Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
AIList Digest Volume 6 Issue 020
AIList Digest Friday, 29 Jan 1988 Volume 6 : Issue 20
Today's Topics:
Philosophy - Disregard And Abuse Of Nanoengineering &
Importance of Philosophy,
Announcement - Foundations of Deductive Databases and Logic Programming
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 88 12:14:31 MST
From: t05rrs%mpx1@LANL.GOV (Dick Silbar)
Subject: Re: intelligent nanocomupters
David West replied to Godden's query about Drexler's work in a sardonic way,
I think, by extrapolating the earlier remark to "...such a machine could then
just be allowed to run and should be able to accomplish a century of progress
in one hour." I am reminded of a novel some years back by Robert Forward,
"Dragon's Egg", in which just that did happen in a civilization living on the
surface of a neutron star.
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 88 9:35:58 PST
From: jlevy.pa@Xerox.COM
Subject: disregard and abuse of Nano-engineering (V6#17)
David Smith writes:
"Date: Fri, 22 Jan 88 14:21:05 est
From: Mr. David Smith <dsmith@gelac.arpa>
Subject: Nano-engineering
... [deleted quote] ...
Some time ago, I asked a net question about nano-engineering and all roads
led to Eric Drexler. Frankly, I was pleased to see this net mail putting
such activities into perspective. At the risk of sounding Pharisaic, I
believe that the cause of "serious AI" is seriously hindered by such blatant
blather. This has to be the only forum in the civilized world which allows
such claims to be perpetrated without receiving equal portions of ridicule
and abuse. Can it not be stopped?"
I think this reasoning is wrong, since it smacks of "acceptance by reputation".
How about this
argument:
Some time ago I asked a lot of physicists about why an apple falls from a tree
downwards, and all roads led to Isaac Newton. Frankly, I was pleased to see all
those skeptics question Newton's results and put his activities into
perspective. At the risk of sounding Pharisaic, I believe that the advance of
serious research in physics is severely hindered by such blatant blather. This
has to be the only forum in the world which allows such claims as Newton's to be
perpetrated without receiving equal portions of ridicule and abuse. Can it not
be stopped?
The point is of course, that while Newton originated Newtonian physics, and thus
it is right to expect all references to this field to lead back to him, at the
time he did his research he was a nobody just like Eric Drexler. This was
unimportant at that time, since his ideas were judged on MERIT, not on
reputation. I am myself ill-equiped to judge Eric's work, but would be VERY
careful in deciding that it "deserves ridicule and abuse" at all. Newton had a
much harder time at propagating his ideas than Drexler today. In appreciation of
this fact, scientists of olden times usually were more careful and methodical in
judging new ideas (not always, to be sure!). Maybe it is time to try and look at
the facts and claims instead of at the names of proponents of such claims?
To paraphrase, this must be the only forum in the world (claiming to be
scientifically
based) which allows such careless and unjustified disregard, abuse and ridicule
of new ideas
(whether they be of merit or not) without receiving equal portions of ridicule
and abuse. So
there!
Jacob Levy
jlevy.pa@xerox.com
------------------------------
Date: 25 Jan 88 14:27:27 GMT
From: rochester!ur-tut!sunybcs!rapaport@bbn.com (William J. Rapaport)
Subject: Re: Not Another vote (arg.gag.sigh)
In article <20@chemstor.UUCP> bob@chemstor.UUCP (Bob Weigel) writes:
>
> Just another biannual reminder that philosophy is a futile game.
Hardly. You might be interested in the following article:
Rapaport, William J., "Unsolvable Problems and Philosophical Progress,"
American Philosophical Quarterly 19 (1982) 289-98.
William J. Rapaport
Assistant Professor
Dept. of Computer Science||internet: rapaport@cs.buffalo.edu
SUNY Buffalo ||bitnet: rapaport@sunybcs.bitnet
Buffalo, NY 14260 ||uucp: {ames,boulder,decvax,rutgers}!sunybcs!rapaport
(716) 636-3193, 3180 ||
------------------------------
Date: 26 Jan 88 16:19:53 GMT
From: sdcc6!calmasd!wlp@sdcsvax.ucsd.edu (Walter Peterson)
Subject: Re: Philosophy is a futile game...
> In article <20@chemstor.UUCP>, bob@chemstor.UUCP (Robert Weigel) writes:
>
> Just another biannual reminder that philosophy is a futile game. It
> engages itself in a battle, yet leaves behind the tools needed to win it.
> I ask again, who is more foolish? Him that claims to know truth, or he that
> scoffs prejudiciously,....yet searches for it!
>
For an excellent explanation as to why philosophy is NOT futile and why
everyone NEEDS philosophy, see
"Philosophy: Who Needs It" By Ayn Rand
--
Walt Peterson GE-Calma San Diego R&D
"The opinions expressed here are my own and do not necessarily reflect those
GE, GE-Calma nor anyone else.
