perm filename SEP76.OUT[LET,JMC] blob
sn#239648 filedate 1976-10-02 generic text, type C, neo UTF8
COMMENT ⊗ VALID 00216 PAGES
C REC PAGE DESCRIPTION
C00001 00001
C00015 00002
C00016 00003 ∂26-FEB-76 1659 JMC
C00018 00004 ∂26-FEB-76 1800 JMC
C00020 00005 ∂27-FEB-76 1310 JMC
C00026 00006 ∂27-FEB-76 1724 JMC
C00027 00007 ∂27-FEB-76 1834 JMC
C00028 00008 ∂29-FEB-76 1331 JMC Fonts
C00029 00009 ∂01-MAR-76 1616 JMC PDP-10 FORTRAN
C00030 00010 ∂01-MAR-76 1838 JMC
C00031 00011 ∂02-MAR-76 1617 JMC
C00032 00012 ∂02-MAR-76 1717 JMC
C00033 00013 ∂03-MAR-76 1300 JMC
C00034 00014 ∂05-MAR-76 0246 JMC
C00035 00015 ∂05-MAR-76 1206 JMC
C00036 00016 ∂11-MAR-76 1526 JMC LISP Maintainer
C00037 00017 ∂11-MAR-76 2305 JMC LISP maintainer
C00038 00018 ∂12-MAR-76 2303 JMC
C00039 00019 ∂14-MAR-76 2345 JMC Chomsky
C00040 00020 ∂14-MAR-76 2353 JMC crunching and spindling
C00041 00021 ∂15-MAR-76 0138 JMC
C00042 00022 ∂15-MAR-76 0347 JMC Weizenbaum
C00043 00023 ∂15-MAR-76 1850 JMC Admission
C00044 00024 ∂16-MAR-76 1958 JMC
C00045 00025 ∂16-MAR-76 2316 JMC
C00047 00026 ∂16-MAR-76 2318 JMC Admission
C00048 00027 ∂17-MAR-76 1223 JMC
C00049 00028 ∂17-MAR-76 1530 JMC
C00050 00029 ∂17-MAR-76 1631 JMC
C00051 00030 ∂18-MAR-76 1601 JMC
C00052 00031 ∂18-MAR-76 1720 JMC
C00053 00032 ∂18-MAR-76 2139 JMC WEIZEN.REV
C00054 00033 ∂19-MAR-76 0010 JMC Your term paper.
C00055 00034 ∂19-MAR-76 1619 JMC Weizenbaum's book
C00056 00035 ∂19-MAR-76 1815 JMC
C00057 00036 ∂19-MAR-76 1827 JMC
C00058 00037 ∂19-MAR-76 1907 JMC
C00059 00038 ∂20-MAR-76 1016 JMC
C00060 00039 ∂20-MAR-76 1018 JMC
C00061 00040 ∂20-MAR-76 2103 JMC
C00062 00041 ∂21-MAR-76 1706 JMC
C00063 00042 ∂22-MAR-76 0000 JMC
C00064 00043 ∂22-MAR-76 0002 JMC
C00065 00044 ∂22-MAR-76 1747 JMC Weizenbaum review
C00066 00045 ∂23-MAR-76 0119 JMC
C00067 00046 ∂24-MAR-76 2046 JMC
C00068 00047 ∂24-MAR-76 2342 JMC
C00069 00048 ∂24-MAR-76 2355 JMC
C00070 00049 ∂25-MAR-76 0136 JMC
C00071 00050 ∂26-MAR-76 1414 JMC
C00072 00051 ∂26-MAR-76 1501 JMC
C00073 00052 ∂26-MAR-76 1706 JMC
C00074 00053 ∂28-MAR-76 0010 JMC
C00075 00054 ∂28-MAR-76 1418 JMC
C00076 00055 ∂28-MAR-76 1600 JMC
C00077 00056 ∂28-MAR-76 1630 JMC LISP maintainer
C00078 00057 ∂28-MAR-76 2107 JMC dinner Wednesday
C00079 00058 ∂28-MAR-76 2109 JMC
C00080 00059 ∂28-MAR-76 2115 JMC
C00081 00060 ∂29-MAR-76 2008 JMC
C00082 00061 ∂29-MAR-76 2021 JMC
C00083 00062 ∂29-MAR-76 2036 JMC
C00084 00063 ∂30-MAR-76 0115 JMC meeting
C00085 00064 ∂30-MAR-76 0135 JMC
C00086 00065 ∂30-MAR-76 0144 JMC
C00087 00066 ∂30-MAR-76 1020 JMC
C00088 00067 ∂30-MAR-76 2020 JMC
C00089 00068 ∂30-MAR-76 2024 JMC Book review
C00090 00069 ∂30-MAR-76 2035 JMC Review
C00091 00070 ∂30-MAR-76 2043 JMC
C00092 00071 ∂30-MAR-76 2046 JMC
C00093 00072 ∂31-MAR-76 1046 JMC
C00094 00073 ∂31-MAR-76 2231 JMC
C00095 00074 ∂03-APR-76 1208 JMC
C00098 00075 ∂03-APR-76 1305 JMC
C00099 00076 ∂03-APR-76 1738 JMC
C00100 00077 ∂04-APR-76 1522 JMC
C00101 00078 ∂05-APR-76 1939 JMC
C00102 00079 ∂05-APR-76 1942 JMC
C00103 00080 ∂06-APR-76 1257 JMC
C00104 00081 ∂06-APR-76 1259 JMC
C00105 00082 ∂07-APR-76 1342 JMC
C00106 00083 ∂07-APR-76 1424 JMC
C00107 00084 ∂08-APR-76 1257 JMC
C00108 00085 ∂11-APR-76 2321 JMC
C00109 00086 ∂12-APR-76 1021 JMC
C00110 00087 ∂12-APR-76 1130 JMC Comparison of KA and KL
C00111 00088 ∂13-APR-76 1658 JMC
C00112 00089 ∂14-APR-76 0038 JMC
C00113 00090 ∂14-APR-76 0115 JMC
C00114 00091 ∂14-APR-76 1627 JMC
C00115 00092 ∂15-APR-76 1428 JMC
C00116 00093 ∂16-APR-76 1013 JMC
C00117 00094 ∂16-APR-76 1105 JMC
C00118 00095 ∂17-APR-76 1729 JMC
C00119 00096 ∂18-APR-76 0114 JMC
C00120 00097 ∂18-APR-76 0115 JMC Reply to Weizenbaum response and debate challenge
C00121 00098 ∂18-APR-76 1252 JMC Note to Baskett
