AI Expert
sign up for this
newsletter
2006
January
2005
December
•
November
•
October
•
September
•
August
•
July
•
June
•
May
•
April
•
March
•
February
•
January
2004
December
•
November
•
October
•
September
•
August
•
July
•
June
•
May
•
April
•
March
•
February
•
January
2003
December
•
November
•
October
•
September
August
•
July
•
June
•
May
April
•
March
•
February
• January
2002
December
• November
Issue #13
November 2003
By Dennis Merritt
AI - The art and science of making computers do interesting things that
are not in their nature.
Rules
Business rules is the current term for a type of knowledge that is knotty to
automate. The type of knowledge it refers to is logical knowledge, as distinct
from factual knowledge or procedural knowledge.
Factual knowledge is exactly that, and it can be stored very naturally
in a computer because a computer's basic architecture includes memory, both
internal and external, that is ideally suited to storing factual information.
Database tools and the constructs in programming languages that describe facts
have evolved naturally from computer memory.
Procedural knowledge is the knowledge of how to do something, the steps
to take to perform a task. A computer has a central processing unit (CPU) that
does things, one step at a time, which is ideally suited for executing procedures.
Programming languages have evolved from this basic architecture that make it
easy to encode and execute procedural knowledge.
It is a computer's natural aptitude for facts and procedures that lead to the
birth of "data" "processing."
Logical knowledge is about relationships between entities. Despite the
stereotypes and use of the word 'logic' in talking about computers, computers
do NOT have a natural aptitude for storing and using logic.
