A Pragmatic Knowledge Acquisition Methodology

A formal, but pragmatic, method of recording and organizing human expertise into a knowledge-based system is presented. Practical considerations and methods which increase system validity while minimizing demands on human domain specialists are explored. The methodology concentrates on domain definition (background knowledge, references, situations, and procedures), on fundamental knowledge formulation (elementary rules, beliefs, and expectations), and on basal knowledge consolidation (review and correction cycles). Experience gained from testing and from expert feedback is described.