Cooperating Knowledge Based Systems (CKBS)

The objective of the CKBS series of conferences is to bring the researchers from Distributed Artificial Intelligence (DAI), Distributed Databases (DDB) and industry together to discuss issues and solutions to problems that are inherently distributed. A CKBS may be viewed as an applied multi-agent system, which distinguishes itself from the traditional multi-agent systems by having a stronger emphasis on real-world problems, where issues such as performance, reliability, consistency, organisational constraints, security and end-user facility are important. In this sense, a CKBS type approach amalgamates ideas from DAI and DDB for solving distributed problems, such as those encountered in Intelligent Manufacturing Systems, Air-traffic Control, Telecommunications Network Management, Distributed Sensor Networks, Distributed Decision-making Systems, Distributed Banking Systems, Distributed Office Procedures and Distributed Fault Diagnosis.

CKBS'94 is the successor to CKBS'90 which was held at Keele in October 1990, and in which both DAI and DDB researchers participated. CKBS'90 was considered by the attendees to be very successful and led to the formation of the International Special Interest Group CKBS-SIG, which is managed by the DAKE Centre at Keele.

An application domain that receives special attention in CKBS'94 is that of intelligent manufacturing systems (IMS), because of a growing need for a CKBS approach in many branches of this field, such as agent-based and flexible manufacturing, concurrent engineering design and knowledge and systems integration for manufacturing. It is hoped that this conference will provide a forum for the cross-fertilisation of ideas leading to better solutions of CKBS problems both within the domain of IMS and also within other application domains.

The conference is intended as a residential one with accommodation provided within the campus, so that the delegates have greater opportunities for inter-mixing and exchange of ideas. A distinctive feature of the CKBS conference series is the provision of a conducive atmosphere for discussions among the delegates, helping to produce new ideas. With this end in mind, each paper in the conference will be given 10 minutes of special discussion time following its presentation.

This Registration Pack includes the following items:


2.  Conference Topics
    2.1  Tutorials
    2.2  Main conference
    2.3  Excursions
3.  General Information
    3.1  Conference Location
    3.2  Some Key Information
    3.3  Organising Committee
    3.4  Programme Committee
4.  Fees and Accommodation
    4.1  Fees
    4.2  Accommodation at the Campus
5.  Appendix A (List of contributed papers)
6.  Appendix B (List of expected posters)
7.  Registration Form

2.  CONFERENCE TOPICS

The conference has three components: Tutorial, Main Conference and Excursions,
as described below:

2.1  Tutorial (afternoon of Tuesday, June 14) 

A half-day tutorial will be given by Dr. Michael N. Huhns (MCC, Austin, USA),
a leading DAI researcher on

           Distributed Artificial Intelligence for Information Systems.  

This tutorial describes the current state of research in distributed
artificial intelligence. It presents architectures, languages, and techniques
for achieving coordinated behaviour among a decentralised group of intelligent
computational agents, and describes successful applications of DAI in
transaction scheduling, manufacturing automation and information retrieval.

2.2  Main Conference (Wednesday June 15 to Friday June 17)

The main conference has three elements:

         Invited Papers
         Contributed Papers
         Posters and Demonstrations

The invited papers are:

          A DAI Perspective on Cooperating Knowledge Based Systems
          by M. N. Huhns (MCC, Austin, USA)

          The ARCHON Project and its Applications
          by N. Jennings (Queen Mary and Westfield College, London, UK)

          The IMAGINE Project
          by H. Haugeneder (Siemens AG, Germany)

It may be noted that ARCHON and IMAGINE are the two major CKBS projects funded
by the CEC ESPRIT Programme. These presentations will be the first
comprehensive research reports on these recently completed projects.

All contributed papers have been selected from the extended abstracts
submitted to the conference. There about 36 such contributed papers, including
10 papers related to Intelligent Manufacturing Systems, as listed in Appendix
A.  The authors are expected to submit full papers before the conference.
These, along with the invited papers, will be collected as draft proceedings
to be circulated among the delegates at the conference.  Following the
conference, the authors will submit their revised full-papers (in the light of
discussions at the conference) for a final review. The selected papers from
this second review, along with the invited papers, will then be published by
the DAKE Centre as the final proceedings. A copy of the final proceedings will
be mailed to each delegate in due course.