...{ucbvax|decvax}!sdcsvax!calmasd!wlp wlp@calmasd.GE.COM
------------------------------
Date: 25 Jan 88 20:58:29 GMT
From: Jack Minker <minker@mimsy.umd.edu>
Reply-to: minker@mimsy.UUCP (Jack Minker)
Subject: Foundations of Deductive Databases and Logic Programming
The book,
FOUNDATIONS OF DEDUCTIVE DATABASES AND LOGIC PROGRAMMING
Edited by Jack Minker (University of Maryland),
will be available from Morgan-Kaufmann Publishers in early
March, 1988. Orders for the book can be made now. The ISBN
No. is: 0-934613-40-0. The book contains 752 pages and
costs $36.95.
This landmark volume explores the close relationship
between deductive databases and logic programming and the
foundational issues they share. A collection of original
research, contributed by leading researchers, the book grew
out of preliminary work presented at the Workshop on Founda-
tions of Deductive Databases and Logic Programming held in
Washington DC, August 1986. All the papers have been exten-
sively refereed and revised.
Part 1 introduces and examines the import of stratified
databases, and its relationship to circumscription, and pro-
vides a comprehensive survey of negation in deductive data-
bases and logic programming. Part 2 addresses fundamental
theoretical and practical issues in developing large-scale
deductive databases and treats problems such as informative
answers, semantic optimization, updates and computing
answers in non-Horn theories. Part 3 provides results con-
cerning unification, equivalence and optimization of logic
programs and provides a comprehensive survey of results con-
cerning logic programs and parallel complexity. An introduc-
tory survey offering background material and an overview of
research topics, name and subject indexes, and extensive
bibliographic references complete the work.
Invaluable to graduate students and researchers in
deductive databases and logic programming, FOUNDATIONS OF
DEDUCTIVE DATABASES AND LOGIC PROGRAMMING will also be of
interest to those working in automated theorem proving,
artificial intelligence and expert systems.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
Minker, J., 1-16
Introduction to Foundations of Deductive Databases and Logic
Programming
PART 1 - NEGATION AND STRATIFIED DATABASES 17
Chapter 1 Shepherdson, J., 19-88
Negation in Logic Programming
Chapter 2 Apt, K.R., Blair, H. and Walker, A., 89-148
Towards a Theory of Declarative Knowledge
Chapter 3 Van Gelder, A., 149-176
Negation as Failure Using Tight Derivation for General Logic
Programs
Chapter 4 Lifschitz, V., 177-192
On the Declarative Knowledge of Logic Programs with Negation
Chapter 5 Przymusinski, T., 193-216
On the Semantics of Stratified Deductive Databases
Chapter 6 Topor, R. and Sonenberg, E.A., 217-240
On Domain Independent Databases
PART 2 - FUNDAMENTAL ISSUES IN DEDUCTIVE DATABASES AND
IMPLEMENTATIONS 241
Chapter 7 Chakravarthy, U.S., Grant, J. and Minker, J.,
243-273
Foundations of Semantic Query Optimization for Deductive
Databases
Chapter 8 Imielinski, T., 275-312
Intelligent Query Answering in Rule Based Systems
Chapter 9 Sadri, F. and Kowalski, R.A., 313-362
An Application of General Purpose Theorem Proving to Data-
base Integrity
Chapter 10 Manchanda, S. and Warren, D.S., 363-394
A Logic-Based Language for Database Updates
Chapter 11 Henschen, L.J. and Park, H., 395-438
Compiling the GCWA in Indefinite Deductive Databases
Chapter 12 Bancilhon F. and Ramakrishnan, R., 439-517
Performance Evaluation of Data Intensive Logic Programs
Chapter 13 Thom, J., Naish, L. and Ramamohanaro, K., 519-
543
A Superjoin Algorithm for Deductive Databases
PART 3 - UNIFICATION AND LOGIC PROGRAMS, 545
Chapter 14 Kanellakis, P., 547-585
Logic Programming and Parallel Complexity
Chapter 15 Lassez, J-L., Maher, M.J. and Marriott, K.,
587-625
Unification Revisited
Chapter 16 Maher, M.J., 627-658
Equivalences of Logic Programs
Chapter 17 Sagiv, Y., 659-698
Optimizing Datalog Programs
Chapter 18 van Emden, M.H. and Szeredi, P., 699-709
Converting AND-Control to OR-Control Using Program Transfor-
mation
AUTHOR ADDRESSES 711-714
REFEREES 715-716
AUTHOR INDEX 717-721
SUBJECT INDEX 723-746
--
JACK MINKER
minker.umcp-cs@udel-relay
------------------------------
End of AIList Digest
********************
