Reasoning with qualitative information

Reasoning in this area is often called qualitative simulation.

The basic idea being:

• Construct a sequence of discrete episodes that occur as qualitative variable value changes.
• States are linked by qualitative rules that may be general.
• Rules may be applied to many objects simultaneously as they may all influence each other -- constraint satisfaction used.

• Ambiguity may arise so split outcomes into different paths and form a network of all possible states and transitions.
• Each path is called a history the network an envisionment.
• In order to achieve effective programs for this we must know how to represent the behaviour of many kinds of processes, materials and the world in which they act.