In addition to the contributed papers, a number of posters will also be
displayed on new ideas in CKBS, as listed in Appendix B. Some demonstrators
may also be presented.

2.3  Excursions (afternoon of Thursday June 16)

Excursions are an important part of this conference, as these enable the
delegates to get to know each other better. These excursions are popular, and
hence an early booking is strongly recommended to avoid disappointment as the
number of places is limited. If we cannot book a place for you, we shall
naturally refund your payment. This year we are organising two alternative
events to choose from: (i) a visit to Stratford-upon-Avon, which was also
offered in CKBS'90 and (ii) a visit to Chatsworth House which is new.

Stratford-upon-Avon

By coach to Stratford (about 1 and 1/2 hours each way), returning to Keele
around midnight. The price includes a ticket for an evening performance of a
Shakespeare play, Henry V, in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. We shall try to
give you a transcript of the play beforehand, so that you can follow the
performance better.

The afternoon and early evening are free to wander around this historic
birthplace of William Shakespeare and take dinner (not included in the price)
as you like in Stratford before the performance, which starts at about 7:30
pm. In CKBS'90, this excursion was considered a high point by the delegates,
who also found the coach journey enjoyable. Please note that the Royal
Shakespeare Theatre is usually booked long in advance, and therefore we advise
you ensure an early return of the registration form. In CKBS`90 many delegates
applied too late for this memorable excursion.

Chatsworth House

By coach to Chatsworth House (about 1 and 1/2 hours in each direction). This
classical mansion, which was originally built in 1555 and later altered by the
first Duke of Devonshire in 1709, is one of the finest stately homes in
England. The splendid garden was replanted in the 19th century, when the
Emperor fountain was also added. The House contains a world-renowned
collection of paintings, sculpture, manuscripts, silver, porcelain,
curiosities and fine furniture. This is a popular tourist attraction of
Britain.

You will tour the mansion, and later the great garden, at a leisurely pace
following well-laid out directions. You will be there probably for about 3 and
1/2 hours, returning to Keele at around 8:30 pm, just in time for you to
sample some student fares at the Keele Campus or gentiles' fares at the
restaurants in town (dinner is not included in the price). A restaurant list
will be supplied.

Other Possibilities

If you are not interested in these excursions then you can while away the
afternoon by wandering around Keele campus (quite pleasant), trying a round of
golf (opposite the campus entrance), playing ten-pin bowling (5 miles from
campus) or by visiting Chester - an old Roman town which is an hour by bus
from the campus. The world famous Wedgewood pottery factory (6 miles from the
campus) can also be visited.

3.  GENERAL INFORMATION

3.1  Conference Location 

The University of Keele is small but distinguished for its interdisciplinary
philosophy in education. Geographically, Keele is a University village on the
outskirts of Newcastle-under-Lyme, half-way between Birmingham and Manchester.
The nearest airport is Manchester (35 miles), London Heathrow airport is some
150 miles away. Keele is situated between junctions 15 and 16 of the M6
motorway.  The nearest railway station is Stoke-on-Trent (5 miles), which can
be reached from London Euston in under 2 hours and from Manchester in 40
minutes. Joining instructions will include further details.

The Data and Knowledge Engineering (DAKE) Centre is an interdisciplinary
research centre of the University operating within the Computer Science
Department. The Centre has major projects in advanced data/knowledge bases,
distributed databases and Cooperating Knowledge Based Systems (CKBS). The
Centre is recognised as a centre of excellence by the CEC ESPRIT programme,
and is also funded by the DTI (Department of Trade and Industry in the UK) to
act as a focus in the CKBS area for British academia and industry.

As mentioned earlier, following a decision taken at CKBS'90, the DAKE Centre
manages an International Special Interest Group on CKBS, the UK component of
this being funded by the DTI. The CKBS-SIG(UK) holds regular seminars and
annual workshops whose proceedings have been published by the DAKE Centre.  If
you wish to join these SIGs or just wish to have more information about them
please ask any member of the organising committee.

