Understanding the Chomsky Hierarchy through a Practical Example

What is the Chomsky Hierarchy?

The Chomsky Hierarchy is a framework developed by renowned linguist Noam Chomsky that classifies formal languages into four types based on their generative power. It plays a crucial role in theoretical computer science and the study of formal languages.

Example within the Chomsky Hierarchy

One example within the Chomsky Hierarchy is the Regular Language. This language can be generated using a regular grammar, which has limited generative capabilities. A prime example of a Regular Language is the set of all strings that begin with the letter "a" and end with the letter "z". This language can be described using the following regular grammar: ``` S -> aSz | z ``` In this grammar, "S" is the start symbol, "a" and "z" are terminals, and the vertical bar "|" denotes a choice. So, a valid string within this language could be "aazzz".