Work-oriented development of knowledge-based systems: a case for multiple perspectives

System development is strongly influenced by the perspectives used by system developers. Current development methods for knowledge-based systems are based on an information processing perspectives of experts and users which has been criticized by a number of researchers. The paper argues that work-oriented development of knowledge-based systems requires the parallel use of multiple perspectives (including the information processing perspective), and that the use of any single perspective is potentially dangerous. As an example of the importance of using multiple perspectives, thepaper presents the situated action perspective, and shows how it complements the information processing perspective.     

Knowledge extraction for production management

A procedure and underlying algorithm for extracting knowledge from production and inventory databases to support engineering management activities is described. The process searches for, detects and isolates behaviour patterns inherent in the data. It relates these patterns to production irregularities, suggests connections with specific causes and helps propose possible corrective or preventive actions. The approach is based on a four-phase procedure: (1) the decision-maker focuses on the subject or difficulty at issue, represented by a target concept; (2) the KEDB algorithm, based on a machine learning approach, processes the relevant database and provides knowledge characterizing and classifying the target concept; (3) the output is interpreted in Pareto fashion as a series of possible circumstances explaining the target concept behaviour; and (4) based on these causes, the decision-maker decides on possible corrective actions to improve the situation, or preventive actions to forestall unfavourable conditions. A case study based on an actual quality control database is detailed.     

The costs and benefits of tonal centers for chord processing.

Harmonic priming studies have shown that a musical context, with its established tonal center, influences target chord processing. This study investigated costs and benefits of priming tonal centers for target processing by adding a baseline condition (sequences without a specific tonal center). Results confirmed harmonic priming, with faster processing for related than for unrelated and less related targets (tonic chord, out-of-key chord, subdominant chord). Comparing targets in baseline contexts with targets in sequences with well-established tonal centers revealed a benefit of processing for related targets but a cost of processing for unrelated and less related targets. Findings are discussed in terms of tonal knowledge activation and suggest that an activated tonal center gives rise to strong expectations for the tonic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

You said it before and you'll say it again: Expectations of consistency in communication.

Repeated reference creates strong expectations in addressees that a speaker will continue to use the same expression for the same object. The authors investigate the root reason for these expectations by comparing a cooperativeness-based account (Grice, 1975) with a simpler consistency-based account. In two eye-tracking experiments, the authors investigated the expectations underlying the effect of precedents on comprehension. The authors show that listeners expect speakers to be consistent in their use of expressions even when these expectations cannot be motivated by the assumption of cooperativeness. The authors conclude that though this phenomenon seems to be motivated by cooperativeness, listeners' expectation that speakers be consistent in their use of expressions is governed by a general expectation of consistency. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

环境资源负外部性与产权理论的新进展

环境资源共有产权的特性使得社会成员只能通过自身感知和理解确定对环境资源的产权边界，并且产权的实施是非排他的，所以与环境资源有关的负外部性较其他具有直接因果关系的外部性特殊。在治理这类负外部性的过程中，产权理论也有了新的发展。本文从分析环境资源产权的特殊性入手，对于产权弱化、产权分割、创建新产权和自愿合作基础上认知产权调整等负外部性内部化理论进行了分析。     

论高校的创新性学习

创新性学习是针对传统教育忽视大学生的创新意识和创新能力，知识经济对创新人才的呼唤而提出来的。本文阐述了创新性学习的特点，分析了大学生进行创新性学习应具备的四个条件，并就高校开展创造性学习应注意的四个方面提出了看法。     

一个安全有效的身份鉴别协议与对应的数字签名方案

本文利用二元一次不定方程和Schnorr身份鉴别协议，构造出一个新的身份鉴别协议，该协议在RSA问题和离散对数问题是难解的假设下是安全的，同时给出了所对应的数字签名方案。     

Efficient Management of Persistent Knowledge

Although computer speed has steadily increased and memory is getting cheaper, the need for storage managers to deal efficiently with applications that cannot be held into main memory is vital. Dealing with large quantities of clauses implies the use of persistent knowledge and thus, indexing methods are essential to access efficiently the subset of clauses relevant to answering a query. We introduce PerKMan, a storage manager that uses G-trees, and aims at efficient manipulation of large amounts of persistent knowledge. PerKMan may be connected to Prolog systems that offer an external C language interface. As well as the fact that the storage manager allows different arguments of a predicate to share a common index dimension in a novel manner, it indexes rules and facts in the same manner. PerKMan handles compound terms efficiently and its data structures adapt their shape to large dynamic volumes of clauses, no matter what the distribution. The storage manager achieves fast clause retrieval and reasonable use of disk space.     

关于知识团队特性的研究

章从商业环境的变化分析入手，指出由知识工作为主体构成的知识团队将成为企业运作的重要形式。知识团队与传统的、特别是基于某项单一职能或成员来自某一知识领域的团队有着许多显的不同。通过分析认为，这些不同点主要体现在团队目标的模糊性、团队成员的动态性和团队管理手段的协定性等方面。     

Planning the GMAW process by constraint propagation

Although the gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process is widely used for joining metals, its planning is still a cumbersome task. The planning procedure involves many complex interrelationships among the process variables and depends heavily on empirical knowledge. Therefore, a solution method that allows a convenient way to represent the domain knowledge and evaluate the process variable relationships is needed. Further, the lack of a strong domain theory to quantify these interrelationships is a deficiency in the planning of the GMAW process. This paper presents a solution method that overcomes this deficiency and introduces a convenient knowledge representation scheme. The solution method considers the planning procedure to be a constraint satisfaction problem (CSP). The AC-4 algorithm is used to obtain arc consistency among nodes in the constraint network and the PC-4 algorithm is applied to obtain path consistency in the network. A modified version of the AC-4 algorithm is developed to reduce the search space and correspondingly reduce the computation time. An example is presented to demonstrate the capability of the method and its potential to reduce lead time.