognition in Speech and Language Processing offers a systematic, up-to-date presentation of these recent developments. It begins with the fundamentals and recent theoretical advances in pattern recognition, with emphasis on classifier design criteria and optimization procedures. The focus then shifts to the application of these techniques to speech processing, with chapters exploring advances in applying pattern recognition to real speech and audio processing systems. The final section of the book examines topics related to pattern recognition in language processing: topics that represent promising new trends with direct impact on information processing systems for the Web, broadcast news, and other content-rich information resources. Each self-contained chapter includes figures, tables, diagrams, and references. The collective effort of experts at the forefront of the field, Pattern Recognition in Speech and Language Processing offers in-depth, insightful discussions on new developments and contains a wealth of information integral to the further development of human-machine communications.