Ethotic arguments and fallacies: The credibility function in multi-agent dialogue systems

1999 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 177-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas N. Walton
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Dialogue Systems ◽  
Personal Attack ◽  
Argument Evaluation ◽  
Informal Fallacy ◽  
Multi Agent ◽  
Credibility Rating ◽  
Argumentum Ad Verecundiam ◽  
Credibility Function ◽  
Argumentum Ad Hominem

In this paper, it is shown how formal dialectic can be extended to model multi-agent argumentation in which each participant is an agent. An agent is viewed as a participant in a dialogue who not only has goals, and the capability for actions, but who also has stable characteristics of types that can be relevant to an assessment of some of her arguments used in that dialogue. When agents engage in argumentation in dialogues, each agent has a credibility function that can be adjusted upwards or downwards by certain types of arguments brought forward by the other agent in the dialogue. One type is the argument against the person or argumentum ad hominem, in which personal attack on one party's character is used to attack his argument. Another is the appeal to expert opinion, traditionally associated with the informal fallacy called the argumentum ad verecundiam. In any particular case, an agent will begin a dialogue with a given degree of credibility, and what is here called the credibility function will affect the plausibility of the arguments put forward by that agent. In this paper, an agent is shown to have specific character traits that are vital to properly judging how this credibility function should affect the plausibility of her arguments, including veracity, prudence, sincerity and openness to opposed arguments. When one of these traits is a relevant basis for an adjustment in a credibility function, there is a shift to a subdialogue in which the argumentation in the case is re-evaluated. In such a case, it is shown how the outcome can legitimately be a reduction in the credibility rating of the arguer who was attacked. Then it is shown how the credibility function should be brought into an argument evaluation in the case, yielding the outcome that the argument is assigned a lower plausibility value.

scholarly journals Multi-Agent Path Finding with Deadlines

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hang Ma ◽  
Glenn Wagner ◽  
Ariel Felner ◽  
Jiaoyang Li ◽  
T. K. Satish Kumar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Flow Problem ◽  
Search Algorithms ◽  
The Other ◽  
Path Finding ◽  
Combinatorial Search ◽  
Programming Formulation ◽  
Commodity Flow ◽  
Linear Programming Formulation ◽  
Multi Agent ◽  
Integer Linear Programming Formulation

We formalize Multi-Agent Path Finding with Deadlines (MAPF-DL). The objective is to maximize the number of agents that can reach their given goal vertices from their given start vertices within the deadline, without colliding with each other. We first show that MAPF-DL is NP-hard to solve optimally. We then present two classes of optimal algorithms, one based on a reduction of MAPF-DL to a flow problem and a subsequent compact integer linear programming formulation of the resulting reduced abstracted multi-commodity flow network and the other one based on novel combinatorial search algorithms. Our empirical results demonstrate that these MAPF-DL solvers scale well and each one dominates the other ones in different scenarios.

scholarly journals Velocity Obstacle Approaches for Multi-Agent Collision Avoidance

2019 ◽  
Vol 07 (01) ◽  
pp. 55-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
James A. Douthwaite ◽  
Shiyu Zhao ◽  
Lyudmila S. Mihaylova
Keyword(s):  
Collision Avoidance ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Monte Carlo Analysis ◽  
The Other ◽  
Multi Agent Systems ◽  
Agent Systems ◽  
Multi Agent ◽  
Velocity Obstacle ◽  
Scalable Computation ◽  
Avoidance Problem

This paper presents a critical analysis of some of the most promising approaches to geometric collision avoidance in multi-agent systems, namely, the velocity obstacle (VO), reciprocal velocity obstacle (RVO), hybrid-reciprocal velocity obstacle (HRVO) and optimal reciprocal collision avoidance (ORCA) approaches. Each approach is evaluated with respect to increasing agent populations and variable sensing assumptions. In implementing the localized avoidance problem, the author notes a problem of symmetry not considered in the literature. An intensive 1000-cycle Monte Carlo analysis is used to assess the performance of the selected algorithms in the presented conditions. The ORCA method is shown to yield the most scalable computation times and collision likelihood in the presented cases. The HRVO method is shown to be superior than the other methods in dealing with obstacle trajectory uncertainty for the purposes of collision avoidance. The respective features and limitations of each algorithm are discussed and presented through examples.

scholarly journals KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE REUSE THROUGH COMMUNICATION AMONG COMPETENT (PEER) AGENTS

