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Extending the Maximum Entropy Approach to Variable Strength Defaults

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Abstract

A generalisation of the maximum entropy (ME) approach to default reasoning [7,8] to cater for variable strength defaults is presented. The assumptions on which the original work was based are reviewed and revised. A new algorithm is presented that is shown to compute the ME-ranking under these more general conditions. The limitations of the revised approach are discussed and a test for the uniqueness of the ME-solution is given. The ME-solutions to several illustrative examples of default reasoning are given, and the approach is shown to handle them appropriately. The conclusion is that the ME-approach can be regarded as providing a benchmark theory of default reasoning against which default intuitions and other default systems may be assessed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Electronic Engineering, Queen Mary, University of London, London, E1 4NS, UK

    Rachel A. Bourne

  2. Department of Computer Science, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 7ZF, UK

    Simon Parsons

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  1. Rachel A. Bourne
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  2. Simon Parsons
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Bourne, R.A., Parsons, S. Extending the Maximum Entropy Approach to Variable Strength Defaults. Annals of Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence 39, 123–146 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024480428872

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