Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!henry
From: henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: ont.events
Subject: Re: Seminar on default reasoning by David Poole at Univ Toronto
Message-ID: <4359@utzoo.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 24-Sep-84 12:42:44 EDT
Article-I.D.: utzoo.4359
Posted: Mon Sep 24 12:42:44 1984
Date-Received: Mon, 24-Sep-84 12:42:44 EDT
References: <24@utcsrgv.UUCP>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
Lines: 12

>``It's the exception that proves the rule'' is an axiom of folklore that says
>if a piece of knowledge is truly useful, and not just definitional, it will
>have exceptions.

Actually, whoever wrote this abstract (Dr. Poole?) should be embarrassed,
because he's got it wrong.  The saying is so old that the meaning of the
words has changed.  "Prove" is being used in its obsolete meaning of
"to test".  Translated to modern English, the saying reads:  "Extreme
cases are the best tests of a rule".  Tsk, tsk.
-- 
				Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
				{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!henry