A Conceptual Framework for Knowledge-Based Critic Systems
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Decision Support Systems 7 (1991) 355- 378 355 North-Holland A conceptual framework for knowledge-based critic systems Gerhard Fischer and Thomas Mastaglio * 1. Introduction Department of Compurer Science and lnsritute of Cognirive Science. Universiry of Colorado. Boulder. CO 80309, USA Our goal is to establish the conceptual founda tions for using the computational power that is or The critiquing paradigm is one approach to instantiating will be available on computer systems. We believe the concept of intelligent support systems. Knowledge-based that artificial intelligence technologies can im systems that use the cri tiquing approach can support numerous prove productivity by addressing, rather than application domains. including: progranuning. design and deci sion making. Critiquing is an alternative to expert systems that ignoring, human needs and potential. In the spirit can support cooperative problem solving and aid user learning of Einstein's remark" My pencil is cleverer than I" in the application domain. As a result of empirical studies we we are building systems that augment and amplify identified the requirements for critic systems. We have devel human intelligence. Winograd and Flores [63] oped several knowledge-based critics to instantiate these ideas argue that the development of tools for conversa and used them to identify new issues and theory. Our systems have been revised to include approaches to addressing these tion, the computer serving as a structured dynamic issues. As a result of these implementations we have developed a general architecture for knowledge-based critics that fully support cooperative problem solving. We describe the current Gerhard Fischer is professor of com puter science and a member of the extension of one of our systems designed to incorporate these Institute of Cognitive Science at the findings. University of Colorado at Boulder. He directs the university's "Knowledge Keywords: Cooperative problem solving. Critics, Design en Based Systems and Human-Computer Communication" research group. Be vironments. User models. Explanation. LISP-CRITIC, fore joining the University of Col FRAMER. JANUS. orado, he directed a similar group at the University of Stuttgart, W Germany. Research interest include artificial intelligence, human-com puter communication, cognitive sci ence and software engineering; he is especially interested in bringing these research disciplines together to build cooper ative problem solving systems. His research group has con structed a rich variety of tools and a large number of applica tion systems to test the theories and methods guiding this research. Dr. Fischer received a PhD in computer science from the University of Hamburg. He can be contacted at Computer Science Department. University of Colorado, CO 80309-0430; CSnet: [email protected]. * Acknowledgments: Many people have contributed to the 'Thomas W. Mastaglio is an Army development of LISP-CRITIC over the last few years. The Officer assigned to the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, authors would like to thank especially; Heinz-Dieter Boecker. Fort Monroe, Virginia. He is responsi who developed many of the original ideas, the original set of ble for integrating emerging technolo rules and the rule interpreter; Andreas Lemke developed gies into future training and support FRAMER; Helga Nieper-Lemke developed KAESTLE; Chris systems. He is native of Wisconsin and received his B.S. and Commission topher Morel, Bart Bums. and Catherine Cormack contrib from the U.S. Military Academy in uted to version 1 of LISP-CRITIC; Anders Morch developed 1969. Lieutenant Colonel Mastaglio JANUS; John Rieman, Paul Johl. and Patrick Lynn worked holds Master of Science and Doctor of on version 2 of LISP-CRITIC; Hal Eden and Brent Reeves for Philosophy Degrees in Computer Sci ence from the University of Colorado. recent work on LISP-CRITIC. This research is partially sup His research interests include applying arti ficial intelligence ported by grants from: NYNEX, Software Research Associ techniques to support computer based trai ning, and decision ates (SRA). and the Colorado Institute of Artrticial Intelli making. His specific research involves user modelling tech gence (CIAI). The second author was supported during niques in critiquing systems. He can be contacted at Headquarters US Army TRADOC. ATTN: ATTG-U, Fort graduate studies at the University of Colorado by the U.S. Monroe, VA 23651 . CSnet: mastaglt%monl @ leav Army. emh.army.mil. 0167-9236/91/$03.50 (\') 1991 - Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. All rights reserved 356 G. Fischer. T Mastaglio / Knowledge·based criric svstems medium for conversation in systematic domains, is evolved for the latest version of LISP-CRITIC sup a more realistic and relevant way of exploiting ports this idea. information and communication technologies than is the most widely perceived goal of artificial intelligence, "to understand and to build autono 2. A characterization of the critic paradigm mous, intelligent, thinking machines" [57}. We argue that intermediate approaches, ones that use The critiquing approach tries to make use of knowledge-based techniques to assist users in their available computer knowledge bases to aid users application domains, need to be investigated. in their own work. A colleague can often, with "Intelligent support systems" are used as a little time and effort, provide the missing link that generic name for systems that augment human we, just on our own, cannot find after hours or capabilities. The major application domain of our days of work. This happens in many problem intelligent support systems have been high func solving domains, for example, computer program tionality computer systems, such as UNIX or LIsp ming and other design tasks. machines which contain tens of thousands of ob Artificial intelligence research was initially di jects and tools. Developing intelligent support sys rected towards creating autonomous intelligent tems has as its goal making usable the total space agents. However, in many situations it is desirable of functionality available in computational en to keep a "human in the loop". There are several vironments rather than diluting functionality or reasons for this. Often the intelligent system does orienting the user on only a subset of the system's not have the knowledge required to cover the capabilities. complete problem domain and interaction with Intelligent support systems should facilitate humans is inevitable. On the other hand, humans access, application of knowledge, and user learn should not be deskilled by their computer systems, ing. We have constructed a number of different demoted to mere suppliers of data. Computer intelligent support systems: documentation sys systems should function in a cooperative mode tems [24}, active and passive help systems [17}, where the human and the machine collaborate in design environments [15;34}, and critics [11;22;18}. working towards a common goaL Instead of au All of these systems have two things in common: tonomous expert systems we want to develop in they are knowledge-based and they use innovative telligent support systems where the abilities of the techniques in humancomputer communication. In computer and the human are synergized to form a this paper we focus on knowledge-based critics. "joint human-machine cognitive system" [65]. The ultimate objective of our efforts is to evolve One source of information available to an intel intelligent support systems to cooperative problem ligent support system is the human's interaction solving systems. Cooperative problem solving with the system. This interaction could be viewed characterizes situations in which intelligent agents as a crude dialog and it along with the partial work together to produce a design, plan, product products that are created during this interaction or decision. Our work has focused on dyadic situa can be used by the computer as insight into what tions with a human problem solver and knowl the human is doing. If the human's primary work edge-based computer system. environment is a computer system, then these In this article we describe the conceptual actions are accessible to the system as sequences framework for knowledge-based critics and some of commands, menu selections, mouse operations, of the general principles we have learned from and the like. Critic systems exploit those sources building critics. Section 2 presents the general available to the computer to facilitate cooperative framework for critics and section 3 presents their interaction with a user during problem solving. specific requirements. Section 4 describes proto Critics analyze a product produced by the user typical critic systems that we have constructed: and provide suggestions as to how the user can LISP-CRITIC, which critiques LISP programs, and improve that product. if the user so desires, in two design environments: FRAMER for interface some domains the system may be able to incorpo construction and JANUS kitchen design. Section 5 rate those suggestions directly in a revised version elaborates further the notion of cooperative prob of the product. The process is cyclical and con lem solving and explains how the design which has tinues until the user is satisfied with the solution. G. Fischer. T. Mastaglio / Knowledge-hased critIC SVSlent~ 357 The roles played by the computer and the human users with their work in these "fuzzier" problem in this process are interactive