C00122 00099 ∂19-APR-76 0008 JMC
C00125 00100 ∂21-APR-76 2323 JMC
C00126 00101 ∂22-APR-76 0810 JMC
C00127 00102 ∂22-APR-76 1845 JMC
C00128 00103 ∂23-APR-76 1511 JMC Mail to multics
C00129 00104 ∂23-APR-76 2351 JMC
C00130 00105 ∂24-APR-76 0102 JMC
C00131 00106 ∂24-APR-76 1542 JMC
C00132 00107 ∂24-APR-76 1546 JMC
C00133 00108 ∂24-APR-76 1733 JMC
C00134 00109 ∂24-APR-76 2242 JMC
C00135 00110 ∂25-APR-76 1519 JMC
C00136 00111 ∂26-APR-76 1205 JMC
C00137 00112 ∂26-APR-76 1554 JMC New account
C00138 00113 ∂26-APR-76 1618 JMC
C00139 00114 ∂27-APR-76 0027 JMC slowness
C00140 00115 ∂28-APR-76 0042 JMC X↑X
C00141 00116 ∂29-APR-76 1534 JMC
C00142 00117 ∂30-APR-76 1140 JMC
C00143 00118 ∂02-MAY-76 1233 JMC
C00145 00119 ∂02-MAY-76 1649 JMC
C00146 00120 ∂02-MAY-76 1727 JMC
C00147 00121 ∂02-MAY-76 2141 JMC SPINDL writeup
C00148 00122 ∂02-MAY-76 2149 JMC
C00149 00123 ∂02-MAY-76 2149 JMC SPINDL
C00150 00124 ∂02-MAY-76 2209 JMC
C00151 00125 ∂02-MAY-76 2210 JMC
C00152 00126 ∂02-MAY-76 2220 JMC spindle and crunch
C00153 00127 ∂03-MAY-76 1155 JMC
C00154 00128 ∂04-MAY-76 0153 JMC Comments
C00155 00129 ∂04-MAY-76 0156 JMC Comments
C00156 00130 ∂04-MAY-76 0158 JMC Comments
C00157 00131 ∂04-MAY-76 2320 JMC
C00158 00132 ∂06-MAY-76 1322 JMC
C00159 00133 ∂07-MAY-76 0402 JMC crunching is broken
C00160 00134 ∂07-MAY-76 0412 JMC justeson
C00161 00135 ∂08-MAY-76 0142 JMC bug
C00162 00136 ∂08-MAY-76 0258 JMC cru3
C00163 00137 ∂08-MAY-76 1230 JMC
C00164 00138 ∂09-MAY-76 1209 JMC
C00165 00139 ∂09-MAY-76 1433 JMC
C00167 00140 ∂09-MAY-76 1622 JMC
C00168 00141 ∂09-MAY-76 1745 JMC
C00169 00142 ∂09-MAY-76 1751 JMC
C00170 00143 ∂09-MAY-76 1757 JMC
C00171 00144 ∂09-MAY-76 2325 JMC Anomaly
C00172 00145 ∂09-MAY-76 2331 JMC
C00173 00146 ∂10-MAY-76 0001 JMC
C00174 00147 ∂10-MAY-76 1243 JMC
C00175 00148 ∂11-MAY-76 0903 JMC
C00176 00149 ∂11-MAY-76 0939 JMC
C00177 00150 ∂15-MAY-76 0229 JMC pub macro
C00178 00151 ∂15-MAY-76 2250 JMC
C00179 00152 ∂15-MAY-76 2256 JMC
C00180 00153 ∂16-MAY-76 0031 JMC
C00181 00154 ∂16-MAY-76 0046 JMC
C00182 00155 ∂20-MAY-76 1601 JMC
C00183 00156 ∂22-MAY-76 1121 JMC
C00184 00157 ∂22-MAY-76 1145 JMC Theorem proving meetings
C00185 00158 ∂22-MAY-76 1429 JMC
C00186 00159 ∂22-MAY-76 1600 JMC
C00187 00160 ∂24-MAY-76 0928 JMC
C00188 00161 ∂24-MAY-76 1537 JMC
C00189 00162 ∂24-MAY-76 1540 JMC
C00190 00163 ∂24-MAY-76 2321 JMC
C00191 00164 ∂25-MAY-76 1100 JMC
C00192 00165 ∂26-MAY-76 0225 JMC
C00193 00166 ∂26-MAY-76 1209 JMC
C00194 00167 ∂26-MAY-76 1242 JMC
C00195 00168 ∂26-MAY-76 2209 JMC
C00196 00169 ∂26-MAY-76 2239 JMC abstract
C00197 00170 ∂27-MAY-76 0144 JMC Offloading
C00198 00171 ∂27-MAY-76 0207 JMC Review
C00199 00172 ∂30-MAY-76 1240 JMC Summer
C00200 00173 ∂31-MAY-76 1417 JMC
C00201 00174 ∂01-JUN-76 1206 JMC misquote
C00202 00175 ∂02-JUN-76 1149 JMC SPINDL
C00203 00176 ∂02-JUN-76 1546 JMC Agoston
C00204 00177 ∂04-JUN-76 1500 JMC
C00205 00178 ∂05-JUN-76 0015 JMC
C00206 00179 ∂05-JUN-76 0110 JMC
C00207 00180 ∂05-JUN-76 2141 JMC Speed ratio
C00208 00181 ∂06-JUN-76 1259 JMC
C00209 00182 ∂09-JUN-76 0048 JMC
C00210 00183 ∂10-JUN-76 0951 JMC
C00211 00184 ∂11-JUN-76 0134 JMC two things
C00212 00185 ∂11-JUN-76 0943 JMC
C00213 00186 ∂11-JUN-76 1555 JMC
C00214 00187 ∂11-JUN-76 2259 JMC Space
C00216 00188 ∂11-JUN-76 2312 JMC
C00217 00189 ∂12-JUN-76 0134 JMC spindl
C00218 00190 ∂12-JUN-76 1140 JMC long distance
C00219 00191 ∂12-JUN-76 1352 JMC
C00220 00192 ∂12-JUN-76 1403 JMC
C00221 00193 ∂12-JUN-76 1646 JMC
C00222 00194 ∂12-JUN-76 2308 JMC parry
C00223 00195 ∂13-JUN-76 0050 JMC
C00224 00196 ∂13-JUN-76 0136 JMC
C00225 00197 ∂13-JUN-76 1036 JMC mailing list
C00226 00198 ∂14-JUN-76 0315 JMC BUDGET
C00227 00199 ∂14-JUN-76 2209 JMC Present state of LOTS.
