Resolving Ambiguity in Nonmonotonic Inheritance Hierarchies
Abstract
This paper describes a theory of inheritance theories. We present an original theory of inheritance in nonmonotonic hierarchies. The structures on which this theory is based delineate a framework that subsumes most inheritance theories in the literature, providing a new foundation for inheritance. Our path-based theory is sound and complete w.r.t. a direct model-theoretic semantics. Both the credulous and the skeptical conclusions of this theory are polynomial-time computable. We prove that true skeptical inheritance is not contained in the language of path-based inheritance. Because our techniques are modular w.r.t. the definition of specificity, they generalize to provide a unified framework for a broad class of inheritance theories. By describing multiple inheritance theories in the same 'language' of credulous extensions, we make principled comparisons rather than the ad-hoc examination of specific examples makes up most of the comparative inheritance work.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 1991
- Accession Number
- ADA259784
Entities
People
- Lynn A. Stein
Organizations
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology