Communicating the knowledge in knowledge-based systems

As the role of knowledge-based systems grows in the marketplace, the necessity of clearly communicating their knowledge to people increases. However, well-represented internally, a system's knowledge cannot be used to train, advise, or assist an individual unless it can be discussed naturally. Recent efforts to standardize knowledge coding and expert system user interfaces fall short in defining a real ability to communicate knowledge. Most systems are unable to explain their knowledge, inferences, or applicability to anyone but a well-trained, domain-knowledgeable user. In this paper, we examine the features needed to enable intelligent expression of knowledge, and survey previous work in this area. We also describe an intelligent text generator (ITG) designed as an adjunct to an object-oriented expert system. We present a structure within which a rule-based system for a given domain can be expanded to communicate its knowledge intelligibly, in any of several natural languages.     

Development of a test to predict colour fading of cotton fabrics after multi-cycle laundering with a bleach-containing domestic detergent

The development of a new diagnostic test to identify coloured cotton fabrics susceptible to fading (due to oxygen bleach) through repeated washing with oxygen bleach-containing domestic laundry detergents is described. A possible mechanism is outlined to explain the bleach sensitivities observed on the basis of dye structure.     

Ruptures of the medial gastrocnemius muscle: diagnosis with high resolution ultrasound

AIM: Evaluation of high resolution ultrasound to diagnose rupture of the medial head of gastrocnemius muscle in patients with uncharacteristic calf pain. METHOD: 66 patients with clinically unclear calf pain were examined in a prospective study. RESULTS: Out of 66 patients, 51 showed sonographic criteria of a partial rupture of the medial gastrocnemius head. 47 ruptures were located in musculotendineus transition zone. CONCLUSION: High resolution sonography detect minimal lesions of the medial gastrocnemius muscle in patients with clinically uncharacteristic calf pain.     

The role of physical contact and association in early contamination sensitivity.

Although young children believe that contaminated substances contain imperceptible substrates, they may assume that the mere presence of a contaminant guarantees the presence of its substrates in a physically removed substance (associational contamination). In this study, the proximity of a contaminant (bug) to a beverage (juice) was systematically manipulated, and children were asked whether someone would get sick from drinking the beverage. Some preschoolers, and most 7- and 8 year-olds, recognized the need for physical contact between the bug and juice to make the juice noxious. This suggests that early contamination sensitivity includes an appreciation of the need for physical contact between contaminant and substance, but for some children the mere presence of a contaminant renders a physically removed substance noxious. Thus associational contamination sometimes plays a role in children's reasoning, as it does for adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Discharge-heated lead vapor laser

Operation of a discharge-heated lead vapor laser with emission at 4062 and 4057 Å is reported. In contrast to previous reports, the output was obtained at 4057 Å using a relatively slowly rising discharge pulse.     

Laboratory scale solenoids with multifilamentary Nb3Sn superconductors

By the bronze technique Nb3Sn multifilamentary conductors with different numbers and densities of filaments and partly with an integrated CuTa stabilization were fabricated. For currents exceeding 1000 A at 10 T we have manufactured fully transposed and calibrated flat cables with different numbers of strands and different ratios of superconducting to CuTa stabilizing strands. From long lengths (km) of these cables we have fabricated solenoids with manifold graded windings using the wind-and-react-technique and a final vacuum impregnation after reaction. Two different variants of this technique will be described. Magnetic flux densities up to 15 T at 4.2 K in a free bore of 40 mm diameter have been reached in a 7 T NbTi background field. The solenoids attained the short sample current within some percent requiring only short training on initial excitation but no training after heating to room temperature. High excitation speeds were obtained without degradation of the quench current.