Representation has been the central issue in artificial
intelligence work over the last 15 years only because
it has provided an interface between otherwise isolated
modules and conference papers.
The popular story goes that when nobody has any good
idea of how to solve a particular sort of problem (e.g.
playing chess) it is known as an AI problem. When
an algorithm developed by AI researchers successfully
tackles such a problem, however, AI detractors claim
that since the problem was solvable by an algorithm,
it wasn't really an AI problem after all.
For the moment then, consider the problem of
building Creatures as an engineering problem. We
will develop an engineering methodology for building
Creatures.
• A Creature must cope appropriately and in a timely
fashion with changes in its dynamic environment.
• A Creature should be robust with respect to its
environment; minor changes in the properties of
the world should not lead to total collapse of the
Creature's behavior; rather one should expect only a
gradual change in capabilities of the Creature as the
environment changes more and more.
• A Creature should be able to maintain multiple
goals and, depending on the circumstances it finds
itself in, change which particular goals it is
actively pursuing; thus it can both adapt to
surroundings and capitalize on fortuitous
circumstances.
• A Creature should do something in the world; it
should have some purpose in being.
Intelligence without representation, Rodney A. Brooks (1987) http://people.csail.mit.edu/brooks/papers/representation.pdf
Representation has been the central issue in artificial intelligence work over the last 15 years only because it has provided an interface between otherwise isolated modules and conference papers.
The popular story goes that when nobody has any good idea of how to solve a particular sort of problem (e.g. playing chess) it is known as an AI problem. When an algorithm developed by AI researchers successfully tackles such a problem, however, AI detractors claim that since the problem was solvable by an algorithm, it wasn't really an AI problem after all.
For the moment then, consider the problem of building Creatures as an engineering problem. We will develop an engineering methodology for building Creatures. • A Creature must cope appropriately and in a timely fashion with changes in its dynamic environment. • A Creature should be robust with respect to its environment; minor changes in the properties of the world should not lead to total collapse of the Creature's behavior; rather one should expect only a gradual change in capabilities of the Creature as the environment changes more and more. • A Creature should be able to maintain multiple goals and, depending on the circumstances it finds itself in, change which particular goals it is actively pursuing; thus it can both adapt to surroundings and capitalize on fortuitous circumstances. • A Creature should do something in the world; it should have some purpose in being.