3.2  Some Key Information

The venue of the conference is the Chancellors Building, where registration
and all sessions will be held. Some important dates and times are as follows:

Registration
        Tuesday June 14, 10:00 am - 8:00 pm.
        Wednesday June 15, 8:00 am - 10:00 am.
Tutorial
        Tuesday June 14, Lunch 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm (Keele Hall Restaurant).
        Tuesday June 14, Tutorial Session 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm.
Evening Meal on Tuesday June 14
        At 6:00 pm  (Keele Hall Restaurant).
Reception
        Tuesday June 14, 8:00 pm (Salvin Room, Keele Hall).
Conference Dinner
        Wednesday June 15, 7:30 pm  for 8:00 pm (Salvin Room, Keele Hall).
Excursions
        Thursday June 16, coach departs at 1:45 pm.
Main Conference Sessions
        First session begins at 8.30 am on June 15 and last session ends 
        at 5:30 pm on June 17.

There will be the usual tea/coffee and lunch breaks. The times given and the
programme outlined above are tentative. Please wait for your joining
instructions and conference programme for the latest information. It is
expected that most of the sessions will involve two parallel streams.

Mailing Address:

       Ms Kendal Allen,
       DAKE Centre (Department of Computer Science),
       University of Keele, Keele,
       Staffordshire, ST5 5BG, ENGLAND.
       Tel: +44 782 583416
       Fax: +44 782 713082
       Email: ckbs94@cs.keele.ac.uk

3.3  Organising Committee

Prof Sayyed Misbah Deen - Chairman                Email: deen@cs.keele.ac.uk
Mr Martyn Fletcher - Secretary and Treasurer      Email: martyn@cs.keele.ac.uk
Ms Kendal Allen - Registration and Accommodation  Email: kendal@cs.keele.ac.uk 
Ms Amanda Godfrey - Excursions                    Email: amanda@cs.keele.ac.uk
Mr Athula Herath - Posters and Demonstrations     Email: athula@cs.keele.ac.uk
Mr Baird Ndovie - Presentation Facilities         Email: baird@cs.keele.ac.uk 

3.4  Programme Committee

S. Misbah Deen [Chairman] 

Mohamed M. Bayoumi (Canada)            Cristiano Castelfranchi (Italy) 
Sharma Chakravarthy (USA)              Keith Clark (UK) 
Daniel D. Corkill (USA)                Rose Dieng (France) 
Jim Doran (UK)                         Edmund H. Durfee (USA) 
Kari-Pekka Estola (Finland)            Brian Gaines (Canada) 
David Griffiths (UK)                   Michael Hatzopoulos (Greece) 
Hans Haugender (Germany)               Michael N. Huhns (USA) 
Ichiro Inasaki (Japan)                 Toru Ishida (Japan) 
V. Jagannathan (USA)                   Paul Kearney (UK) 
Larry Kerschberg (USA)                 Stefan Kirn (Germany) 
Mark Klein (USA)                       Victor R. Lesser (USA) 
Witold Litwin (France)                 Peter B. Luh (USA) 
E. H. Mamdani (UK)                     Rainer Manthey (Germany) 
Yoshio Matsumoto (Japan)               Rainer Mittmann (Germany) 
Heinz Jurgen Mueller (Germany)         Erich J. Neuhold (Germany) 
Douglas H. Norrie (Canada)             H. Van Dyke Parunak (USA) 
Charles Petrie (USA)                   Gunter Schlageter (Germany) 
Pierre-Yves Schobbens (Belgium)        Evangelos Simoudis (USA) 
Munindar P. Singh (USA)                Larry M. Stephens (USA) 
Katia Sycara (USA)                     Makoto Takizawa (Japan) 
Shinsuke Tamura (Japan)                Edwin Van Leeuwen (Australia) 

4.  FEES AND ACCOMMODATION 

The registration form includes four elements of payment: Tutorial Fee, Main
Conference Fee, Excursion cost and Accommodation cost as described below. All
prices quoted in this registration pack are in pounds sterling.

