Artificial Intelligence
Paper Topic #4
Due:
April 10, 2012 by midnight
This paper is only for
students enrolled in AI under the course PHIL 372. Students
enrolled in AI under CMSC 372 must
complete the pac-man project.
Topic
In December 2011, the
Philosophy
and Machine Learning workshop at NIPS (one of the major
machine learning conferences) examined the connections between
these two areas.
Read the Workshop description, available at:
http://nips.cc/Conferences/2011/Program/event.php?ID=2533.
Then, choose and read one of the following publications explored
in the workshop:
- A Neural-Symbolic Approach to the Contemporary Theory of
Metaphor
- Beyond Calculation: Probabilistic Computing Machines and
Universal Stochastic Inference
- Are Mental Properties Supervenient on Brain Properties?
- Toward a New Representation for Causation in Dynamic Systems
You can download the extended
abstracts and slides from: http://www.dsi.unive.it/PhiMaLe2011/Program.html.
Read the publication (i.e., the extended abstract and slides) at
least twice and do your best to understand it. These
publications are not easy, but they give you a chance to examine a
modern philosophy publication on AI.
Write a two page paper organized in the
following manner:
- First, summarize the workshop publication in no more than 1/2
of a page. Explain the publication in your own words,
using plain, non-technical language as if you were explaining it
to a fellow philosophy student. Be certain to discuss its main
arguments.
- Discuss your own perspective on the arguments put forth by the
authors, relating these to one or more of the AI and machine
learning topics we have discussed in class. Choose a
specific example or application and use it in your discussion.
I recommend that you start early on
this assignment. Even though you are writing a shorter paper
than usual, it will take you some effort to understand the
workshop publication.
Formatting and Submission Instructions
- Your response should be clear, concise, and well-constructed.
- The paper must be typeset single-spaced with 12 point font and
1 inch margins, with a total length of 2-3 pages. Include
page numbers and references as needed.
- While the writing of the paper must be entirely your own work,
I encourage you to discuss the ideas of your paper with myself
and your fellow students. Should you need assistance with
writing, I encourage you to visit the college writing center.
- Submit your paper as an electronic document in either MS Word
or PDF (preferred) to your shared CS372YourName/Project4 folder
on dropbox by the due date.