C00228 00200 ∂15-JUN-76 2335 JMC
C00229 00201 ∂15-JUN-76 2344 JMC
C00230 00202 ∂16-JUN-76 0046 JMC LOTS Space Needs
C00231 00203 ∂16-JUN-76 1019 JMC
C00232 00204 ∂16-JUN-76 1051 JMC file directory
C00233 00205 ∂17-JUN-76 1235 JMC
C00234 00206 ∂17-JUN-76 1238 JMC
C00235 00207 ∂17-JUN-76 1335 JMC
C00236 00208 ∂17-JUN-76 1344 JMC
C00237 00209 ∂17-JUN-76 2323 JMC Accomplishments
C00239 00210 ∂17-JUN-76 2357 JMC
C00240 00211 ∂18-JUN-76 1111 JMC
C00241 00212 ∂18-JUN-76 1129 JMC
C00242 00213 ∂18-JUN-76 1127 JMC
C00244 00214 ∂18-JUN-76 1217 JMC
C00262 00215 ∂19-JUN-76 1307 JMC
C00263 00216 ∂19-JUN-76 1314 JMC Frege
C00264 ENDMK
C⊗;
∂26-FEB-76 1659 JMC
To: Scanlon @ MIT-MULTICS
Subject: Alleged manuscript
Type message followed by <CTRL><META><LF>
So far as I know, no manuscript is due from me on March 1.
I have been demoted from speaker to critic, and it would be
improper for me to write the criticism before receiving
the papers to criticize, although it is sometimes done. Now
that I think about it, you are supposed to send me manuscripts
to criticize. I'll give you until March 2. Seriously, if an
Daniel Bell has sent in a manuscript, I'll be able to discuss it
better on March 9 or 10 as the case may be if I can get a copy
in advance. I am leaving for the East on March 4, so it would
be good to have it by then.
John McCarthy
∂26-FEB-76 1800 JMC
To: Dertouzos @ MIT-MULTICS
Subject: Alleged manuscript, for D. Scanlon
So far as I know, no manuscript is due from me on March 1.
I have been demoted from speaker to critic, and it would be
improper for me to write the criticism before receiving
the papers to criticize, although it is sometimes done. Now
that I think about it, you are supposed to send me manuscripts
to criticize. I'll give you until March 2. Seriously, if an
Daniel Bell has sent in a manuscript, I'll be able to discuss it
better on March 9 or 10 as the case may be if I can get a copy
in advance. I am leaving for the East on March 4, so it would
be good to have it by then.
John McCarthy
∂27-FEB-76 1310 JMC
To: CARLSTROM @ USC-ISI
ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN FORMAL REASONING
1. Christopher Goad, a student research assistant, has succeeded in
modifying McCarthy's knowledge formalism so that conclusions to the
effect that an individual does not know something can be drawn. In
all previous knowledge formalisms, this has been possible only in
trivial cases, and it is fundamental in making machines reason about
knowledge, because they have to know when their present knowledge is
insufficient to answer a question so they can search for more.
2. John McCarthy has identified a class of problems called Boolean
search problems that admit very fast parallel solution algorithms and
has shown how many of the quasi-static problems encountered in AI can
be transformed into Boolean search form.
3. Zohar Manna has shown how recursive programs often admit more
defined fixed points than the minimal fixed points that have
previously been studied. He calls them optimal fixed point and has
determined many of their properties.
4. The algorithm for proving sentences in monadic predicate calculus
has been debugged and has been incorporated into FOL.
5. Many user oriented improvements to the FOL program have been made
during this period. They include several new quantifier manipulation
commands, new printing routines, machine language changes effecting
overall efficiency, updated versions of the tautology and tauteq
routines. In addition CMU has requested a version of FOL and we are
bringing it up there. This work is being done by Richard Weyhrauch
and Bill Glassmire.
6. Zohar Manna has explored the applicability of a technique of
"intermittent assertions" due to Burstall for verifying programs, has
compared it with other techniques on a number of problems, and has
demonstrated that it is potentially the most practical technique.
GOALS FOR JULY TO OCTOBER 1976
1. A formalism for describing sources of information will be
developed and checked by writing a program that will find telephone
numbers form the telephone number files at a number of computers on
the ARPA net. No changes in the existing files will be required.
This will be a step towards making the computer files all over the
country accessible in a uniform way without requiring that they be
redesigned.
2. Pattern matching has mostly involved matching a pattern to a
symbolic expression. Dave Wilkins is working on matching patterns to
non-symbolic situations, e.g. situations in the real world.
3. The McCarthy-Painter compiler will be proved correct in FOL.
(This has taken longer than was expected).
4. A good way of filing already proved theorems for future use will
be implemented in FOL.