4.1  Fees

    Tutorial Fee                55 pounds  
    Main conference Fee        255 pounds 
    Total Fee                  310 pounds 

The tutorial fee permits attendance to the tutorial on Tuesday, June 14 from
2:00 pm to 5:00 pm, tutorial handouts, lunch and afternoon tea/coffee. The
main conference fee permits attendance to the presentation sessions from June
15 to 17 (but not to the Tutorial on Tuesday). It also includes, except for
the student fee payers, the following:

    *  Evening meal on Tuesday (only if you arrive before 6:00 pm)
    *  Conference Reception on Tuesday at 8:00 pm
    *  Three lunches (Wednesday, Thursday and Friday)
    *  Tea/Coffee at breaks twice daily
    *  Conference Dinner (meant to be a good one) on Thursday
    *  Draft conference proceedings distributed at the conference
    *  Final published proceedings after the conference (to be mailed)

Those of you who attended the CKBS'90 will perhaps remember how good the
lunches and the conference dinner were. We plan to have a repeat performance
as we wish you to have a good time at Keele.

A reduced fee, without meals and conference dinner, is available for a limited
number of full-time research students from recognised higher-educational
institutions. The reduced student fees are:

    Tutorial Fee               40 pounds (without lunch)
    Main conference Fee       190 pounds (without meals and conference dinner)
    Total Fee                 230 pounds

If you wish take advantage of this reduced fee then please contact us for
clearance.

The excursion fee to Startford is 40 pounds, which includes the coach fare and
a ticket for the performance at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, but no meals or
refreshments. The fee for the Chatsworth House visit is 20 pounds, which
includes the coach fare and an admission ticket to the House, but no meals or
refreshments. Since the places are limited, they will be allocated on a
first-come first-served basis. If we cannot find a place for you then we shall
refund your excursion fee. No discounts are possible on these trips.

Please note that a late fee of 35 pounds will be incurred for registration
payments received after May 15.

4.2  Accommodation at the Campus

We have two types of accommodation available: one at 45 pounds per night with
en-suite facilities; and the other at 25 pounds per night in standard student
rooms, both with breakfast. A room with en-suite facilities includes shower
and WC, a coffee/tea-making facility and also access to a TV lounge with
satellite channels.

A standard student room has a sink, with a shared shower/WC and also
coffee/tea-making facilities in a shared kitchen. Student rooms are smaller in
size.




APPENDIX A = A Preliminary List of Contributed Papers

Global Concurrent Engineering: Why and How?
Hassan Abdalla [De Montfort University, UK]

The Information Agent: an Infrastructure for Collaboration in the Integrated 
Enterprise
Mihai Barbuceanu et al [University of Toronto, Canada]

Eliminating Paraconsistencies in 4-valued Cooperative Deductive 
Multidatabase Systems with Classic Negation
Magnus Boman et al [Stockholm University, Sweden]

Using Systemic Practices in the Analysis of Cooperating Knowledge Based Systems
Thierry Bouron [TMM/TDA, France]

A General Framework for Distributed Reason Maintenance
Jacques Calmet et al [University of Karlsruhe, Germany]

Skills, Heuristics and Decision-Making in Multi-agent Environment
Brahim Chaib-draa et al [Universite Laval, Canada]

A CKBS Architecture for HMS
S. Misbah Deen {University of Keele, UK]

Information Integration in Team Collaborative Design
Hong Ding et al [Technical University of Berlin, Germany]

MAGE: Additions to the AGE Algorithm for Learning in Multi-Agent Systems
Michael Dowell et al [University of South Carolina, USA]

The Formal Requirements Engineering of Manufacturing Systems
Eric Dubois et al [Institut d'Informatique, Belgium]
 
The Design of an Intelligent Manufacturing System
Klaus Fischer [DFKI, Germany]

Specifying and Executing Protocols for Cooperative Action
Michael Fisher et al [Manchester Metropolitian University, UK]

A CKBS Approach to Dynamic Congestion Control
Martyn Fletcher [University of Keele, UK]

Classification of Multiagent Systems
Ron Fulbright [University of South Carolina, USA]

Euroknowledge: European Initiative for Knowledge Standardisation
Tim Grant et al [BSO/Nieuwegein b.v., The Netherlands]

Conflict Detection and Resolution in Intelligent Cooperative Information Systems
Henning Grasshoff et al [City University, UK]

A Meta-level Approach to Exploration of Multiple Knowledge Bases
Mandy Haggith [University of Edinburgh, UK]

Transaction Model of Vehicles in Tree-Structured Space
Satoshi Hamada et al [Tokyo Denki University, Japan]

Title to be confirmed
Hans Haugeneder [Siemens AG, Germany]

Simulation Studies on Creating Verified Specifications For Distributed 
Control in Manufacturing
Tapio Heikkila et al [VTT Automation, Finland]

