Some Fascinating Exhibits

Outline

Problem Solvers

ELIZA

Eliza, Joseph Wiezbaum's result of trying to make a program converse in English amazed people when it appeared in mid 1960's. The program was able to converse about any subject, because it stored subject information in data banks. Another feature of Eliza was its ability it picked up speech patterns. notably, after creating one of the most famous programs Wiezbaum objected to the bonds that interviewees were making with his creation, and denounced the intelligence of Eliza. The following passage shows Elizas talking to a teenage girl. The teenager speaks first, and Eliza's answers are in blue.

Men are all alike.

IN WHAT WAY

They're always bugging us about something or other.

CAN YOU THINK OF A SPECIFIC EXAMPLE

Well, my boyfriend made me come here.

YOUR BOYFRIEND MADE YOU COME HERE

He says that I am depressed all the time.

I AM SORRY TO HERE YOU ARE DEPRESSED

It's true that I am unhappy

DO YOU THINK COMING HERE WILL HELP YOU NOT TO BE UNHAPPY

I need help, that seems certain.

WHAT WOULD IT MEAN IF YOU GOT SOME HELP

Perhaps I could learn to get along with my mother.

TELL ME MORE ABOUT YOUR FAMILY

My mother takes care of me.

WHO ELSE IN YOUR FAMILY TAKES CARE OF YOU

My father.

YOUR FATHER

You are like my father in some ways.

WHAT RESEMBLANCE DO YOU SEE

You are not very aggressive but I think you don't want me to notice that.

WHAT MAKES YOU THINK THAT I AM NOT VERY AGGRESSIVE

You dont argue with me.

WHY DON'T YOU THINK I ARGUE WITH YOU

You are afraid of me.

DOES IT PLEASE YOU TO BELIEVE I AM AFRAID OF YOU

My father is afraid of everybody.

WHAT ELSE COMES TO MIND WHEN YOU THINK OF YOUR FATHER

Bullies.

DOES THAT HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THE FACT THAT YOUR BOYFRIEND MADE YOU COME HERE

As impressive as Eliza looks, Wiezbaum noted that it understood no more of the girl's problems as an alarm clock understands when to go off. For example, the last sentence gives the impression of comprehension, but in fact the program is written so that at one point, it modifies the first sentence and applies it as a response.

Parry

Why are you in the hospital?

I SHOULDN'T BE HERE.

Who brought you here?

THE POLICE.

What trouble did you have with the police?

COPS DONT DO THEIR JOB.

What do they do instead?

COPS ARREST THE WRONG PEOPLE.

They arrest the right ones sometimes.

THE LAW SHOULD GET THOSE ITALIAN CROOKS.

Are you Italian

MY BACKGROUND IS BRITISH BUT I WAS BORN IN THIS COUNTRY.

Do you know any Italian crooks?

I TRY TO AVOID THE UNDERWORLD.

Are you afraid of the underworld?

THE MAFIA ARE THE WORST GANGSTERS.

Are you connected with the Mafia?

WHO KNOW, THEY KNOW ME.

How do they know you?

THEY SPY ON ME.

Why do they?

THEY WANT TO GET FALSE EVIDENCE TO FRAME ME.

What do they have against you?

THEY ARE OUT TO GET ME.

What for?

I HAVE INCRIMINATING EVIDENCE AGAINST THE MAFIA.

Are you sure of all of this?

YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME?

I am doing my best.

--Parry remains silent--

--The psychiatrist does not respond--

CAN'T YOU THINK OF A DECENT QUESTION TO ASK?

You seem hostile to me.

SOME OF YOUR REMARKS ANNOY ME.

I am sorry.

FORGET THE EXCUSES, YOU GUYS ARE ALL ALIKE.

Problem Solving

SHRDLU and block worlds

1. pick up a red block
OK

2. find a block which is taller than the one you are holding and put it into the box.
By "it," i assume that you mean the block which is taller than the one i am holding. OK.

3. what does the box contain?
The blue pyramid and the blue box

4. what is the pyramid supported by?
the box

5. how many blocks are not in the box?
four of them

6. is at least one of them narrowed than the one which I told you to pick up?
yes, the red cube

7. is it supported?
yes, by the table

8. can the table hold blocks?
no

9. the blue pyramid is mine
I understand

10. I own all blocks which are not red, but I dont own anything that supports a pyramid
I understand

11. do I own the box?
no

12. do I own anything in the box?
Yes, two things: the blue box and the blue pyramid

13. will you please stack up both of the red blocks and either a green cube or a pyramid?
OK

14. is there a large block behind a pyramid?
yes, three of them: a large red one, a large green cube and the blue one.

15. put a small one into the green cube which supports a pyramid
OK

16. put the littlest pyramid on top of it
OK

17. had you touched any pyramid before you put the green one on the little cube?
Yes, the green one

18. when did you pick it up?
while i was stacking up the red cube, a large red block and a large green cube

19. why?
to get rid of it

20. why did you do that?
to clear off the red cube

21. why did you clear off that cube?
to put it on a large green cube

22. why did you do that?
to stack the red cube, a large block, and a large green cube

23. why did you do that?
because you asked me to


With SHRDLU's comprehension and logic, AI reached a new level. The name SHRDLU was actually borrowed from MAD magazine, and is made up of, as its author Terry Wingrad explained, the seventh through twelfth frequently used letters in the English language.

The General Problem Solver

The first version of the GPS ran soon after the Dartmouth conference, with the aim of having computers search for their own logical solutions to problems. The GPS has successfully sovled a variety of problems including Deductive reasoning problems, and other such as the Hanoi Tower.
The temple is made up of three wooden poles and four flat, stone disks. The object is to move the tower to another pole, without laying the disks on the ground, or letting a larger disk on top of a smaller one.

Some other notable programs:

Hacker

Hacker, developed in the MIT lab, lays to rest the common myth that a computer will never be able to program itself. Hacker is able to write programs for the computer that it is running on. The logic necessary for Hackers skill is stored in packets of information which are referred to. Also Hacker uses a programming library of common trouble-shooting, and is able to add tricks to its library.

Sam

Sam is a program from Yale's AI lab which is able to read between the lines, and assume certain facts.

The Story:
John went to New York by bus. On the bus he talked to an old lady. When he left the bus, he thanked the driver. He took the subway to Leone's. On the subway his pocket was picked. He got off the train and entered Leone's. He had some lasagna. When the check came, he discovered he couldn't pay. The management told him he would have to wash dishes. When he left, he caught a bus to New Haven.

Sam's comprehension: (Sam's answers are in blue.)

Why did John go to New York?
Because John wanted to go to Leone's

How did John get to Leone's?
John took a bus to New York and then he took the subway to Leone's.

Did anything unusual happen on the bus?
I don't remember anything

Did anything unusual happen on the subway?
A thief picked John's pocket.

What did John order?
John ordered lasagna.

Did anything unusual happen at the restaurant?
John discovered that he could not pay the check and so he had to wash dishes.

Why couldn't John pay the check?
Because John didn't have any money.

Why didn't John have any money?
Because a thief picked John's pocket.

How did John get back to New Haven?
John went from Leone's by subway and then he went to New Haven by bus.

How was John able to take the bus to New Haven?
Probably he had a ticket.



Sam's logic is represented in frames. For this story Sam might use a restaurant frame, and a subway and bus frame. These frames spell out what events in order most likely would occur in situations. Sam is impressive, because it can draw conclusions from the story that are not specifically stated. Also, with the last response, Sam shows that he can make conjectures without information from the story, with the use of frames.

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