QUEST FOR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) IS A FIELD WITHIN COMPUTER SCIENCE THAT IS ATTEMPTING TO BUILD ENHANCED INTELLIGENCE INTO COMPUTER SYSTEMS. THIS BOOK TRACES THE HISTORY OF THE SUBJECT, FROM THE EARLY DREAMS OF EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY (AND EARLIER) PIONEERS TO THE MORE SUCCESSFUL WORK OF TODAY'S AI ENGINEERS. AI IS BECOMING MORE AND MORE A PART OF EVERYONE'S LIFE. THE TECHNOLOGY IS ALREADY EMBEDDED IN FACE-RECOGNIZING CAMERAS, SPEECH-RECOGNITION SOFTWARE, INTERNET SEARCH ENGINES, AND HEALTH-CARE ROBOTS, AMONG OTHER APPLICATIONS. THE BOOK'S MANY DIAGRAMS AND EASY-TO-UNDERSTAND DESCRIPTIONS OF AI PROGRAMS WILL HELP THE CASUAL READER GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW THESE AND OTHER AI SYSTEMS ACTUALLY WORK. ITS THOROUGH (BUT UNOBTRUSIVE) END-OF-CHAPTER NOTES CONTAINING CITATIONS TO IMPORTANT SOURCE MATERIALS WILL BE OF GREAT USE TO AI SCHOLARS AND RESEARCHERS. THIS BOOK PROMISES TO BE THE DEFINITIVE HISTORY OF A FIELD THAT HAS CAPTIVATED THE IMAGINATIONS OF SCIENTISTS, PHILOSOPHERS, AND WRITERS FOR CE