To this point, the Centre's research into Australian English has largely involved reading through material published in Australia since the late eighteenth century. Such research into the history of Australian English will continue. Our research into contemporary Australian English will be enhanced by the possibilities opened up by computer technology. The Word Bank will provide the statistical evidence and empirical data underpinning our understanding of contemporary Australian English and the process of language change. It will yield valuable information about grammar and language structure, new words, new meanings, spelling, and usage.
Lexicographers claim that they construct their dictionaries according to usage patterns.
It is only by means of a corpus or Word Bank that usage questions can be answered. Similar projects are being developed in Britain and Canada, and the Centre has strong links with these projects through its association with Oxford University Press . The Centre has been successful in gaining infrastructure support from the Australian National University for the project. We need material in electronic form . We are appealing to the community of Australian writers, researchers, and so on, to help us with this project.