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AIList Digest Volume 5 Issue 090
AIList Digest Saturday, 28 Mar 1987 Volume 5 : Issue 90
Today's Topics:
Neural Networks - Newsletters,
Discussion Lists - Symbolic Math List & Impact of Information Services,
Policy - Censorship & Militarism,
Review - Spang Robinson Report, March 1987
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 12-MAR-1987
From: GATELY%CRL1@TI-CSL.CSNET
Subject: Newsletters for Neural Networks
[Forwarded from the Neuron Digest by Laws@SRI-STRIPE.]
This message is ment simply to inform the reader of two monthly
newsletters which seem to be focusing on neural networks. The
first is named "Intelligence," is edited by Edward Rosenfeld, and
is available for $295 per year (published monthly). The address
for more information (and perhaps a free copy) is POBox 20008,
New York, NY 10025, (212) 749-8048.
The second newsletter is titled "Neurocomputers," is edited by
Derek F. Stubbs, and is available (on a new member basis?) for
US$24 (USA, Canada, and Mexico) or US$32 (all other countries) per
year (published bi-monthly). The address is: NEUROCOMPUTERS,
Gallifrey Publishing, POBox 155, Vicksburg, Michigan 49097.
Intelligence seems to be an older (seasoned) newsletter, dealing
with all aspects of AI - but focusing on neural networks. The
issue of Neurocomputers that I have (V1 #1) has a wide variety
of NN items (news, books, results).
I have no ties with either of these newsletters!
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 26 Mar 1987 19:11 CST
From: Leff (Southern Methodist University)
<E1AR0002%SMUVM1.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: Symbolic Math List
I am now taking over symbolic math list editor/moderator responsibilities.
Please send your submissions to sym-list%smu@csnet-relay.
Sym-list-request%smu@csnet-relay will be for administrative messages.
People with access to bitnet may wish to send mail to my personal
account: E1AR0002@SMUVM1. However, in the event of a change
of moderator, only the [Arpanet] addresses will be automatically forwarded.
I will be copying materials posted in the USENET group sci.math.symbolic
to the ARPANET/CSNET and BITNET mailing lists and vice versa. Needless
to say, I will filter out irrelevant or otherwise inappropriate materials
from the mailing list. Routine queries, such as those asking for ordering
information on various symbolic math systems, will be handled personally
and not forwarded.
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 26 Mar 1987 19:11 CST
From: Leff (Southern Methodist University)
<E1AR0002%SMUVM1.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: Impact of Information Services
Source: Information Week, March 23, 1987, Page 15
In a survey of DP managers at the largest companies, 92% said
that overnight delivery had high impact on their operations while
only 39% saw E-mail that way. 75% saw facsimile transmission as
high impact and 9% said video conferencing was.
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 25 Mar 87 11:31:11 PST
From: pyramid!ctnews!mitisft!markb@decwrl.DEC.COM
Subject: censoring mod.ai ?
In article <8703231704.AA12675@boring.cwi.nl>, tomi@cwi.nl (Tetsuo
Tomiyama) writes:
<a lot of stuff about military AI research>
While I sympathize with your distaste for military matters, I suggest
that it is in everyone's best interest to be constantly aware of what
the military is doing with AI. Hiding one's head in the sand will not
make matters any better.
So keep the articles coming. The 'n' key works just fine if you're really
offended.
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 26 Mar 87 09:46:24 pst
From: marks@ads.ARPA (Phil Marks)
Subject: AMERICAN-MILITARISM
>
> Date: Fri, 20 Mar 87 14:28:46 +0100
> From: mcvax!cwi.nl!tomi@seismo.CSS.GOV (Tetsuo Tomiyama)
> Subject: Policy - American Militarism
>
> Now, I am strongly against such a posting circulated ALL AROUND THE
> WORLD through the net. [...] I think
> this kind of postings should be even prohibited from the world wide
> net distribution. [...]
>
> I propose, therefore, to submit postings relevant to militarism should
> NOT be PROHIBITED but at least requested to be MARKED as military
> related article at the responsibility of original authors (rather than
> by the moderator), just like advertisements from tobacco companies, so
> that if I don't want to read it I can skip it.
re AMERICAN-MILITARISM:
Very Interesting...that we should get such an opinion from a Japanese.
A review of recent history shows that Japan's main contribution to the
20th century has been a series of brutal attempts to subjugate its
neighbors (China, Korea, the Philippines, etc). The only reason that
Japan was not able to impose its barbarianism on these peoples was
AMERICAN-MILITARISM. If it had not been for AMERICAN-MILITARISM the
infamous and cowardly attack on Pearl Harbor might have ultimately lead
to the subjection of America to the same atrocities as Japan's other
victims. It was the Americans (including the American military) which
rebuilt Japan from a devastated military dictatorship and tried to give
the Japanese people a chance at the opportunities and responsibilities
of freedom...a lesson which is apparently totally lost on mr tomiyama.
It is common practice today for the adherents of all stripes of
totalitarianism to decry AMERICAN-MILITARISM because it is the ONLY
thing which stands between them and their goal of world domination. If
they can get us to reduce our strength and vigilance then they can
resume where they left off 40 years ago.
Philip Marks
[That's a bit strong, isn't it? Mr. Tomiyama can hardly be accused
of desiring world domination just because he's an ardent pacificist.
I'm sure that many Japanese have learned the lessons you mention. The
new generations of Japanese are no more responsible for, or necessarily
prone to, the excesses of past leaders than I am responsible for the
past mistreatment of Native Americans, Negros, or Orientals in this
country.
