Introducing Argument & Computation

1. Motivation The motivation for inaugurating a new journal is simple: a community of increasing size is working in a remarkably fertile area and hitherto has not had a journal dedicated to publication of its results. Over the past decade or so, a new interdisciplinary field has emerged in the ground between, on the one hand, computer science – and artificial intelligence in particular – and, on the other, the area of philosophy concentrating on the language and structure of argument. There are now hundreds of researchers worldwide who would consider themselves a part of this nascent community. Various terms have been proposed for the area, including " Computational Dialectics, " " Argumentation Technology " and " Argument-based Computing, " but the term that has stuck is simply Argument & Computation. It encompasses several specific strands of research, such as:. the use of theories of argument, and of dialectic in particular, in the design and implementation of protocols for multi-agent action and communication;. the application of theories of argument and rhetoric in natural language processing and affective computing;. the use of argument-based structures for autonomous reasoning in artificial intelligence, and in particular, for defeasible reasoning;. computer supported collaborative argumentation – the implementation of software tools for enabling online argument in domains such as education and e-government. These strands come together to form the core of a research field that covers parts of artificial intelligence (AI), philosophy, linguistics and cognitive science, but, increasingly, is building an identity of its own. An increasing number of events and fora dedicated to the area (including now two annual international workshop series and a biennial international conference) suggest that there is an opportunity for a new journal to consolidate and support the new field as it grows. Our aim is to address the fact that there is currently no publication venue dedicated to research in argument and computation, and to develop a high profile journal that has a reputation as the place to publish work in the area, providing both a high-quality target for authors, and a reliable resource for readers. 2. A Potted History of the Field The year 2000 represents one good point at which to mark the rise of the interdisciplinary area between computing (specifically, artificial intelligence) and argumentation. Before that, there were occasional conferences such as Formal and Applied Practical Reasoning (one in 1996, one in 1997, with proceedings edited by …