Scams are increasing in frequency and scope. I'm disappointed that I need to keep writing about them. Unfortunately, none of us will catch a break any time soon. Things are likely to get worse. A recent common topic has been unpaid parking tickets or tolls.

Cobweb, a human-like category learning system, differs from most cognitive science models in incrementally constructing hierarchically organized tree-like structures guided by the category utility measure. Prior studies have shown that Cobweb can capture psychological effects such as basic-level, typicality, and fan effects. However, a broader evaluation of Cobweb as a model of human categorization remains lacking. The current study addresses this gap. It establishes Cobweb's alignment with classical human category learning effects. It also explores Cobweb's flexibility to exhibit both exemplar- and prototype-like learning within a single framework. These findings set the stage for further research on Cobweb as a robust model of human category learning.

Army scientists recently attempted to answer a similar question due to an ongoing concern that artificial intelligence, which can be opaque and frustrating to many people, may not be helpful in battlefield decision making. "The U.S. Army continues to push the modernization of its forces, with notable efforts including the development of smartphone-based software for real-time information delivery such as the Android Tactical Assault Kit, or ATAK, and the allocation of significant funding towards researching new AI and machine learning methods to assist command and control personnel," said Dr. James Schaffer, scientist for RDECOM's Army Research Laboratory, the Army's corporate research laboratory (ARL), at ARL West in Playa Vista, California. According to Schaffer, despite these advances, a significant gap in basic knowledge about the use of AI still exists, and it is unknown which factors of AI will or will not help military decision-making processes. University and corporate research has made significant headway into solving this problem for applications like movie and restaurant recommendations, but the findings do not exactly translate to the military world. "For instance, many research studies and A/B testing, such as those performed by Amazon, have experimented with different forms of persuasion, argumentation and user interface styles to determine the winning combination that moves the most product or inspires the most trust," Schaffer said.

At Vanderbilt University we are exploring the use of expert systems in a broad range of application areas. Programming is in Franz Lisp on a VAX 11/790, UCI LISP on a DEC-10, and IQ LISP on an IBM XT. Currently, personnel from four schools in the University are participating. Listed are brief descriptions of current projects.