AIList is a good forum for debating the linkage of AI and militarism,
but let's not debate militarism per se. And for the record, I am the
one who chose the title "American Militarism". I think the original
was just called "Submission for mod.ai". My choice of title still
seems appropriate, but I'm sorry if it rankled anyone. -- KIL]
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 27 Mar 87 02:31 EDT
From: STANKULI%cs.umass.edu@RELAY.CS.NET
Subject: AI militarism
perhaps i am stepping out of my league here, but i feel that Ken Laws and
AILIST should be encouraged to circulate information about all AI-related
applications, especially whatever military issues can be circulated among
us.
tactics is the use of force (a semantics on a fundamental physical
property), and the evolutionary development of it has been an ongoing
process which has been around as long as there has been animal life on this
planet. strategy is a metalanguage on tactics; and, according to clausewitz
(1832, On War), policy is a metalanguage on strategy. human lives have been
lost or saved through the application of these principles. to think that an
artificial intelligence can avoid or ignore the fact that force can break
structure is naive. hide-your-head-in-the-sand moralities which seek to
deny the validity of tactics almost always begin with the preamble "IF
nobody used force..."
democratic societies are directly based on the ability of the populace to
make informed decisions on policy. censorship (the selective hiding of
information) is an inheirent evil in a society which tries distribute
political power across the widest possible base. i believe that atomic
weapons have been so judiciously unused because of the widespread knowledge
of their lethality. the only tactical use of them took place when their
existence was security classified and controlled by a few people.
if AI has the power we believe it does, then the safest use is that which
circulates the information to the widest possible audience-- especially to
those who have do-not-use viewpoints. rather than trying to embarass our
military sponsers when they do share with us insights into tactical AI uses,
we should encourage such rare openness. the danger lies in power that can
exist which is kept secret.
if AI does not have the power we believe it does, then little is lost in
the publication of plausible fiction, and we all gain by the integrity of an
open knowledge base.
stan
[EOF] AI-Military.Mai
------------------------------
Date: 26 March 1987 1527-PST (Thursday)
From: thode@nprdc.arpa
Reply-to: thode@nprdc.arpa
Subject: Censorship of AIList submissions
Tetsuo Tomiyama (mcvax!cwi.nl!tomi@seismo.CSS.GOV) in a recent posting
complained about a call for papers for AI Applications to Battle
Management because of its relationship to US military research. He
suggests that the rest of us somehow mark any military research related
submissions to discussion lists like the AIList so that he can easily
identify them and avoid reading them. I thought Ken Laws' response was
appropriate:
> AIList is primarily an Arpanet discussion list. The Arpanet
> was developed by the military, is supported by the military,
> and is intended for defense-related communication among
> military contractors. One could assume that all Arpanet
> messages are military in nature, although that heuristic
> does not seem very useful in the case of AIList. What is
> really needed here is an intelligent mail reader that screens
> your messages and adds the appropriate keywords. -- KIL
I would go a bit further than Ken. What is REALLY needed is an
intelligent (human) mail reader. Readers of net mail who are afraid of
what they might read shouldn't read anything. This reminds me of those
who want to censor books, prohibit free speech, and otherwise govern
the way we live our lives because they don't like what might be read
or said. Freedom of speech (and electronic postings) should be anyone's
right. If you don't like what someone writes, don't read it--but keep
your hands off my (and others') rights to read and say what we want.
--Walt Thode (thode@NPRDC)
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 26 Mar 1987 19:11 CST
From: Leff (Southern Methodist University)
<E1AR0002%SMUVM1.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: Review - Spang Robinson Report, March 1987
Spang Robinson Report, Volume Number 3, March 1987, Summary Thereof
The main article discusses AI and Database Technology with the results
of an interview with James Neiser of Ashton. Ashton Tate is going to
be concentrating non-AI decison-rules with natural language and expert systems
to be considered later. The newsletter also includes a two page table
listing various company's plans and products in the database-AI integration
area.
Other items of note in this article include:
Symantec has sold 40,000 copies of their system which is a data base
system with natural language.
Cullinet has agreed to acquire the company selling a COBOL based expert
system shell
Man-Machine systems is marketing G-Base for the LMI Lambda and TI explorers
which allows the interfacing of LISP and PROLOG to the database
IBM has created a natural language and Prolog front end to SQL.
__________________________________________________________
New Applications of Expert Systems:
Cannon - copier maintenance system
Ishikawajima Heavy Industry- engine failure analysis system
Yasukawa Electric Manufacturing System - large crane analysis system
Iwai Mechanical Industry - plant failure analysis sytem
Technical Collaborates - expert system for architects in the area of disaster/
safety regulations (in planning)
Takenaka Engineering - construction, surveying, (in development)
__________________________________________________________
Shorts
Fuji Xerox will be distributing PARC Smalltalk in Japan and ASR
will be marketing ExSys in Japan.
Medical Information Systems has a network allowing people to use medical
expert systems that is accesible via Fujitsu's VAN service.
Level Five Insight 2+ can access DBase II files.
The Senior marketer at Applied Expert Systems, Richard Karash, has left.
Larry Geisel is leaving the Carnegie Group CEO position possibly to start
another company.
__________________________________________________________
The newsletter also contains a review of the recent IEEE conference on AI applic
ations.
Also reviews of the CRI Directory of Expert Systems and SEAI's Expert Systems 19
86:
An Assessment of Technology and Applications.
------------------------------
End of AIList Digest
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