Federated Expert Systems for Cooperating Distributed, Heterogeneous, and 
Autonomous Concurrent Engineering Systems
George Huang [Dundee Institute of Technology, UK]

Support for Distributed Multi-agent Systems
Paul Kearney et al [Sharp Laboratories of Europe, UK]

ROO: A Distributed AI Toolkit for Belief Based Reasoning Agents
Cindy Mason [National Research Council, USA]

Cooperating Knowledge-Based Systems and Intelligent Information Retrieval
A. Mekaouche et al [Universite de Nantes, France]

Real Time Production Scheduling in Holonic Manufacturing Systems
Toshimichi Moriwaki et al [Kobe University, Japan]

A Model for Interaction for Dynamic Multi-Agent Environments
Joerg Mueller [DFKI, Germany]

Simulation of an ATC Conflict Management System
Baird Ndovie [University of Keele, UK]

An Intelligent Agent Development System
Douglas Norrie [University of Calgary, Canada]

Using Genetic Algorithms to Optimise the Behaviour of Agents
Clemens Odendahl et al [DFKI, Germany]

A DAI Perspective on Intelligent Organisations
Gregory O'Hare et al [UMIST, UK]

Ingredients for Modelling Help-Giving in Cooperative Environments
Paola Rizzo et al [National Research Council of Italy, Italy]

The Cooperative Heuristics Approach for Autonomous Agents
Lorenzo Sommaruga et al [Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain]

An Epistemic System Model for Coordinating Intelligent Agents
Wynn Stirling et al [Brigham Young University, USA]

Holonic Planning and Scheduling Architecture for Manufacturing
Shinsuke Tamura [Toshiba, Japan]

A Hierarchical Blackboard System For Collaborative Design
Michael Weiss [Universitaet Mannheim, Germany]

A Multi Agent Architecture with Real-Time Processing Capability
Zheng Xiaojun [Technical University of Berlin, Germany]



APPENDIX B = A Tentative List of Posters 

Enhancing the framework for the Development of Co-operating Knowledge 
Based Systems
Phillip Burrell et al [South bank University]

Towards a Cooperative Architecture for Engineering Decision Support Systems
John Hunt [University of the West of England, UK]

A Technique for Design for Assembly Based on Product Cost Optimisation
Anthony Ikonopisov [Technical University of Sofia, Bulgaria]

Extending Object Oriented Analysis to provide Agent Modelling
Jim Longstaff et al [University of Teesside, UK]

A Framework for Interactive Visual Learning in Expert Neural Networks
Ahmed Mohamed [The American University in Cairo, Egypt]

Hyperbase: Modelling Agents in Dynamic Systems
Rosane Pagano et al [Manchester Metropolitan University, UK]

The Role of Dialogue in an Office Assistant Network
Douglas Siviter [South Bank University, UK]

A Human Imitation Method for Cooperating Multi-Agents
Lichun Wang [Middlesex University, UK]

A Knowledge-Based Assistant for Failure Mode and Effects Analysis 
Rudiger Wirth et al [University of Ulm, Germany]

The Role of Organisational Goals in Knowledge Based Job Shop Scheduling Systems
Peng Ye et al [University of Ulster, UK]

==============================================================================
                                    CKBS'94
                                REGISTRATION FORM

                    Second International Working Conference on
                        COOPERATING KNOWLEDGE BASED SYSTEMS

                  June 14-17, 1994, University of Keele, England.

Name (including title):.......................................................

Address:......................................................................

..............................................................................

Affiliation:..................................................................

Email:........................................................................

Fax:................................ Phone:...................................

Male or Female (needed for room allocation purposes):.........................

Special Requirements (Diet, Disabled) etc:....................................

..............................................................................

I DO/DO NOT wish to have an evening meal (at 6pm) on Tuesday June 14, 1994.

                                              Non-Student      Student*

Tutorial Registration Fee (June 14):          55 pounds [ ]   40 pounds  [ ]

Conference Registration Fee (June 15-17):    255 pounds [ ]   190 pounds [ ]

University Accommodation:                    ......................... pounds
(at 25 pounds or 45 pounds per night):       

Arrival Date:...... Departure Date:......... No. of Nights:.........

