Reference: Levy, A. Y. Irrelevance in Problem-Solving. Asilomar, CA, 1992.
Abstract: The notion of irrelevance underlies many different works in AI, such as detecting redundant facts, creating abstraction hierarchies and reformulation and modeling physical devices. However, in order to design problem solvers that exploit the notion of irrelevance or by being given knowledge about irrelevance, a formal treatment of the notion is required. In this paper, we present a general framework for analyzing irrelevance. We discuss several properties of irrelevance and show how they vary in a space of definitions outlined by the framework. We show how irrelevance claims can be used to justify the creation of abstractions therby suggesting a new view on the work on abstraction.
Notes: This paper was presented, but there are no published proceedings.