Agents of exploration and discovery
Abstract
Autonomous agents have many applications in familiar situations, but they also have great potential to help us understand novel settings. In this paper, I propose a new challenge for the AI research community: developing embodied systems that not only explore new environments but also characterize them in scientific terms. Illustrative examples include autonomous rovers on planetary surfaces and unmanned vehicles on undersea missions. I review two relevant paradigms: robotic agents that explore unknown areas and computational systems that discover scientific models. In each case, I specify the problem, identify component functions, describe current abilities, and note remaining limitations. Finally, I discuss obstacles that the community must overcome before it can develop integrated agents of exploration and discovery.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2021
- Source ID
- 10.1609/aaai.12021
Entities
People
- Pat Langley
Organizations
- Institute for Defense Analyses
- Office Of The Under Secretary Of Defense