Chris is giving a non-technical talk on the work of ARG:dundee to the local chapter of the BCS this evening in Wolfson at 1900.
Arguing for Computers
or, the Computational Advantages of being Disagreeable.
Web Services, Service Oriented Architectures and methods on objects: the
paradigm for enterprise software in the first decade of the 21st century
is one of cooperation and guaranteed levels of service. Recent research
in computer science is starting to demonstrate that a paradigm shift may
be waiting in the wings. If we build software components that decide
whether or not to supply a service (rather than guaranteeing it), our
complex systems become more reliable. If we design software components
that work competitively, rather than cooperatively, they can find better
solutions to hard problems. And if we plan systems that disagree,
dispute and argue, we can increase efficiency in communication and
processing.
This talk explores what selfishness, autonomy and argument mean for
current computational research and future computational practice,
placing a heavy emphasis on systems, tools and techniques that are
available now.
Dr Chris Reed is Senior Lecturer and Head of Research at the University
of Dundee’s School of Computing, where he leads a group exploring the
roles of argument in computing and artificial intelligence. He has
worked in the area since the mid 1990’s and has published over 80 papers
on the topic. He is also an executive director of Calico Jack Ltd., a
Dundee-based SME that builds network solutions for mobile operators
based on non-traditional software engineering techniques aimed at
handling complex, distributed application domains.
