Machine Learning: RPI using machine learning for DARPA

"Teaching Computers to Reason Is Next Big Test"
Associated Press (01/31/05); Hill, Michael

"Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute professors Selmer Bringsjord and Konstantine Arkoudas have won a year-long contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a computer capable of learning by reading. For machines to successfully read, sentences must be rendered as formal logic equations or other computer-comprehensible formats, and the Rensselaer professors want to instill this ability--as well as the ability to reason--through algorithms incorporated into their "Poised-for-Learning" machine. Bringsjord expects artificial intelligence to evolve to the point where computers can read military plans or manuals and adapt on the spur of the moment in mid-battle, a capability that is currently lacking in today's systems. He foresees future AI robots that receive data input in real time either through reading or listening to spoken instructions. The approximately $400,000 DARPA grant could be extended to a three-year $1.2 million grant, and Bringsjord wants a Poised-for-Learning system that can read basic texts ready in three years. DARPA's Jan Walker says the grant is part of the agency's overall program to develop more advanced cognitive systems. Director of DARPA's Information Processing Technology Office Ronald Brachman envisions a "computer-permeated future" where systems will need to improve themselves over time by recalling previously accumulated knowledge. Meanwhile, Cycorp's Cyc project aims to build a repository of human knowledge capable of making intelligent decisions through reasoning."

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