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40, The Problem of Retraction in Critical Discussion

Contents of 'The Problem of Retraction in Critical Discussion' (2001), by Erik C. W. Krabbe

In many contexts a retraction of commitment is frowned upon... But on the other hand, the very goal of critical discussion - resolution of a dispute - involves a retraction, either of doubt, or of some expressed point of view...

1, The Problem

2, Ingredients for a Solution

(i) Among the rules of dialogue there must be a number of retraction rules that determine, in each dialogical situation, which retractions are permissible...

(ii) If a retraction is permissible the rule should stipulate what, exactly, are the consequences of the retraction...

(iii) ... there must be different stipulations for different types of dialogue.

(iv) ... Retraction rules should take into account the type of persuasion dialogue in which they are to function...

(v) Even within one type of dialogue, there is a need for distinct retraction rules for each type of commitment that occurs within dialogues of that type...

(vi) Another distinction between types of commitment is that between light-side and dark-side commitments...

(vii) ... have a number of different models of dialogue for different types and situations...

(viii) ... it is advisable, in model construction, to make retraction just a bit costly. As was noted above, one might stipulate that retractions lead to further retractions...

3, A Survey of Commitment Types and Constraints on Retraction
- Assertions
- Concessions (Presumptions, Fixed Concessions, Free Concessions)

4, On how to run the hare and hunt with the hounds

39, The Eightfold Way of Deliberation Dialogue

Contents of 'The Eightfold Way of Deliberation Dialogue' (2007), Peter McBurney, David Hitchcock, Simon Parsons

"Deliberation dialogues occur when two or more participants seek to jointly agree on an action or a course of action in some situation..."

1, Introduction

2, Deliberation Dialogues

3, A Formal Model of Deliberations

The following types of sentences are defined: Actions, Goals, Constraints, Perspectives, Facts, Evaluations

The presented formal dialogue model consists of eight stages: Open, Inform, Propose, Consider, Revise, Recommend, Confirm, Close

4, Locutions for a Deliberation Dialogue Protocol

The permissible locutions in the dialogue game are as follows: open_dialogue, enter_dialogue, propose, assert, prefer, ask_justify, move, reject, retract, withdraw_dialogue

5, Example

6, Assessment of the DDF Protocol: Human Dialogues, Deliberation Process, Deliberation Outcomes

7, Discussion: Contribution, Related Work, Future Research

8, Appendix: Axiomatic Semantics

The accidental innovator

Don't you just love that light bulb moment? You know what I mean: There you are, sitting at your desk for days on end trying to crack a problem or generate some great idea, without success, and then, when you are completely detached and least expect it, from a source unimaginable... Eureka! I am sure we have all experienced it at some point or another. Evan Williams, the founder of Blogger and Twitter, certainly has. I read a nice article earlier today about how he stumbled upon his successes and the following three insights: "First, that genuinely new ideas are, well, accidentally stumbled upon rather than sought out; second, that new ideas are by definition hard to explain to others, because words can express only what is already known; and third, that good ideas seem obvious in retrospect."

Check out the article, entitled 'The accidental innovator', which featured in the December 22nd 2007 issue of 'The Economist'. It is a nice read.

European Workshop on Multi-Agent Systems

Quick update to say that I participated in the Fifth European Workshop on Multi-Agent Systems (EUMAS 07) earlier this month, which took place in Hammamet, Tunisia.

A great first-time experience, every step of the way: from writing the paper (Bilateral Agent Negotiation with Information-Seeking) and getting it reviewed to presenting and discussing it with those unfamiliar with my work. To add, it was really beneficial listening in and getting a feel for other ongoing research in the field of Multi-Agent Systems, especially that which is still in the early preliminary stages, like mine.

38, Agent Technology for e-Commerce

Contents of 'Agent Technology for e-Commerce' (2007), Maria Fasli

1, Introduction

(A paradigm shift; Electronic commerce; Agents and e-commerce)

2, Software Agents

(Characteristics; Agents as intentional systems; Making decisions; Planning; Learning; Architectures)

3, Multi-agent Systems

(Interaction; Agent communication; Ontologies; Cooperative problem-solving)

4, Shopping Agents

5, Middle Agents

6, Recommender Systems

7, Elements of Strategic Interaction

(Economics; Game Theory)

8, Negotiation I

(Protocols; Auctions)

9, Negotiation II

(Bargaining; Coalitions; Social choice problems; Argumentation)

10, Mechanism Design

11, Mobile Agents

12, Trust, Security and Legal Issues

(Trust; Electronic institutions; Reputation systems; Security; Cryptography)