this paper. In particular, the protocols we have collected often involve picturing different situations (e.g., a mental map of South America, images of savannas, or an advertisement showing Juan Valdez on his coffee plantation in Colombia). These im- ages can be taken as evidence for the manipulation of mental models in Johnson-Laird's terms. But overlaying this manipulation of mental models are the systematic patterns in which they are deployed to support one's con- clusions (cf. Rips, 1986). So while mental models may be part of the story of plausible reasoning, there is another critical part which the theory we pro- pose addresses. The theory does not address the issue of whether people make systematic errors in their reasoning, as the psychological literature on decision making (Kahneman, Slovic, & Tversky, 1982) attempts to document. This issue does not arise in the theory because we are developing a formalism for representing the kinds of inferences people make and the parameters that affect their certainty, rather than a theory about how people make particular inferences. People may systematically ignore some kinds of information or undervalue particular certainty parameters--we have not attempted to determine whether they do or not. Instead we have tried to represent all the kinds of reasoning patterns and the kinds of certainty parameters that appear in the protocols we have analyzed (Collins, 1978a, 1978b). In this regard it is worth pointing out that certain fallacles in logic, such as affirming the consequent (Havi- land, 1974), become plausible inference patterns in the theory.' The theory was developed to account for protocols where. a question drives the search fo relevant information; in Artificial Intelligence this is called backward inferencing. One qu...

An experiment based on Allen's calculus and its transfer to qualitative spatial reasoning, was conducted. Subjects had to find a conclusion X r 3 Z that was consistent with the given premises X r 1 Y and Y r 2 Z. Implications of the obtained results are discussed with respect to the mental model theory of spatial inference. The results support the assumption that there are preferred models when people solve spatial three-term series problems. Although the subjects performed the task surprisingly well overall, there were significant differences in error rates between some of the tasks. They are discussed with respect to the subprocesses of model construction, model inspection, validation of the answer, and the interaction of these subprocesses.

This paper presents a model-driven method for machine learning of inference rules, which involves both: 'learning by induction ' and 'learning by being told'. By the use of higher concepts (like transitivity and conversity) attributes of and relations among two-place predicates are discovered by induction. This new knowledge is represented as metafacts which can be transformed into inference rules if needed. The relations among meta facts are expressed as meta rules. The higher concept of support sets correspond to the domains for which meta facts are true. The process of restructuring support sets in order to resolve contradictions (and to make inference rules more precise) is discussed.* I

The Air Traffic Control Specialist (ATCS) Performance Measurement Database is a compilation of performance measures and measurement techniques that researchers have used. It may be applicable to other human factor research related to air traffic control (ATC). This database is a tool that can be used in conjunction with ATC simulators, generic sector configurations and scenarios, and other procedures used in assessing ATC system safety and effectiveness. Having a set of measures with standardized parameters will increase the reliability of results across experiments and enable comparisons of results across evaluations. At this time, it is unlikely that the database includes all of the measures that are applicable to ATC assessments. However, the database is designed to be an adaptive research tool, and the authors invite your nominations of other measures for the database. 17. Key Words Air Traffic Control Specialist Measurement techniques 18. Distribution Statement This document is available to the public through the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia, 22161 19. Security Classif. (of this report) 20. Security Classif. (of this page) 21. No. of Pages 22. Price Form DOT F 1700.7 (8-72) Reproduction of completed page authorized iii Table of Contents Page Executive Summary........................................................................................................................v 1.

Abstract — To help answer questions about the behavior of participants in human-robot systems, we propose the Cognitive Evaluation of Human-Robot Systems (CEHRS) method based on our work with the Personal Exploration Rover (PER). The CEHRS method consists of six steps: (1) identify all system participants, (2) collect data from all participant groups, including the system’s creators, (3) analyze participant data in light of system-wide goals, (4) answer targeted questions about each participant group to determine the flow of knowledge, information, and influence throughout the system, (5) look for inconsistencies in the knowledge and beliefs of different participant groups, and (6) make recommendations for improvement. We offer this comprehensive, human-centered evaluation method as a starting point for future work in understanding cognitive change in human-robot interactions. I.

Multimedia development can be very time consuming and potentially frustrating for beginners. Similarly, the object orientated (OO) paradigm can be very hard to grasp,

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Mental models have been proposed in both the cognitive psychology and human factors literature. However, they have been applied for a variety of related but distinct representations. For system design and user training in practical applications, there remains a need to describe the characteristics of mental models. Situation awareness (SA) has been proposed as a cognitive construct critical in decision making in complex tasks and is considered to be related to operator mental models. However, there have been few empirical studies assessing SA as a basis for mental model characterizations. The primary objective of this research was to develop and validate an empirical method of SA and task performance assessment for characterizing mental models in tasks requiring SA-based decision making and action execution. A pilot study, using a multitasking scenario in virtual reality (VR), was conducted in which participants were required to attend to multiple types of perceptual events occurring randomly in time while carrying on steady physical activity (walking on a treadmill). Responses to SA probes delivered during experiment trials, mental workload ratings and task performance measures were collected and compared with response patterns expected for hypothesized mental model types. Results

Ethics, and three anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments. Finally, we thank the

Home computer systems are insecure because they are administered by untrained users. The rise of botnets has amplified this problem; attackers compromise these computers, aggregate them, and use the resulting network to attack third parties. Despite a large security industry that provides software and advice, home computer users remain vulnerable. I identify eight ‘folk models ’ of security threats that are used by home computer users to decide what security software to use, and which expert security advice to follow: four conceptualizations of ‘viruses ’ and other malware, and four conceptualizations of ‘hackers ’ that break into computers. I illustrate how these models are used to justify ignoring expert security advice. Finally, I describe one reason why botnets are so difficult to eliminate: they cleverly take advantage of gaps in these models so that many home computer users do not take steps to protect against them.