Cambridge Journals Online

Paper

Comparative uncertainty: theory and automation

ANDREA CAPOTORTIa1 and ANDREA FORMISANOa1a2 a1 Dipartimento di Matematica e Informatica, Università di Perugia, Via Vanvitelli 1, I-06123 Perugia, Italy Email: capotorti@dipmat.unipg.it; formis@dipmat.unipg.it a2 Dipartimento di Informatica, Università di L'Aquila, Via Vetoio, I-67010 L'Aquila, Italy

Article author query capotorti a  formisano a

Abstract

In recent decades, qualitative approaches to probabilistic uncertainty have received more and more attention. We propose a characterisation of partial preference orders through a uniform axiomatic treatment of a variety of qualitative uncertainty notions. To this end, we prove a representation result that connects qualitative notions of partial uncertainty to their numerical counterparts. We describe an executable specification, in the declarative framework of Answer Set Programming, that constitutes the core engine for qualitative management of uncertainty. Some basic reasoning tasks are also identified.

(Received June 15 2006)

(Revised January 11 2007)

Footnotes

In Memory of Sauro Tulipani