Article ID: | iaor20041070 |
Country: | United States |
Volume: | 18 |
Issue: | 2 |
Start Page Number: | 88 |
End Page Number: | 98 |
Publication Date: | May 2001 |
Journal: | Expert Systems |
Authors: | Narayanan S., Maynard K., Moss P., Whitehead M., Garay M., Brannon N., Kantamneni R.G., Kustra T. |
Keywords: | artificial intelligence: expert systems |
Although developments on software agents have led to useful applications in automation of routine tasks such as electronic mail filtering, there is a scarcity of research that empirically evaluates the performance of a software agent versus that of a human reasoner, whose problem-solving capabilities the agent embodies. In the context of a game of a chance, namely Yahtzee(C), we identified strategies deployed by expert human reasoners and developed a decision tree for agent development. This paper describes the computer implementation of the Yahtzee game as well as the software agent. It also presents a comparison of the performance of humans versus an automated agent. Results indicate that, in this context, the software agent embodies human expertise at a high level of fidelity.