Abstract

The definition of an expert system as a knowledge‐based source of advice and explanation pinpoints the critical problem which confronts the would‐be builders of such systems. How is the required body of knowledge to be elicited from its human possessors in a form sufficiently complete for effective organization in computer memory? This article reviews recent advances in the art of automated knowledge‐extraction from expert‐supplied example decisions. Computer induction, as the new approach is called, promises both important parallels to the human capacity for concept formation and also commercial exploitability.