On 11/2/07, Linas Vepstas <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > On Fri, Nov 02, 2007 at 12:56:14PM -0700, Matt Mahoney wrote: > > --- Jiri Jelinek <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > On Oct 31, 2007 8:53 PM, Matt Mahoney <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > Natural language is a fundamental part of the knowledge > > > base, not something you can add on later. > > > > > > I disagree. You can start with a KB that contains concepts retrieved > > > from a well structured non-NL input format only, get the thinking > > > algorithms working and then (possibly much later) let the system to > > > focus on NL analysis/understanding or build some > > > NL-to-the_structured_format translation tools. > > > > Well, good luck with that. Are you aware of how many thousands of times > > this > > approach has been tried? You are wading into a swamp. Progress will be > > rapid > > at first. > > Yes, and in the first email I wrote, that started this thread, I stated, > more or less: "yes, I am aware that many have tried, and that its a > swamp, and can anyone elucidate why?" And, so far, no one as been able > to answer that question, even as they firmly assert that surely it is a > swamp. Nor has anyone attempted to posit any mechanisms that avoid that > swamp, other than thought bubbles that state things like "starting from > a clean slate, my system will be magic".
Matt's "because progress will be rapid at first" seems good enough for me. It's not a swamp _in principle_, but it is a swamp in practice, because most of the projects get started without any idea on how to get it there, and instead concentrate on creating shallow appearance of operation. Task of creating this appearance is in itself unlimited in work-year capacity, so they never move past it. I personally don't see how this appearance-building is going to help, so the question for me is not 'why can't it succeed?', but 'why do it at all?'. -- Vladimir Nesov mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] ----- This list is sponsored by AGIRI: http://www.agiri.org/email To unsubscribe or change your options, please go to: http://v2.listbox.com/member/?member_id=8660244&id_secret=60620623-9769bd
