Expert System

Abstract

Computers can be programmed with rules to use information to make simple decisions. This is knowledge that has been passed on from the programmer. A simple example is a spreadsheet application that monitors pupils' test marks and calculates average scores. This is where computers are programmed to accept a large number of items of information and based on rules set in the program, make decisions, then further decisions. Examples of these are automatic pilots in aero planes and diagnosis applications used to help doctors. In both cases these systems are only as good as the rules programmed by the human computer programmer and cannot deal with the unexpected. They need to be used as aids to human decision making only. The actual doctor must confirm a diagnosis and treatment suggested by an expert system. Expert systems are part of a general category of computer applications known as AI. To design an ES, one needs a knowledge engineer, an individual who studies how human experts make decisions and translates the rules into terms that a computer can understand.