Symbol level
Encyclopedia
In knowledge-based systems, agents choose actions based on the principle of rationality
to move closer to a desired goal. The agent is able to make decisions based on knowledge it has about the world (see knowledge level
). But for the agent to actually change its state, it must use whatever means it has available. This level of description for the agent's behavior is the symbol level.
For example, in a computer program, the knowledge level consists of the information contained in its data structures that it uses to perform certain actions. The symbol level consists of the program's algorithms, the data structures themselves, and so on.
Principle of rationality
In the context of knowledge-based systems, Newell proposed the following principle of rationality:This principle is employed by agents at the knowledge level to move closer to a desired goal.-See also:*Artificial intelligence...
to move closer to a desired goal. The agent is able to make decisions based on knowledge it has about the world (see knowledge level
Knowledge level
In artificial intelligence, knowledge-based agents draw on a pool of logical sentences to infer conclusions about the world. At the knowledge level, we only need to specify what the agent knows and what its goals are; a logical abstraction separate from details of implementation.This notion of...
). But for the agent to actually change its state, it must use whatever means it has available. This level of description for the agent's behavior is the symbol level.
For example, in a computer program, the knowledge level consists of the information contained in its data structures that it uses to perform certain actions. The symbol level consists of the program's algorithms, the data structures themselves, and so on.