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From: lyang%jennifer@Sun.COM (Larry Yang)
Newsgroups: comp.ai
Subject: Re: dear abby....
Message-ID: <14627@sun.uucp>
Date: Fri, 6-Mar-87 16:58:32 EST
Article-I.D.: sun.14627
Posted: Fri Mar  6 16:58:32 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 8-Mar-87 12:09:09 EST
References: <178@arcsun.UUCP> <886@rpics.RPI.EDU>
Sender: news@sun.uucp
Reply-To: lyang@sun.UUCP (Larry Yang)
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mountain View
Lines: 32
Keywords: justification in expert systems

In article <886@rpics.RPI.EDU> yerazuws@rpics.RPI.EDU (Crah) writes:
>In article <178@arcsun.UUCP>, roy@arcsun.UUCP (Roy Masrani) writes:
>> 
>> Dear Abby.  My friends are shunning me because i think that to call
>> a program an "expert system" it must be able to explain its decisions.
>> "The system must be able to show its line of reasoning", I cry.  They
>> say "Forget it, Roy... an expert system need only make decisions that
>> equal human experts.  An explanation facility is optional".  Who's
>> right?

In medical decision systems, the ability to explain the decision
is very important.  I believe that most medical 'expert' systems
(MYCIN and INTERNIST come to mind) have a 'why' or 'explain'
feature.  My understanding is that these systems were to
have applications in teaching, and such a feature would help
medical students understand the medical decision-making process.

But beyond the educational application, it seems that an 'expert'
system will gain greater acceptance if it had an 'explain'
feature.  Would you accept a solution that some black-box,
electronic oracle offered you, without any why or wherefore?
Imagine two doctors diagnosing a condition.  Suppose one were
asking the other for his/her advice.  Would the first doctor
accept just a diagnosis from the second, or would he/she also
ask for an explanation?

================================================================================

--Larry Yang [lyang@sun.com,{backbone}!sun!lyang]|   A REAL _|> /\ |
  Sun Microsystems, Inc., Mountain View, CA      | signature |   | | /-\ |-\ /-\
  "Build a system that even a fool can use and   |          <|_/ \_| \_/\| |_\_|
   only a fool will want to use it."             |                _/          _/