5. There are several projects for building needed features of FOL.
They include: the ability to handle more than one proof at a time, a
facility for stating and checking goals and subgoals, and a new
version of the FOL machinery for using direct observation of the real
world in making deductions
6. Zohar Manna will investigate applying the "intermittent
assertions" technique to the automatic synthesis of programs meeting
given specifications. He is also investigating the class of all
fixed points of recursive programs and looking for practical
applications of his optimal fixed point approach.
∂27-FEB-76 1724 JMC
To: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM, CCG, TW
I am willing to agree under the condition that a traditional option
also be available, and that the "ai handbook option" have a due date
early enough so that a student's effort in that direction can be
judged inadequate in time for him to pursue the traditional opition.
∂27-FEB-76 1834 JMC
To: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM, CCG, TW
Further thought: Eight to ten papers seems an excessive requirement;
I'd settle for less. I imagine we are sacrificing evidence of breadth,
but I go along anyway.
∂29-FEB-76 1331 JMC Fonts
To: LES
1. The font catalog is much less important than Dialnet.
2. The catalog should contain a mention of Tovar's transliteration
program that allows use of a readable version of foreign language
fonts. I forget, but no doubt he will remember where the writeup is.
∂01-MAR-76 1616 JMC PDP-10 FORTRAN
To: LCW
Can you compile the Treesort in PDP-10 Fortran?
Even after all these years, some people think that
"third generation architecture with base and displacement
saves bits.
I will have more substantive comments.
∂01-MAR-76 1838 JMC
To: LES
The "pubic good" joke becomes repellent when endlessly repeated.
∂02-MAR-76 1617 JMC
To: LCW
I know the local compiler is unoptimized. I thought it might win anyway.
∂02-MAR-76 1717 JMC
To: CALEND[ESS,JMC]
03-17 Engleman - airforce technology needs
∂03-MAR-76 1300 JMC
To: LES
Dialnet?
∂05-MAR-76 0246 JMC
CC: DCL, LES
My first priority at present is to get a full time LISP maintainer and
improver - something I should have done some years ago. I am assuming
v. Henke would cost us money this time. How is your proposal coming?
∂05-MAR-76 1206 JMC
CC: REM, REG, LES
I leave it to REG.
∂11-MAR-76 1526 JMC LISP Maintainer
To: tk @ MIT-AI
We are looking for a good one.
∂11-MAR-76 2305 JMC LISP maintainer
To: bobrow @ PARC-MAXC, sacerdoti @ SRI-AI
To: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM
We are looking for a good one. - John McCarthy
∂12-MAR-76 2303 JMC
To: WTL
OK, you are taking CS226 fail/pass.
∂14-MAR-76 2345 JMC Chomsky
To: TW
Has Chomsky or his school commented on your language work?
The reason for this peculiar inquiry is that I am writing a review of
Weizenbaum's book, and he praises you on the one hand and remarks that
the Chomskyans "rightly see no point to spending any of their energies
studying he work of the hackers."
∂14-MAR-76 2353 JMC crunching and spindling
To: REM
Do you have all you need to make the utility programs now?
∂15-MAR-76 0138 JMC
To: REM
ok
∂15-MAR-76 0347 JMC Weizenbaum
To: kuipers @ MIT-AI
It's on the way. Notes for a review are in WEIZEN[W76,JMC], and the final
product will be WEIZEN.REV[PUB,JMC].
∂15-MAR-76 1850 JMC Admission
To: FILMAN @ CMU-10A
This time there was no problem. Please say if you accept or
when you will say. I forget what the deadline is.
I am looking forward to your return.
∂16-MAR-76 1958 JMC
To: filman @ CMU-10A
Please phone me collect 497-4430.
∂16-MAR-76 2316 JMC
To: minsky @ MIT-AI
WEIZEN[W76,JMC] contains notes for a review. When it is finished,
it will be WEIZEN.REV[PUB,JMC]. There are two quotes in the book
whose authors are withheld. One of them is almost certainly Fredkin,
and I'll check it with him, but the other I am not sure about but
suspect it might be Warren McCullogh. Here it is, and if you have
any way of checking, I would be thankful. "It is possible to look
on Man himself as a product of ... an evolutionary process of
developing robots, begotten by simpler robots, back to the
primordial slime; ... his ethical conduct [is] something to be
interpreted in terms of the circuit action of ... Man in his
environment - a Turing machine with only two feedbacks determined,
a desire to play and a desire to win."
By the way I would be glad to have a place to publish my review, so
if you don't want to ...
∂16-MAR-76 2318 JMC Admission
To: REF
You are admitted. An assistantship paying $350 per month for nine
months and free tuition is offered. You have to answer by April 15,
but I would like to know the probability of acceptance as soon as
possible. There was no problem this time, and I hope you will come.
I sent a message to filman%cmu-10a also.
∂17-MAR-76 1223 JMC
To: minsky @ MIT-AI
Thanks
∂17-MAR-76 1530 JMC
To: LES
You had UCLA info number. Colby's is 825-4626
∂17-MAR-76 1631 JMC
To: masinter @ PARC-MAXC
What is your state of mind?
∂18-MAR-76 1601 JMC
To: REM
Les is discussing it with you.
∂18-MAR-76 1720 JMC
To: PAW
Please find me the full title of the following:
reference: "Toward some circuitry of ethical robots..."(very long title)
ACTA BIOTHEORETICA XI 147-156, 1956. In fact thjis is a brave attempt
to find a dignified sense of freedom within the
psychological determinism morass.
∂18-MAR-76 2139 JMC WEIZEN.REV
To: minsky @ MIT-AI, kuipers @ MIT-AI, ef @ MIT-ML
WEIZEN.REV[PUB,JMC] is a draft of a review of Weizenbaum's book.
Is there an ARPAnet address for Weizenbaum himself?
∂19-MAR-76 0010 JMC Your term paper.
To: PLW
The paper is worth a B, but the course grade will be A. See WADLER[w76,jmc]
for comments. Also I have some comments scribbled on the paper.
