Book review: Adaptive Reasoning for Real-World Problems by Roy M. Turner (Lawrence Earlbaum Associates, 1994)

In view of the growing popularity of agent-based systems this book is very timely. "Adaptive Reasoning for Real-World Problems" discusses practical approaches to realizing adaptive systems based on current agent concepts. The book discusses, in detail, the nature and types of knowledge that computer-based agents need to access and manage in order to be able to effectively function in a changing operational environment. It identifies the types of knowledge required for adaptive problem solving: procedural, contextual, and strategic, and addresses, in detail, appropriate ways of structuring knowledge for use by the adaptive agent. Procedural knowledge refers to implicit or explicit actions required to achieve a goal. Contextual knowledge is that knowledge which establishes the problem-solving context in which the agent (or reasoner) finds itself and in which it must operate. Strategic knowledge refers to that knowledge which the agent can use to control or modify its problem-solving behaviors. In Turner's system each of these types of knowledge is represented in a schema: "...an explicit, declaratively-represented packet of knowledge representing either a pattern encountered (or expected) in the world or a pattern of action for the reasoner to take. A schema can be either provided to a reasoner by another agent or learned from experience."