Building Large Knowledge-Based Systems: Representation and Inference in the Cyc Project

Rating:
Summary: An essential primer in Knowledge Bases and Cyc
Review: This book, (written in 1989) captures the essence of writing a large software system which has a practical bent. The particular system developed here is the Cyc Knowledge Base. It outlines the criteria for inclusion of common sense knowledge in a computer system, with attention to the aspects which are necessary to transform raw facts into organized knowledge suitable for inference.

As it was written in the middle of the ten year Cyc project, it has little information about the eventually produced system, and more emphasis on the system as it was at that time. There is still a great deal of value in the book, however, as someone wanting to understand the current Cyc system can still get a feel for the project and the specialized mindset needed to contribute to it. The philosophical asides are essential for understanding the culture of creation within the Cyc project, with much of the culture continuing to the Cycorp organization.

The two authors are still highly involved in the artificial intelligence field, and highly respected. Dr. Lenat is currently head of Cycorp, and Dr. Guha has gone on to be involved in various companies and with the internet RDF work.

Within an admittedly focused niche, this book is extremely useful with very powerful ideas that are well presented. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in high tech fields with explosive growth potential.

Rating:
Summary: An essential primer in Knowledge Bases and Cyc
Review: This book, (written in 1989) captures the essence of writing a large software system which has a practical bent. The particular system developed here is the Cyc Knowledge Base. It outlines the criteria for inclusion of common sense knowledge in a computer system, with attention to the aspects which are necessary to transform raw facts into organized knowledge suitable for inference.

As it was written in the middle of the ten year Cyc project, it has little information about the eventually produced system, and more emphasis on the system as it was at that time. There is still a great deal of value in the book, however, as someone wanting to understand the current Cyc system can still get a feel for the project and the specialized mindset needed to contribute to it. The philosophical asides are essential for understanding the culture of creation within the Cyc project, with much of the culture continuing to the Cycorp organization.

The two authors are still highly involved in the artificial intelligence field, and highly respected. Dr. Lenat is currently head of Cycorp, and Dr. Guha has gone on to be involved in various companies and with the internet RDF work.

Within an admittedly focused niche, this book is extremely useful with very powerful ideas that are well presented. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in high tech fields with explosive growth potential.