∂19-MAR-76 1619 JMC Weizenbaum's book
To: lederberg @ SUMEX-AIM
I have written a review thereof which I am sending you.
The PUB source is WEIZEN.REV[PUB,JMC] here.
∂19-MAR-76 1815 JMC
To: lederberg @ SUMEX-AIM
Thanks for the copy of your review. May I copy it into PUB,JMC
which contains other comments on the subject?
They are the files WEIZEN.1, WEIZEN.2, etc.
∂19-MAR-76 1827 JMC
To: PAW
Please put the correct address on psycho.le1[let,jmc].
∂19-MAR-76 1907 JMC
To: lederber @ SUMEX-AIM
Thanks.
∂20-MAR-76 1016 JMC
To: JMC
foo
∂20-MAR-76 1018 JMC
To: ME
It works on my Imlac.
∂20-MAR-76 2103 JMC
To: PHON[ESS,JMC]
Robinson, Jane 494-3150
∂21-MAR-76 1706 JMC
To: *
The area PUB,JMC is now McCarthy's Electric Magazine.
See CONTEN[PUB,JMC] for details.
∂22-MAR-76 0000 JMC
To: KRD
Thanks for the corrections and the comments. You are right that
there is too to be discussed for a review. Your guess that
Weizenbaum "makes predictions" is mistaken. He says less about
it than I did on that one page. Let me solicit an article for
McCarthy's electronic magazine on the subject.
∂22-MAR-76 0002 JMC
To: REM
You are right about the ARPA net. The club would have to be local.
I also agree with your point about linear charges. The $75 was intended
to be an average not a minimum. I expected it to attract the
hobbyists and the well-to-do - more the former than the latter.
∂22-MAR-76 1747 JMC Weizenbaum review
To: KRD
I forgot to say that I think human-level intelligence is a phase that
will be quickly passed simply by making computers faster or hooking
them together. This wipes out the robot science fiction.
A new version has been made and printed copies will be available.
∂23-MAR-76 0119 JMC
To: PAW
Please xgp leng.xgp[let,jmc] and don't mail the old copy on your desk.
∂24-MAR-76 2046 JMC
To: REM
How is crunchingnd spindling?
∂24-MAR-76 2342 JMC
To: weiner @ RAND-RCC
⊗weiner.me3
∂24-MAR-76 2355 JMC
To: tolsto @ RAND-RCC
foo
∂25-MAR-76 0136 JMC
To: REM
Put at least 2/3 of the time into crunch and spindle.
The KL-10 will be here in a few days, and I suppose the
computer time situation will get worse for a month or
more. It has been a bit better in the last few days,
because of inter-quarter break.
∂26-MAR-76 1414 JMC
To: VEW
Winograd next Wednesday or following Sunday.
∂26-MAR-76 1501 JMC
To: CCG
I see you have no reading in connection with my lecture in CS224.
I think the lecture won't quite be to the point then.
∂26-MAR-76 1706 JMC
To: rsmith @ SUMEX-AIM
JMC doesn't work as a password for me.
∂28-MAR-76 0010 JMC
To: LPR
Why pester everyone with your problem?
∂28-MAR-76 1418 JMC
To: PAW
Please xerox 10 more copies of the home terminal paper. Make
sure all pages are included.
∂28-MAR-76 1600 JMC
To: marg @ MIT-AI
Weizen review is weizen.rev[pub,jmc]. This is a PUB source file
and is still being "improved". Copies of the "final" version
will be mailed to Minsky, but I don't know when this will be.
However, the weizen.rev copy is public.
∂28-MAR-76 1630 JMC LISP maintainer
To: rms @ MIT-AI
We are considering hiring Forrest Howard from Harvard as
a LISP maintainer and improver. Jeff Rubin suggested I
ask you if you know him and have any comments on his
qualifications. - John McCarthy
∂28-MAR-76 2107 JMC dinner Wednesday
To: jrobinson @ SRI-AI
Can you and Joyce come to dinner on Wednesday about 7pm?
∂28-MAR-76 2109 JMC
To: REM
How are CRUNCH and SPINDL coming?
∂28-MAR-76 2115 JMC
To: REM
OK, got it.
∂29-MAR-76 2008 JMC
To: rms @ MIT-AI
OK, thanks anyway.
∂29-MAR-76 2021 JMC
To: jrobinson @ SRI-AI
See you then.
∂29-MAR-76 2036 JMC
To: DSB
If no scientific purpose is served by running chess, please don't.
∂30-MAR-76 0115 JMC meeting
To: JH
Next Tuesday Teller will speak at SENSE meeting in Annenberg Aud. at 7:30pm.
∂30-MAR-76 0135 JMC
To: LES
I have found a good candidate for a LISP maintainer. His name
etc. are as shown below. He has worked with PDP-10 LISP at Harvard,
has built a LISP for their PDP-11, and has developed a system for
moving "LISP environments" between the two machines. Tom Cheatham
at Harvard and Chuck Prenner at UCB say he is knowledgable and
hard working. He sounds good over the phone, but he won't be
available for a month or two.
He has a master's degree from Harvard. Please pursue hiring him.
Howard, Forrest howard⊗harv-10,734-2532 ,313 Tappan St. Brookline 02146
∂30-MAR-76 0144 JMC
To: LES
I have not discussed salary. He is unmarried, and I am agreeable
to any algorithm you may devise concerning salary and moving expenses,
but he has already had some experience working for the commercial
world and may not be agreeable to a very large cut. You could ask
him or Cheatham what he is getting now.
∂30-MAR-76 1020 JMC
To: ben @ MIT-AI
Thanks.
∂30-MAR-76 2020 JMC
To: DSB
Well, I don't think I'm even class B, but I accept.
∂30-MAR-76 2024 JMC Book review
To: Weizenbaum @ MIT-MULTICS
A draft is WEIZEN.REV[PUB,JMC].
