1,721,073 research outputs found

    Epistemic Modalities

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    I present an analysis of the notion of epistemic modalities, based on an appropriate interpretation of two basic constructivist issues: verification and epistemic agency. Starting from an historical analysis of conditions for judgments, I analyze first the reading of necessity with respect to apodictic judgements, and then that of possibility with respect to hypothetical judgement. The analysis results in a formal treatment of rules for judgemental modal operators, whose aim is to preserve epistemic states corresponding to verified and unverified assumptions in contexts. In the conclusion, further tracks of research are indicated for designing a semantic framework and defining multi-agents systems

    Type-theoretical dynamics: exploring belief revision in a constructive framework

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    In the present paper a dynamics for type theory is introduced. The formalization provides epistemic explanations for the basic notions of belief state and belief set by referring to assertion conditions for type-theoretical judgements; it interprets expectations in terms of default assumptions for such a structure and it adapts the usual revision operations and the analogous of the Ramsey test. The model, restricted to operations of revision, merging and information preference, provides a constructive type-theoretical approach to epistemic dynamics

    Modelling Accuracy and Trustworthiness of Explaining Agents

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    Current research in Explainable AI includes post-hoc explanation methods that focus on building transparent explaining agents able to emulate opaque ones. Such agents are naturally required to be accurate and trustworthy. However, what it means for an explaining agent to be accurate and trustworthy is far from being clear. We characterize accuracy and trustworthiness as measures of the distance between the formal properties of a given opaque system and those of its transparent explanantes. To this aim, we extend Probabilistic Computation Tree Logic with operators to specify degrees of accuracy and trustworthiness of explaining agents. We also provide a semantics for this logic, based on a multi-agent structure and relative model-checking algorithms. The paper concludes with a simple example of a possible application

    The logic of identity and copy for computational artefacts

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    Defining identity for entities is a long-standing logical problem in philosophy, and it has resurfaced in current investigations within the philosophy of technology. The problem has not yet been explored for the philosophy of information and of computer science in particular. This paper provides a logical analysis of identity and copy for computational artefacts. Identity is here understood as the relation holding between an instance of a computational artefact and itself. By contrast, the copy relation holds between two distinct computational artefacts. We distinguish among exact, inexact and approximate copies. We use process algebra to provide suitable formal definitions of these relations, using in particular the notion of bisimulation to define identity and exact copies, and simulation for inexact and approximate copies. Equivalence is unproblematic for identical computational artefacts at each individual time and for inexact copies; we will examine to which extent the formal constraints on identity criteria discussed in the literature are satisfied by our approach. As for inexact and approximate copy, they are intended as a weakening of the identity relation in that equivalence and other constraints on identity are violated. The proposed approach also suggests a computable treatment of identity and copy checking

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Introducing k-lingo: a k-depth Bounded Version of ASP System Clingo

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    Depth-Bounded Boolean Logics (DBBL for short) are well-understood frameworks to model rational agents equipped with limited deductive capabilities. These Logics use a parameter k>=0 to limit the amount of virtual information, i.e., the information that the agent may temporarily assume throughout the deductive process. This restriction brings several advantageous properties over classical Propositional Logic, including polynomial decision procedures for deducibility and refutability. Inspired by DBBL, we propose a limited-depth version of the popular ASP system clingo, tentatively dubbed k-lingo after the bound k on virtual information. We illustrate the connection between DBBL and ASP through examples involving both proof-theoretical and implementative aspects. The paper concludes with some comments on future work, which include a computational complexity characterization of the system, applications to multi-agent systems and feasible approximations of probability functions
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