Tutorials


Boris Stilman
University of Colorado Denver, USA & STILMAN Advanced Strategies, USA

Tutorial: Discovering the Discovery of the No-Search Approach

Abstract:
I will demonstrate the Algorithm of Discovery via applying it to rediscovering the major result in Linguistic Geometry (LG), the No-Search Approach. I will explain briefly foundations of the Algorithm of Discovery which is based on multiple thought experiments manifesting themselves via visual streams ("mental movies"). The class of visual streams is divided into Observation, Construction and Validation streams. They can run concurrently and can exchange information between each other. The streams may initiate additional thought experiments, "program" them, and execute them in due course. The rest of the tutorial will be devoted to the step-by-step application of the Algorithm of Discovery for rediscovering the No-Search Approach. This result shows that LG generates optimal solutions for a class of opposing games without search. Based on the dynamics of the LG zones, the Algorithm will initiate the Terminal Set Expansion, i.e., expansion of the subsets of terminal states into "bubbles", the larger sets of states. For each of the states from those bubbles the Algorithm will determine a strategy leading to the respective terminal states. Then, it will realize that the bubbles of states permit to decompose the entire state space into subspaces. The Algorithm will implement decomposition via constructing a visual model called the State Space Chart. This Chart will serve as a strategic "geographical map" of the state space by providing guidelines for "travel" from state to state. The Algorithm will utilize this Chart for constructing classes of potential strategies for all the opposing sides and for pruning those classes that cannot be implemented for a given problem. Subsequent application of the non-pruned potential strategies by the Construction visual stream will lead to construction of the optimal solution - the only real strategy existing in this problem.


Short Bio

Dr. Stilman is currently Professor of Computer Science at the University of Colorado Denver (UC Denver), USA and the Chairman & CEO at STILMAN Advanced Strategies (STILMAN), USA. Boris Stilman received MS in Mathematics from Moscow State University (MGU), USSR in 1972 and two Ph.Ds in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from National Research Institute for Electrical Engineering (VNIIE), Moscow, USSR in 1984. In 1972-1988, in Moscow, he was involved in the research project PIONEER led by a former World Chess Champion Professor Mikhail Botvinnik. The goal of the project was to discover and formalize an approach utilized by the most advanced chess experts in solving chess problems almost without search. While program PIONEER had never played complete chess games, it solved a number of complex endgames and positions from the games of World Chess Champions. Based on these experiences over a number of years, in Moscow, Dr. Stilman developed experimental and mathematical foundations of the new approach to search problems in Artificial Intelligence. In 1990-91, while at McGill University, Montreal, Canada, based on this approach, he originated Linguistic Geometry (LG), a new theory for solving abstract board games. LG allows us to overcome combinatorial explosion by changing the paradigm from search to construction (from analysis to synthesis). Since 1991, Dr. Stilman was developing the theory and applications of LG at UC Denver. A leap in the development LG was made in 1999, when he (with a group of scientists and engineers) founded STILMAN, LLC. A growing number of applications of LG developed at STILMAN have passed comprehensive testing and are currently being transitioned to the real world command and control systems in the USA and abroad. Since 2010, Dr. Stilman was investigating the structure of the Primary Language of the human brain (following J. von Neumann). According to his hypothesis the Primary Language includes at least two major components critical for humanity, LG and the Algorithm of Discovery. Dr. Stilman published several books (including "Linguistic Geometry: From Search to Construction"), contributions to books, and over 200 research papers. He is a recipient of numerous R&D awards, including the top research awards at University of Colorado, substantial grants from the US government agencies such as major multiple awards from DARPA, US Dept. of Energy, US Army, US Navy, US Air Force, etc.; Ministry of Defence of UK; from the world leading defense companies such as Boeing (USA), Rockwell (USA), BAE Systems (UK), SELEX/Finmeccanica (Italy-UK) and Fujitsu (Japan). More information about Dr. Stilman, history of LG and projects (including several narrated movies) can be found at www.stilman-strategies.com