symbolic inference

1 definition found

symbolic inference - Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (26 May 2007) :

  symbolic inference
  
     The derivation of new facts from known facts and inference rules
     .  This is one of the fundamental operations of
     artificial intelligence and logic programming languages
     like Prolog.
  
     Inference is a basic part of human reasoning.  For example
     given that all men are mortal and that Socrates is a man, it
     is a trivial step to infer that Socrates is mortal.  We might
     express these symbolically:
  
     	man(X) => mortal(X).
     	man(socrates).
  
     ("if X is a man then X is mortal" and "Socrates is a man").
     Here, "man", "mortal" and "socrates" are just arbitrary
     symbols which the computer manipulates without reference to or
     knowledge of their external meaning.  A forward chaining
     system (a production system) could use these to infer the
     new fact
  
     	mortal(socrates).
  
     simply by matching the left-hand-side of the implication
     against the fact and substituting socrates for the variable X.
  
     (1994-10-28)