The goal of the Innovative Applications of Artificial Intelligence (IAAI) conference is to highlight new, innovative, systems and application areas of AI technology and to point out the often-overlooked difficulties involved in deploying complex technology to end users. Those of us who have ventured out of the realm of pure research and tried to build applications to be used by our fellow humans realize that it takes a lot more than just brilliant algorithms to make an application survive in the real world. Each application that succeeds is worth celebrating and the teams behind them are due wholehearted congratulations. It is in this spirit that we bring you this special issue covering select applications from the IAAI conference held last year in Chicago.

CSIEC (Computer Simulation in Educational Communication), is not only an intelligent web-based human-computer dialogue system with natural language for English instruction, but also a learning assessment system for learners and teachers. Its multiple functions--including grammar-based gap filling exercises, scenario show, free chatting and chatting on a given topic--can satisfy the various requirements for students with different backgrounds and learning abilities. We will summarize the free Internet usage within a six month period and its integration into English classes in universities and middle schools. The evaluation findings about the class integration show that the chatting function has been improved and frequently utilized by the users, and the application of the CSIEC system on English instruction can motivate the learners to practice English and enhance their learning process.

The DARPA Urban Challenge was a competition to develop autonomous vehicles capable of safely, reliably and robustly driving in traffic. In this article we introduce Boss, the autonomous vehicle that won the challenge. Boss is complex artificially intelligent software system embodied in a 2007 Chevy Tahoe. To navigate safely, the vehicle builds a model of the world around it in real time.

The Tactical Language and Culture Training System (TLCTS) helps people quickly acquire communicative skills in foreign languages and cultures. More than 40,000 learners worldwide have used TLCTS courses. TLCTS utilizes artificial intelligence technologies during the authoring process, and at run time to process learner speech, engage in dialog, and evaluate and assess learner performance. This paper describes the architecture of TLCTS and the artificial intelligence technologies that it employs, and presents results from multiple evaluation studies that demonstrate the benefits of learning foreign language and culture using this approach.

The Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence was pleased to present the 2008 Fall Symposium Series, held Friday through Sunday, November 7-9, at the Westin Arlington Gateway in Arlington, Virginia. The titles of the seven symposia were (1) Adaptive Agents in Cultural Contexts, (2) AI in Eldercare: New Solutions to Old Problems, (3) Automated Scientific Discovery, (4) Biologically Inspired Cognitive Architectures, (5) Education Informatics: Steps toward the International Internet Classroom, (6) Multimedia Information Extraction, and (7) Naturally Inspired AI.

Farm managers have to deal with many conflicting objectives when planning which crop to cultivate. Soil characteristics are extremely important when determining yield potential. According to the objectives to be considered the crop selection problem may be difficult to solve using traditional tools. Therefore, this work proposes an approach based on Multiobjective Evolutionary Algorithms to help in the selection of an appropriate cultivation plan considering five crop alternatives and five objectives simultaneously.

Public school choice at the primary and secondary levels is a keyelement of the U.S. No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). If aschool does not meet assessment goals for two consecutive years, bylaw the district must offer students the opportunity to transfer to aschool that is meeting its goals. Thus we have developed an online,content-based recommender system, called SmartChoice. Itprovides parents with school recommendations for individual studentsbased on parents' preferences and students' needs, interests,abilities, and talents.

The goal of the Innovative Applications of Artificial Intelligence (IAAI) conference is to highlight new, innovative, systems and application areas of AI technology and to point out the often-overlooked difficulties involved in deploying complex technology to end users. Those of us who have ventured out of the realm of pure research and tried to build applications to be used by our fellow humans realize that it takes a lot more than just brilliant algorithms to make an application survive in the real world. Each application that succeeds is worth celebrating and the teams behind them are due wholehearted congratulations. It is in this spirit that we bring you this special issue covering select applications from the IAAI conference held last year in Chicago.

Farm managers have to deal with many conflicting objectives when planning which crop to cultivate. Soil characteristics are extremely important when determining yield potential. Fertilization and liming are commonly used to adapt soils to the nutritional requirements of the crops to be cultivated. Planting the crop that will best fit the soil characteristics is an interesting alternative to minimize the need for soil treatment, reducing costs and potential environmental damages. In addition, farmers usually look for investments that offer the greatest potential earnings with the least possible risks. According to the objectives to be considered the crop selection problem may be difficult to solve using traditional tools. Therefore, this work proposes an approach based on Multiobjective Evolutionary Algorithms to help in the selection of an appropriate cultivation plan considering five crop alternatives and five objectives simultaneously.

The Tactical Language and Culture Training System (TLCTS) helps people quickly acquire communicative skills in foreign languages and cultures.  More than 40,000 learners worldwide have used TLCTS courses.  TLCTS utilizes artificial intelligence technologies during the authoring process, and at run time to process learner speech, engage in dialog, and evaluate and assess learner performance. This paper describes the architecture of TLCTS and the artificial intelligence technologies that it employs, and presents results from multiple evaluation studies that demonstrate the benefits of learning foreign language and culture using this approach.