∂30-MAR-76 2035 JMC Review
To: Weizenbaum @ MIT-MULTICS
A draft is WEIZEN.REV[PUB,JMC].
I'll also mail you a copy.
∂30-MAR-76 2043 JMC
To: DSB
I'm old fashioned and prefer to play across the boad.
∂30-MAR-76 2046 JMC
To: DSB
I have one in the Lab, so catch me sometime there.
∂31-MAR-76 1046 JMC
To: minsky @ MIT-AI
I look forward.
∂31-MAR-76 2231 JMC
To: RWG
Adfected [A specialized form of affected]. Compounded. Of
equatons in algebra: Containing different powers of an
unknown quantity.
1695 Allingham Geom. epit. "The method of finding the root
of an adfected equation". 1728 Campbell in Phil. Trans.
"Every adfected quadratick equation ax: - Bx + A = 0 whose
Roots are real." 1870 Todhunter, Algebra. "Quadratic
equations which contain the first power of the unknown
quantity as well as the square are called adfected quadratics."
(The : after a in the equation may be ! or may be absent.)
∂03-APR-76 1208 JMC
CC: DEK, feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM
Well, it seems like too much of one thing. Andy struck me as quite
narrowly focussed, Frances less so. At least she could see where I
wasn't following Andy and put in the missing words. I hold it
somewhat against Andy that he didn't know about the missing
neutrinos, which suggests that when he left physics, he didn't retain
enough interest even to read Physics Today or even Scientific
American. Well maybe this leads to the best and most concentrated
work on analysis of algorithms, but it certainly doesn't lead to good
judgment about what is important in computer science. If Frances is
genuinely free and doesn't compete with our possibility of hiring,
say Pratt, or Manna, thenI will go along. However, if the Yao's
remain as one-sided as they are, you will find me balking at the
tenure step no matter how well they do in the narrow field. I guess
I am also doubtful about whether there will be enough students with
such a mathematical concentration and talent to keep them busy -
unless they can get students of pure mathematics also.
By the way, it's your move on Jack Schwartz; what are you
doing there. It isn't fair to just leave the matter in suspension.
∂03-APR-76 1305 JMC
To: PAW
If Les hasn't brought it in, would you ask DEC for a copy
of the literature on DEC's data base managemet system.
∂03-APR-76 1738 JMC
To: DSB
not today
∂04-APR-76 1522 JMC
To: minsky @ MIT-AI
I guess I'll have to think of something, because Hewitt's is the
third comment to that effect.
∂05-APR-76 1939 JMC
To: WTL
Overhead projector please.
∂05-APR-76 1942 JMC
To: WTL
Yes, if it comes in paper, but I have just tried to switch
my IEEE stuff to microfiche.
∂06-APR-76 1257 JMC
To: stefik @ SUMEX-AIM
∂06-APR-76 1259 JMC
To: stefik @ SUMEX-AIM
Disregard previous message. Nilsson at SRI has it.
∂07-APR-76 1342 JMC
To: KRD
I need my copy of Weizenbaum back.
∂07-APR-76 1424 JMC
To: KRD
I guess it won't hurt me to wait a week.
∂08-APR-76 1257 JMC
To: REG
Our system is the only one we have, and VERIFY is an important project.
We can restrict the amount of time it uses if we need to. I will check
on how much time it used in March.
∂11-APR-76 2321 JMC
To: PAW
∂AIL Norman E. Hartman↓14170 SW 93rd Ave.↓Tigard, Oregon 97223∞
(503)639-6758
Please send him home terminal paper.
∂12-APR-76 1021 JMC
To: REM
OK, I am looking forward to it.
∂12-APR-76 1130 JMC Comparison of KA and KL
To: DCO, LES, RWW, JAM, TOB, REG, JBR
Please time some typical or large jobs on the present system,
and can them so they can be run again when the KL comes up.
Our planning depends on knowing how much faster the KL-10 is.
∂13-APR-76 1658 JMC
To: REM
I suppose the next thing is a draft section for the Monitor Manual.
∂14-APR-76 0038 JMC
To: REM
crunch-and-spindle
I think I succeeded in using the program to produce foo.spi[s76,jmc]. The
computation of crunch ratio in crunch-and-spindle seems to compare the
total spindle file with the file just added to the spindle, so that
crunch ratios larger than 1 are obtained. I suggest that we offer the
program for English text first, and that a matched pair of history and
huffman files good for this purpose be offered as a default option signalled
by <cr>.
∂14-APR-76 0115 JMC
To: REM
I noticed it; send me a message when it's fixed. Also, when one
wants to crunch-and-spindle several files with the same trees,
it should be possible to do this in a straightforward way.
Also including the trees in the crunched file should be optional.
Otherwise the overhead may be too great in some cases. Naturally,
only the most standard files will be guaranteed to be preserved
for uncrunching.
unless the user saves them himself.
∂14-APR-76 1627 JMC
To: phw @ MIT-AI
I think that it isn't reasonable to write Chavchanidze about
something Brailovsky reports that Chavchanidze said to him
in private conversation. So far as is reported, Chavchanidze
took no official action concerning Brailovsky who even lives
in a different city. If I were having a conversation with
C and had heard about the matter from B, I might ask C whether
and why he thought B had only political motivation for wanting
to attend the symposium. In short, there are enough solid
injustices to beef about, so that we should avoid something as
tenuous as this.
∂15-APR-76 1428 JMC
To: phw @ MIT-AI
No.
∂16-APR-76 1013 JMC
To: ef @ MIT-AI
Weizenbaum says that he quotes your memo without attribution, because you
said he could quote it under those conditions. As I recall, you told
me that he had simply announced to you that you would be quoted without
attribution. What is your recollection?
∂16-APR-76 1105 JMC
To: gjs @ MIT-AI, dvm @ MIT-AI
Well you are right about the "new left" property. Something along
that line is correct and relevant, but if I can't think how to put
it precisely, I had better skip it.
∂17-APR-76 1729 JMC
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
Contribution accepted and published.