1999 ◽  
Vol 09 (03) ◽  
pp. 319-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
FRANCISCO J. MARTÍN ◽  
ENRIC PLAZA ◽  
JOSEP LLUÍS ARCOS
Keyword(s):  
Specific Problem ◽  
The Other ◽  
Multi Agent Systems ◽  
Knowledge Modeling ◽  
Agent Systems ◽  
Experience Reuse ◽  
Multi Agent ◽  
Cooperative Activity ◽  
Communication And Coordination ◽  
Competence Models

This article addresses an extension of the knowledge modeling approaches, namely to multi-agent systems where communication and coordination are necessary. We propose the notion of competent agent and define the basic capabilities of these agents for the extension to be effective. An agent is competent when it is capable of reasoning about its own competence and that of the other agents with which it cooperates in a given domain. In our framework, an agent has competence models of itself and of its acquaintances from which it can decide, for a specific problem to be solved, the type of cooperative activity it can request and from which agent. In this paper we focus on societies of peer agents, i.e. agents that are able to solve the same type of task but that may have different degrees of competence for specific problem ranges.

Counter-discourse corpora, ethical subjectivity and critique of argument

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 781-813 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kieran O’Halloran
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Political Change ◽  
The Other ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Argument Evaluation ◽  
Corpus Linguistic ◽  
Ethical Subjectivity

In the article, I model an alternative critical discourse analysis (CDA) pedagogy which is based on an ethical subjectivity instead of a political subjectivity. Aimed at undergraduates, it facilitates critical purchase on arguments which attack the standpoint of relatively powerless groups/organizations (who seek political change). Via corpus linguistic analysis of appropriate web-based data, I show how the analyst can rigorously find out at scale the recurrent key concerns of a relatively powerless Other with whom they were previously unfamiliar. They use this counter-discourse information as a lens on an argument which criticises the relatively powerless group, ascertaining whether or not the argument has distorted the group’s key concerns. Should this be the case, I highlight how the analyst can go on to explore whether any mischaracterisation has implications for the argument’s credibility because it loses coherence relative to the outlook of the Other. The approach is grounded in Jacques Derrida’s ‘ethics of hospitality to the Other’. It is in being hospitable to the outlook of a relatively powerless Other, and adopting it for purposes of argument evaluation, that the analyst effectively creates an ethical subjectivity. That said, the ethical and political are, in principle, relatable with this method as I indicate.

Counter-discourse corpora, ethical subjectivity and critique of argument: An alternative critical discourse analysis pedagogy

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 781-813 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Corpus Linguistics ◽  
The Other ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Argument Evaluation ◽  
Ethical Subjectivity ◽  
Online Comments ◽  
Text Cohesion

In the article I model an alternative critical discourse analysis (CDA) pedagogy which is based on an ethical subjectivity instead of a political subjectivity. Aimed at undergraduates, it facilitates critical purchase on arguments which attack the standpoint of relatively powerless groups/organizations (who seek political change). Via corpus linguistic analysis of appropriate web-based data, I show how the analyst can rigorously find out at scale the recurrent key concerns of a relatively powerless Other with whom they were previously unfamiliar. They use this counter-discourse information as a lens on an argument which criticises the relatively powerless group, ascertaining whether or not the argument has distorted the group’s key concerns. Should this be the case, I highlight how the analyst can go on to explore whether any mischaracterisation has implications for the argument’s credibility because it loses coherence relative to the outlook of the Other. The approach is grounded in Jacques Derrida’s ‘ethics of hospitality to the Other’. It is in being hospitable to the outlook of a relatively powerless Other, and adopting it for purposes of argument evaluation, that the analyst effectively creates an ethical subjectivity. That said, the ethical and political are, in principle, relatable with this method as I indicate. Keywords: absences; argumentation; change.org; corpus linguistics; counter-discourse; critical discourse analysis; ethical subjectivity; Jacques Derrida; online comments; text cohesion.

Hybrid Method for Solving Flexible Open Shop Scheduling Problem with Simulated Annealing Algorithm and Multi-Agent Approach

2011 ◽  
Vol 383-390 ◽  
pp. 4612-4619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tadeusz Witkowski ◽  
Paweł Antczak ◽  
Arkadiusz Antczak
Keyword(s):  
Simulated Annealing ◽  
Simulated Annealing Algorithm ◽  
The Other ◽  
Scheduling Problem ◽  
Open Shop Scheduling ◽  
Hand Search ◽  
Shop Scheduling ◽  
Multi Agent ◽  
Annealing Algorithm ◽  
Metaheuristic Optimization Algorithm

In this study we propose metaheuristic optimization algorithm, in which simulated annealing, multi agent approach with fuzzy logic are used. On the first level of solution search the multi agent approach is used, and on the second level – the simulated annealing. Two types of routing were considered: a serial and a parallel one. The multi-agent approach emphasizes flexibility rather than the optimality of solutions. On the other hand, search approaches such as simulated annealing, which focus more on the optimality of solutions.

scholarly journals On Partially Controlled Multi-Agent Systems

1996 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 477-507 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. I. Brafman ◽  
M. Tennenholtz
Keyword(s):  
Expected Utility ◽  
The Other ◽  
Multi Agent System ◽  
Multi Agent Systems ◽  
Direct Control ◽  
Agent System ◽  
Agent Systems ◽  
Multi Agent ◽  
Game Theoretic

Motivated by the control theoretic distinction between controllable and uncontrollable events, we distinguish between two types of agents within a multi-agent system: controllable agents, which are directly controlled by the system's designer, and uncontrollable agents, which are not under the designer's direct control. We refer to such systems as partially controlled multi-agent systems, and we investigate how one might influence the behavior of the uncontrolled agents through appropriate design of the controlled agents. In particular, we wish to understand which problems are naturally described in these terms, what methods can be applied to influence the uncontrollable agents, the effectiveness of such methods, and whether similar methods work across different domains. Using a game-theoretic framework, this paper studies the design of partially controlled multi-agent systems in two contexts: in one context, the uncontrollable agents are expected utility maximizers, while in the other they are reinforcement learners. We suggest different techniques for controlling agents' behavior in each domain, assess their success, and examine their relationship.

scholarly journals Implicit Coordination Using FOND Planning

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (05) ◽  
pp. 7151-7159
Author(s):  
Thorsten Engesser ◽  
Tim Miller
Keyword(s):  
Computational Complexity ◽  
The Other ◽  
Path Finding ◽  
Initial State ◽  
Arbitrary Initial State ◽  
State Uncertainty ◽  
Multi Agent ◽  
Decidable Fragment ◽  
Implicit Coordination

Epistemic planning can be used to achieve implicit coordination in cooperative multi-agent settings where knowledge and capabilities are distributed between the agents. In these scenarios, agents plan and act on their own without having to agree on a common plan or protocol beforehand. However, epistemic planning is undecidable in general. In this paper, we show how implicit coordination can be achieved in a simpler, propositional setting by using nondeterminism as a means to allow the agents to take the other agents' perspectives. We identify a decidable fragment of epistemic planning that allows for arbitrary initial state uncertainty and non-determinism, but where actions can never increase the uncertainty of the agents. We show that in this fragment, planning for implicit coordination can be reduced to a version of fully observable nondeterministic (FOND) planning and that it thus has the same computational complexity as FOND planning. We provide a small case study, modeling the problem of multi-agent path finding with destination uncertainty in FOND, to show that our approach can be successfully applied in practice.

scholarly journals Het persoonlijke in Thorbeckes Tweede Kamer

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-204
Author(s):  
Jouke Turpijn
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
The Other ◽  
Personal Attack ◽  
Members Of Parliament ◽  
Parliamentary Debate ◽  
Personal Politics ◽  
Verbal Attack ◽  
The One ◽  
Verbal Arguments ◽  
Parliamentary Politics

Abstract Remarks about the person in Thorbecke’s Second ChamberThere is always a risk in parliamentary politics that objective debate will change into personal debate and conflict. On the one hand, orators can choose to launch a personal verbal attack to their opponents. On the other hand, opponents can interpret verbal arguments as a personal attack, even if these words were not meant that way. In the most extreme cases personal honour is damaged and needs to be repaired through other means, including a physical duel. Compared to other young parliaments, the nineteenth century Dutch ‘Second Chamber’ (Tweede Kamer) had a quiet and calm reputation. How did Dutch Members of Parliament handle their emotions in confrontations that risked to become personal? How did the most influential politician, J.R. Thorbecke, deal with these confrontations? Which rules and rituals were at the disposal of MPs to protect themselves against personal politics? And what could contemporary parliamentary debate learn from these Dutch nineteenth-century examples? To find asnwers to these questions, this article explores personal politics in Thorbecke’s Second Chamber.

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