for their application, however, is often considered a major obstach:. The use of qualitative abst.~ur'tioT~ may t.o some extent remove this obstacle. Qualglal.ive belief networks and associated algorithms haw~ been (level-,)ped before. In this paper, we auldre~ q,.algtative, influence dia.qTnras and outline aa

Abstract We review some approaches to qualitative uncertainty and propose a new one based on the idea of Absolute Order of Magnitude. We show that our ideas can be useful for Knowledge Discovery by introducing a derivation of the Naive-Bayes classifier based on them: the Qualitative Bayes

Abstract. We propose a new method for learning the parameters of a Bayesian network with qualitative influences. The proposed method aims to remove unwanted (context-specific) independencies that are created by the order-constrained maximum likelihood (OCML) estimator. This is achieved by averaging

We propose a new method for parameter learning in Bayesian networks with qualitative influences. This method extends our previous work from networks of binary variables to networks of discrete variables with ordered values. The specified qualitative influences correspond to certain order

probabilistic form of monotonicity constraint over a group of variables. Qualitative influences describe the direction of the relationship between two variables. Qualitative synergies describe interactions among influences. The probabilistic definitions chosen justify sound and efficient inference procedures

human red cells coated with measured amounts of im-munoglobulin G (IgG) or complement were studied. 1,000-1,500 molecules of IgG anti-D are necessary to effect measurable lysis, and lysis increases linearly with increasing levels of antibody sensitization. 100,ug/ ml of IgGI abolished lysis even at maximal levels of anti-D sensitization (15,000 molecules/cell). Two iso-immune IgG anti-A or anti-B antisera were 5 to 10-fold less efficient in promoting phagocytosis or lysis per molecule of IgG bound; however, because of the greater antigen density of A or B, more than 100,000 molecules IgG/cell could be bound, producing equiva-lent lysis to anti-D-coated cells. Although inhibition by IgGl was similar at equivalent levels of sensitization with anti-A, anti-B, or anti-D at high levels of coating with anti-A or anti-B (not attainable with anti-D), lysis was not inhibited by IgGI. Cells coated with human complement components alone were not lysed by monocytes; however, complement coating augmented IgG-mediated lysis and reduced the quantity of anti-D necessary to produce lysis to less than 1,000 molecules/ cell. After thorough degradation of C3b by serum to C3d, complement augmentation persisted.

We present a method for learning the parameters of a Bayesian network with prior knowledge about the signs of influences between variables. Our method accommodates not just the standard signs, but provides for context-specific signs as well. We show how the various signs translate into order

of physical and mental health outcomes, the "carry-overs" of stress from one role domain or stage of life into another, the benefits derived from negative experiences, and the determinants of the meaning of stressors. Although a sense of personal control and perceived social support influence health

Evidence based patient information leaflets in maternity care had limited visibility and did not promote informed choice of childbearing women Stapleton H,Kirkham M,Thomas G.Qualitative study of evidence based leaflets in maternity care. BMJ 2002;324: 639–43. QUESTION: From the perspectives

Qualitative knowledge can be viewed as that aspect of knowledge which critically influences decisions. Reasoning with qualitative knowledge has been studied extensively for the temporal domain. It turns out that the spatial domain is considerably richer than the temporal domain. The richness