∂18-APR-76 0114 JMC
To: panko @ OFFICE-1
Can you send me a copy of your draft paper on computer message
services? You may be interested in a paper on home terminals
called hoter[w76,jmc] on Home Computer Terminals that I gave at
the AAAS meeting. Message services fit into a larger picture, and
some proposals for regulating message services will preclude other
information applications. I regard the New York Times editorial to
turn these services over to Postal Service monopoly in order to
subsidize ordinary mail as particularly poisonous.
John McCarthy, Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Stanford CA 94305
∂18-APR-76 0115 JMC Reply to Weizenbaum response and debate challenge
To: joseph @ MIT-MC, minsky @ MIT-AI, ben @ MIT-AI
weizen.rep[pub,jmc] is. Please tell whoever might be interested.
∂18-APR-76 1252 JMC Note to Baskett
To: PAW
Please send Baskett a note asking him if he can get me a manual for the Cray-1.
∂19-APR-76 0008 JMC
To: KRD
Flywheels
This proposal has been made many times for cars. Buses
with flywheels that are electrically spun up have been used in
Switzerland for a long time. It is also proposed to charge batteries
while slowing down, and I believe that some electric trains use their
motors as generators while slowing down and pump energy back into the
lines. I suppose this works best in DC powered systems.
There are two problems:
1. The flywheel system increases the overall weight of the
car and thus reduces the gas milege when the car is not braking.
Therefore, a net energy saving depends on certain assumptions
about the fraction of time the car is used in stop-and-go driving.
I have never seen an analysis of this.
2. Cost. At present prices of gasoline it probably wouldn't
pay someone to buy it and keep it in repair. Increased gasoline
prices may improve this picture.
There have been recent advances in materials technology
that make energy storage in flywheels more plausible, and the
idea has its enthusiasts, one of whom, I believe, is at SRI. The
enthusiasts propose a smaller engine and keeping the flywheel spun
up and using it for acceleration. Usually the proposal inv∨lves
a continuously variable gear-ratio transmission, and the technology
of this has also improved recently. I think there have been
articles about it in Popular Science or Popular Mechanics
within the last year and one in Scientific American within the
last few years. The extremists propose spinning up the flywheel
at home, but it seems very unlikely that the required amount of
energy can be stored.
∂21-APR-76 2323 JMC
To: KRD
There are yet other ways. For example, one may have a word whose ones
indicate which elements of a larger set are in a smaller set. The
predicate is usually called a property, and in Zermelo-Frankel
set theory, not every property defines a set, e.g. the property
¬(xεx) doesn't define a set. However, for any set A and any property π,
there is a set {xεA|π(x)}. I don't know terms for the case of
finite sets presented as lists, but intensional and extensional
mean something quite different.
∂22-APR-76 0810 JMC
To: ben @ MIT-AI
I have read "Smll is Beautiful". I have removed the
"new left" phrase from the current version. Schumacher
is not "new left"; he is perhaps "eco-left". Since the
book is a collection of essays written at different times,
it is inconsistent. In one part he takes nuclear energy
for granted; later he turns against it - for rather weak
safety reason, but I suppose really because it doesn't
fit his "small is beautiful" theme. However, you guess
right; I don't like it either.
∂22-APR-76 1845 JMC
To: REG, LES
Benchmarks should be short (< 1 minute) and should be run under both
time-sharing and bare machine. Under time-sharing, say 3 times.
∂23-APR-76 1511 JMC Mail to multics
To: ben @ MIT-AI
could you do me the favor of finding out how
to send mail to Dertouzos at multics? It refuses the
mail saying "Give PASS command please".
∂23-APR-76 2351 JMC
To: REM
I would like also to have the count of double and triple occurence
words and their cumulative frequecy, because they may also need
special treatment. Otherwise, do the simpleminded.
∂24-APR-76 0102 JMC
To: REM
Ok, fine
∂24-APR-76 1542 JMC
To: erman @ CMU-10B
I am trying for a larger audience for my review, but if I don't have
it by your deadline, SIGART will be fine. I would like to see the
Dreyfus review, but I am somewhat surprised that he considers
SIGART Newsletter a good place to publish it. However, it shows
a desire to interact with the AI community, which, incidentally,
Weizenbaum also shows, so if you print my review you will also
have to print a reply.
∂24-APR-76 1546 JMC
To: erman @ CMU-10B
Afterthought
I may want to respond to Dreyfus. The review is WEIZEN.REV[PUB,JMC]
and I suppose you can put it through PUB at CMU.
∂24-APR-76 1733 JMC
To: REM
I suppose the most reasonable sort for large files would sort as much
as reasonable within core, write a file, sort another block, etc., and
finally merge the resulting files. I suppose also that some sorting
might be necessary withing the cruncher, but since only one copy
of each word need by retained, it looks like we could get by with
much less. I suggest you consider whether you can get by without
a new SSORT for now; if not write it; if yes consider what the
situation will be when the KL-10 comes up and when paging is
more effectively used in the system.
∂24-APR-76 2242 JMC
To: BILL/S @ MIT-ML
Our machine is about the most crowded on the network, but if there
is some facility here that you think would be of benefit to our
work to have you use, please send me details - John McCarthy, Director
∂25-APR-76 1519 JMC
To: ben @ MIT-AI
Weizenbaum refers to his "students' need for therapy". Does he have
any, and do they take that from him?
∂26-APR-76 1205 JMC
To: PAW
.require "let.pub[let,jmc]" source;
∂MEM Professor Sidney Hook↓Hoover Institution∞
Dear Professor Hook:
I entirely agree with you about Pound, and I gather
that you didn't start the use of the word "obscene" in the
curren controversy. However, my recent experience has been
that reason loses when the word is legitimized for use in
controversy, because it is used to state positions that are
not further justified.
Enclosed is a review that may interest you.
.sgn
Please print hook.le1.
