Knowledge engineers qualified to build expert systems are currently in short supply. The production of useful and trustworthy expert systems can be significantly increased by pursing the idea of articulate apprenticeship independent of computer implementations. Making theoretical progress in artificial intelligence should also help.

Artificial Intelligence is solving more and more real world problems, but penetration into the complexities of government administration has been minimal. The author suggests that combining expert system technology with conventional procedural computer systems can lead to substantial efficiencies. Business rules can be removed from business-oriented computer systems and stored in a separate but integrated knowledge base, where maintenance will be centralized. Fourteen specific practical applications are suggested. Traditionally, these systems have been used to automate the accounting function, automate labor-intensive activities, manage and control vast financial and physical assets, process payrolls for hundreds of thousands of employees, and merge and summarize information about a wide set of activities in support of management decision making.

Review of Expert Systems: Techniques, Tools, and Applications

Real-time domains present a new and challenging environment for the application of knowledge-based problem-solving techniques. However, a substantial amount of research is still needed to solve many difficult problems before realtime expert systems can enhance current monitoring and control systems. In this article, we examine how the real-time problem domain is significantly different from those domains which have traditionally been solved by expert systems. We conduct a survey on the current state of the art in applying knowledge-based systems to real-time problems and describe the key issues that are pertinent in a real-time domain. The survey is divided into three areas: applications, tools, and theoretic issues.

"Over the last decade a new technology has begun to take hold in... business, one so new that its significance is still difficult to evaluate. While many aspects of this technology are uncertain, it seems clear that it will move into the managerial scene rapidly, with definite and far reaching impact on managerial organization." This article examines the near-term impact of expert system technology on work and the organization. First, an approach is taken for forecasting the likely extent of the diffusion, or success, of the technology. Next, the case of advanced manufacturing technologies and their effects is considered.