Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!aplcen!hall
From: hall@aplcen.apl.jhu.edu (Marty Hall)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.lisp
Subject: Re: looking for advanced techniques book for LISP
Keywords: book LISP ai lambda calulus logic
Message-ID: <1991Apr10.162426.28213@aplcen.apl.jhu.edu>
Date: 10 Apr 91 16:24:26 GMT
References: <1991Apr10.130052.4210@edsr.eds.com>
Reply-To: hall@aplcen.apl.jhu.edu (Marty Hall)
Organization: AAI Corp AI Lab, JHU P/T CS Faculty
Lines: 47


In article <1991Apr10.130052.4210@edsr.eds.com> wjb@tantalum..eds.com 
(Bill Biesty) writes:
>
>I'm trying to find a book that will show me or give me examples
>of things that you can do in LISP that make LISP the only language
>to do them in.  I've got Winston & Horn and its an introduction.
> [Mentions the lambda calculus]

I agree; I would consider W&H an excellent tutorial with a few more advanced
applications, not an advanced techniques text. For that, I would mention
four. Note that these matters are highly subjective.

1) _Artificial Intelligence Programming_ (2/ed), Charniak, Riesbeck, McDermott,
and Meehan, published by Lawrence Erlbaum (1987). I haven't referred to this
one much recently, but it used to be considered (at least in many of the
circles I was in) THE text on AI applications in Common LISP.

2) _Paradigms of AI Programming_, by Peter Norvig, to be published by Morgan
Kaufmann. This is my personal favorite, and has many advanced AI applications
of Common LISP as well specific LISP techniques. My understanding is that
it should be out later this year (my info is from a pre-publication draft).

3) _Common LISP Programming for Artificial Intelligence_, by Hasemer and
Domingue, published by Addison Wesley (1989). Nicely written with lots
of LISP code, but, unfortunately, it has (IMHO) a major mistake in the
design of the rule interpretter that it spends two chapters on.

4) _LISP, Lore, and Logic: An Algebraic View of LISP Programming, Foundations,
and Applications_, by W. Richard Stark, published by Springer-Verlag (1990).
This is not an AI applications book, and may be most in the vein of what
you were looking for. I found it quite entertaining, with entries on
the lambda calculus, self-modifying code, LISP forms that evaluate
to themselves, and the like. The enjoyable style reminded me of Abelson
& Sussman's terrific _Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs_,
perhaps because of the quotes and folklore scattered throughout.

I know of a few others, but either I don't have them or I have them and I
don't like them (and, on the net, I better not say which :-).

						- Marty Hall

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Artificial Intelligence Lab, AAI Corp, PO Box 126, Hunt Valley, MD 21030

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