Excursions:         Stratford       40 pounds [ ]

        or          Chatsworth      20 pounds [ ]

Late Fee of 35 pounds for payments received after May 15, 1994    [ ]       


TOTAL ENCLOSED ....................................................... pounds


REGISTRATION CAN NOT BE ACCEPTED WITHOUT FULL PAYMENT.

All prices quoted are in pounds sterling. Payments should be made to 
"University of Keele", in pounds sterling by a crossed cheque drawn on 
a British Bank or by Bankers Draft. Alternatively payment may be made by 
Credit Card:

Please tick:   Access [ ]   Visa [ ]   Mastercard [ ]   Eurocard [ ]

Card Number:........................ Expiry Date:...   .......................

Billing Address for the Credit Card:..........................................

..............................................................................

Signature:....................................................................

Please return to: Ms Kendal Allen, DAKE Centre, Dept. of Computer Science, 
University of Keele, Keele, Staffs., ST5 5BG, England.
Fax: +44 782 713082; Tel: +44 782 583416; Email: kendal@cs.keele.ac.uk
 
* Please refer to the conditions under Section 4.1 on Fees.

Proceedings

Cooperating Knowledge Based Systems (CKBS) is a new area of research dedicated to solving distributed problems encourtered in real-wrold applications, such as Air Traffic Control, Telecommunications Network Management, Distributed Sensor Networks, Distributed Monitoring and Diagnostics, Intelligent Manufacturing Systems, distributed decision-making systems and distributed office systems. A CKBS can be described as an applied multi-agent system which blends ideas from both Distributed Artificial Intelligence and Distributed Databases, to design systems that are resilient, reliable, multi-user, high-performance and globally coherent.

This volume contains 15 papers, selected from some 30 papers presented at the second annual workshop of the CKBS-SIG, held at Keele on September 8-10, 1993. These papers were initially selected on the basis of extended abstracts for presentation at the workshop. Following the workshop, the authors revised their papers in the light of comments received, and these revised full papers were later reviewed and selected by the programme committee for publication. We followed this process of double selection for better quality control, which also explains the time delay between the workshop and this publication.

It may be observed that the final proceedings of our first workshop (CKBS-SIG WS '92), had only seven papers as against 15 in the current proceedings. This increase represents a growing interest of the European research community in this area, and has also motivated us to hold our second international working conference (CKBS'94) in June this year, as the successor to CKBS'90.

Now returning to this publication, we have grouped the papers, somewhat arbitarily into six sections, for the convenience of catagorisation. Likewise, the order in which papers appear in each section reflects the convenience of summarising them, rather than anything else.


Section 1:  Cooperation Architecture (3 papers)

Paper 1: Multiple Cooperating Robots -- Combining Planning and Behaviours
         Ruth Aylett et al

Paper 2: A Hybrid Architecture for Multi-Agent Systems
         Afsaneh Haddadi

Paper 3: Using an Intelligent Agent to Mediate Multibase Information Access
         Werner Behrendt et al

In paper 1, R. Aylett et al presents an architecture in which cooperation
emerges from the synthesis of robot behaviours in a number of hierarchical
interaction levels. In paper 2, A. Haddadi introduces a hybrid architecture,
which incorporates both reactive and reflective behaviours of agents. The
third paper by W. Behrendt et al focusses on a slightly different area -- the
world of heterogeneous distributed databases -- and presents a cooperative
framework to resolve the semantic disparity among these knowledge servers.

Section 2:  Design strategies (3 papers)

Paper 1: Methods used to Implement an Integrated Distributed Scheduler
         Q. Y. Luo et al

Paper 2: Design and Implementation of ARCHON's Coordination Module
         Nick R. Jennings et al

Paper 3: A Multi-Agent Approach to Cooperation in Urban Traffic
         Hans Haugeneder et al

The first paper by Q. Luo et al discusses and compares a number of approaches
that can be used to design a distributed scheduler, while in the second paper,
N. Jennings et al describes the design and implementation of the central
coordination module in the CEC ARCHON project. The third paper by H.
Haugeneder et al, based on the CEC IMAGINE project, presents the design of a
testbed for a CKBS approach to urban traffic management.

