Explanatory power for medical expert systems: studies in the representation of causal relationships for clinical consultations

Technical Report · Sun Aug 01 04:00:00 EDT 1982

OSTI ID:6730450

Wallis, J W; Shortliffe, E H

This paper reports on experiments designed to identify and implement mechanisms for enhancing the explanation capabilities of reasoning programs for medical consultation. The goals of an explanation system are discussed, as it the additional knowledge needed to meet these goals in a medical domain. We have focussed on the generation of explanations that are appropriate for different types of system users. This task requires a knowledge of what is complex and what is important; it is further strengthened by a classification of the associations or causal mechanisms inherent in the inference rules. A causal representation can also be used to aid in refining a comprehensive knowledge base so that the reasoning and explanations are more adequate. We describe a prototype system which reasons from causal inference rules and generates explanations that are appropriate for the user.

• Research Organization: Stanford Univ., CA (USA). Dept. of Computer Science
• OSTI ID: 6730450
• Report Number(s): AD-A-120936/0
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
990200* -- Mathematics & Computers
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
DECISION MAKING
USES