Minds and Computers : An Introduction to the Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence

e
ffectivity a property of certain procedures – otherwise known
as algorithms – such that they can be carried out systematically,
in finite time, without the need for understanding. E
ffectivity
constrains the states and rules of formal systems.
e
fferent outgoing (signal conduction).
epiphenomenalism
the philosophical theory of mind according to
which mental states are non-physical but causally inert – mere
epiphenomena of certain physical processes.
expert system
a particular kind of formal system used to generate
deductions which recapitulate the reasoning processes of a relevant
expert.
exponentiation
the mathematical operation of raising one number
to the power of another, of which squaring and cubing are exam-
ples.
formal system
a collection of e
ffectively distinguishable states and a
collection of rules which operate e
ffectively on states to generate
other states. Board games such as chess are paradigm formal
systems.
function
a mathematical correlation between some fixed number of
inputs and some unique output.
functionalism
the philosophical theory of mind according to which
the defining features of mental states are their functions in mediat-
ing relations between inputs, outputs and other mental states.
generation
the process of applying a rule to a state of a formal
system to yield another state.
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generation tree
a structure showing sequences of applications of
rules to states of a formal system.