Section 3:  Multi-agent Beliefs (3 papers)

Paper 1: Representing Belief in Multi-Agent Systems via Terminological Logics
         Armin Laux

Paper 2: Belief as Pragmatic Information -- A New Formal Model
         Daniel Mack

Paper 3: An ATMS-Based Belief Model for Dialogue Simulation
         Jasper A. Taylor

In paper 1, A. Laux presents a logic-based formalism to describe the beliefs
and the environments of agents, including false beliefs and the treatment of
such beliefs. In paper 2, D. Mack is concerned with the semantics of beliefs
in different possible worlds, and provides a logic-based module for handling
semantics. J. Taylor in paper 3 describes a logic-based belief and reasoning
model for the simulation of simple task-oriented dialogues.

Section 4:  Multi-agent Learning (2 papers)

Paper 1: A Heterogeneous Multi-Agent Learning System
         Peter Edwards et al

Paper 2: An Arbitration Protocol for Inter-Agent Learning
         Tim J. Grant et al

P. Edwards et al in paper 1 describe a system that provides a flexible
framework for multi-agent learning, supported by a simple message transfer
protcol, while T. Grant et al in paper 2 discusses an arbitration protocol for
multi-agent learning in action-oriented communications.

Section 5:  Network Management (2 papers)

Paper 1: Cooperating Intelligent Agents for Service Management in 
Communications Networks
         Marius Busuioc et al

Paper 2: Multi Agent Design Issues in Congestion Management
         Martyn Fletcher et al

In paper 1, Busuioc et al describe a CKBS approch to service management in
telecommunications networks within a resilient distributed environment,
supporting a graceful degration of performance. In paper 2, M. Fletcher et al
propose a multi-agent model to handle traffic congestion in networks for both
short term fluctuating and long-term predictable overloads.

Section 6:  Testbed Development (2 papers)

Paper 1: Using DAI Software Testbeds
         Jim Doran

Paper 2: MYWORLD -- An Agent-Oriented Testbed for Distributed AI
         Michael Wooldridge et al

In paper 1, J. Doran discusses issues in the design of testbeds that involves
the simulation of human organisations and proposes an adaptive modelling
approach. In paper 2, M. Wooldridge et al describes a testbed he has built
using Y. Shoham's notions of Agent Oriented Programming.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------

                  Order Form For CKBS-SIG Proceedings 1993
                  ----------------------------------------

The 1993 Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Cooperating Knowledge
Based Systems (CKBS-SIG) are now available. Published in soft-back book form
(ISBN: 0 952 1789 1 5) from the DAKE Centre at the University of Keele, UK.

The Special Interest Group (SIG) on Cooperating Knowledge Based Systems (CKBS)
held a three-day workshop in Setember 1993, in which 30 papers - selected from
a large number of extended abstracts from the UK, Germany and France - were
presented.  Following the workshop, the authors improved their papers in the
light of the comments received at the workshop and resubmitted them for a
review on the new full-version. This final review led to the selection of 15
best papers, as described in the appendix, for publication in the final
proceedings which are edited by Prof. S. M. Deen. Copies of the
doubly-selected published proceedings (over 280 pages), priced at 17 pounds
per copy, can be ordered from the DAKE Centre (address below). Please add post
and package 2 pounds in the UK and Europe and 5 pounds outside Europe.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Name: ......................................................................

Address: ...................................................................
         ...................................................................

Email: .....................................................................

CKBS-SIG Proceedings 1993 @ 17 pounds sterling per copy 
Postage @ 2 or 5 pounds sterling per copy

                                                     TOTAL: ................ 

Payment must be made payable to the "University of Keele", in pounds 
sterling drawn on a British Bank or by Eurocheque or by Bankers Draft. 
Cheques must be crossed. Payment can alternatively be made by credit card.

Please tick:    ACCESS O       MASTERCARD O        VISA O         EUROCARD O 

Card Number: ..............................  Expiry Date: ..................

Address (as on card): ......................................................

Signature: .................................................................

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please note full payment must accompany the registration form; there is no
provision for invoicing. Please send your forms with payment to:

        Martyn Fletcher                                       
        DAKE Centre (Computer Science Department), 
        University of Keele, Keele,                            
        Staffordshire, ST5 5BG, U.K.
        Tel: +44 782 583246        
        Fax: +44 782 713082
        Email: martyn@cs.keele.ac.uk