Краєзнавча бібліографія Чернігівщини в науковому доробку діячів Чернігівської губернської вченої архівної комісії

We often try to teach people through stories and narratives instead of giving them explicit facts and rules. But how do these stories influence us, how do they persuade us to change our attitudes? In this paper, we aim to answer these questions by providing a computational model that offers an internal perspective on character motives in stories. This model allows us to represent the deliberations of the main characters and how they weighed their values and motives given their attitudes. We illustrate out model by discussing the well known fable of the Ant and the Grasshopper and the parable of the Prodigal Son

Distinctive features of persuasion and deliberation dialogues

The distinction between action persuasion dialogues and deliberation dialogues is not always obvious at first sight. In this paper, we provide a characterisation of both types of dialogues that draws out the distinctive features of each. It is important to recognise the distinctions since participants in both types of dialogues will have different aims, which in turn affects whether a successful outcome can be reached. Such dialogues are typically conducted by exchanging arguments for and against certain options. The moves of the dialogue are designed to facilitate such exchanges. In particular, we show how the pre- and post-conditions for the use of particular moves in the dialogues are very different depending upon whether they are used as part of a persuasion over action or a deliberation dialogue. We draw out the distinctions with reference to a running example that we also present as a logic program in order to give a clear characterisation of the two types of dialogues, which is intended to enable them to be used more effectively within systems requiring automated communication

Variation in soil communities across a heterogeneous habitat

Abstract only availableEnvironmental variation can impact the distribution of species in ecological communities. In alpine communities willows (Salix sp.) significantly affect the conditions experienced by soil biota in understory verses open meadow habitats. This study describes the distribution of collembola (springtails) and mycorrhizal fungi across the alpine willow-meadow ecotone. We surveyed the abundance of collembola and mycorrhizae in open meadow and willow understory habitats. We conducted the survey at three altitudinal sites on Pennsylvania Mountain (Park County, Colorado, USA) in June and July of 2008. We evaluated the abundance of ectomycorrhizae, endomycorrhizae, and collembola living in the leaf litter and soil. The distribution of these organisms differed between habitats. Overall, endomycorrhizae were more abundant in the open meadow, whereas ectomycorrhizae and collembola were more abundant in the willow understory. Within the collembola community most species were equally distributed between habitats. However, Folsomia candida was more abundant in the willow understory. We also found evidence that collembola may affect mycorrhizal colonization. In particular, the abundance of ectomycorrhizae and collembola was positively correlated in the open meadow, but not in the willow understory. To clarify whether leaf litter contributed to the distribution of these organisms we compared leaf litter biomass to collembola and mycorrhizal abundance. In the willow understory there was a negative relationship between the abundance of endomycorrhizae and leaf litter biomass. There were no correlations between the amount of leaf litter and the abundance of ectomycorrhizae or collembola. These results suggest that leaf litter can affect the soil community; however, other factors are also likely important. Future research should consider other effects of willows, such as shading and temperature, on the soil community.NSF Undergraduate Mentoring in Environmental Biolog

Argumentation schemes in AI and Law

In this paper we describe the impact that Walton’s conception of argumentation schemes had on AI and Law research. We will discuss developments in argumentation in AI and Law before Walton’s schemes became known in that community, and the issues that were current in that work. We will then show how Walton’s schemes provided a means of addressing all of those issues, and so supplied a unifying perspective from which to view argumentation in AI and Law.</jats:p

Stability of cooperation in societies of emotional and moody agents

It is well documented that cooperation may not be achieved in societies where self-interested agents are engaging in Prisoner’s Dil