∂26-APR-76 1554 JMC New account
To: LES
Please legitimize DRH, Douglas R. Hofstadter, tel. x73771 or home 327-1452,
addr: 470 Ravenswood, Menlo Park 94025, visiting scholar, till 1 Sept.
∂26-APR-76 1618 JMC
To: PAW
Please send him a copy of the home terminal paper.
Mr. M. Hybertsen
1418 Meadow Lane
Mountain View CA 94040;
∂27-APR-76 0027 JMC slowness
To: REG
Does the system spend excessive time garbage collecting when there is
very little disk left?
∂28-APR-76 0042 JMC X↑X
To: RWG
Consider the program
begin
x←1+1/n;
m←0;
loop: if x > 2 then go to done;
x←x↑x;
m←m+1;
go to loop;
done: print m/n;
end;
As it happens, the limit of m/n seems to be 1 according to my
HP-65, but I can't prove it. There is lots of round off in the
calculation so I would like to compute with higher precision.
MACSYMA just has high precision integers, doesn't it?
For n=10, m=10, n=100 ⊃ m = 102, n = 1000, m = 1003, but for
n = 10000, the HP-65 and Fortran disagree, and I suspect roundoff.
∂29-APR-76 1534 JMC
To: erman @ CMU-10B
I don't want to respond to Dreyfus. His criticism is aimed at
the philosophical advertisement of Minsky's and Winston's work,
and I am dubious about that, but I don't consider Dreyfus's
philosophical citations to be relevant either, and I don't want
to do the reading.
∂30-APR-76 1140 JMC
To: REM
We will have to talk. My intuition is still not readjusted to agree
with the results you have.
∂02-MAY-76 1233 JMC
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
I still think that you have attacked the Defense Department in an anything
goes spirit. On the other hand, what my review currently says, replies in
too similar a spirit. It will be changed before a version is published;
I am not at all satisfied with what I have said so far. My current opinion
is that all worries are genuine including yours, but right now I think that
to respond to the genuine concerns that motivated your book, because the
concerns themselves are not well expressed, and I would have to speculate
as to what they are. Therefore it is more straightforward to reply to
what you said, i.e. play the game of displaying extremist citations.
I am beginning to think that my time is better spent in promoting
positive applications of science and technology rather than in responding
to unjustified attacks on it. I have a book in the works on new
inventions, and I think I erred in suspending work on it to defend jAI
against Lighthill and you and to take part in the campaign to defend
nuclear energy. Can I not persuade you to undertake something constructive?
∂02-MAY-76 1649 JMC
To: PAW
Please get correct address on packar.le1 and get a nicely formatted copy.
∂02-MAY-76 1727 JMC
To: REM
I have looked at and printed wuther.cr6. The only thing that seems
suboptimal is the size of the delimiter output. Since wuther is mostly
English sentences,there shouldn't be so much. It occurs to me that
distinguishing two kinds of occurences of capital letters might help.
Proper names should be capitalized in the dictionary, and sentence
transitions should go with the period.
Would you print the delimiter tree for WUTHER?
∂02-MAY-76 2141 JMC SPINDL writeup
To: REM
I have copied your writeup of spindling to SPINDL.REM[UP,DOC] and edited
it. I have changed the introduction and conclusion and have referred to it
as a system command called SPINDL. Please insert a paragraph giving
its approximate performance in words spindled, unspindled, crunched
and uncrunched per second before the paragraph on criteria for use.
∂02-MAY-76 2149 JMC
CC: REG
REM
∂02-MAY-76 2149 JMC SPINDL
To: REG, REM
SPINDL.REM[UP,DOC] contains draft documentation for spindling. If it
looks OK, please make CRU3.DMP[1,REM] into a system program called by
the command SPINDL.
∂02-MAY-76 2209 JMC
To: REM
cru3 shouldn't halt when it meets illegal chars in file name.
∂02-MAY-76 2210 JMC
To: REM
cru3 shouldnt halt when it meets illegal chars in file name.
∂02-MAY-76 2220 JMC spindle and crunch
To: REM
Spindling works ok, but the message you get when you try to crunch is
useless when combined with the writeup. It should suggest some good
existing history and Huffman trees or else offer to make them on the
spot.
∂03-MAY-76 1155 JMC
To: REM
I have modified spindl.rem[up,doc]. Please supply appendix A.
∂04-MAY-76 0153 JMC Comments
To: dertouzos @ MIT-MULTICS
I have comments on about five of the papers. Do you want them or shouuld
I wait till I have them all?
∂04-MAY-76 0156 JMC Comments
To: Dertouzos @ MIT-MULTICS
I have comments on six of the papers; do you want them now?
∂04-MAY-76 0158 JMC Comments
To: moses @ MIT-ML, moses @ MIT-MC
I have comments on six papers; do you want them now? Which machine is best
for mail to you? I have tried to send mail to Dertouzos@mit-multics,
but Multics refuses the mail, asking for a PASS command. This was last week;
is it being fixed?
∂04-MAY-76 2320 JMC
To: RCM
Can you and your wife come to dinner Thursday the 15th?
∂06-MAY-76 1322 JMC
To: REM
I have made a few more changes in SPINDL.REM. Please check it
out again. As soon as you have put in the bubble question,
put it up as SPINDL.DMP[1,3], put a note in NEWS, print some copies
of the writeup, and MAIL * announcing the facility. Suggest that it
be tried on old files to start with.
∂07-MAY-76 0402 JMC crunching is broken
To: REM
An attempt to crunch gallag.le1,gallag.le2 while aliased to let,jmc
causes the message
Crunching DSK:? Error in job 6
Illegal UUO at user 15563
You should have comprehensive test cases that you run before putting up new version.
∂07-MAY-76 0412 JMC justeson
To: LES
Your local guest John Justeson who was supposed to finish Dec. 75 has just used
40 minutes of computer time. What is the reason for his continued existence?
∂08-MAY-76 0142 JMC bug
To: REM
Did you get my message last night about crunch bug, and is it fixed?
∂08-MAY-76 0258 JMC cru3
To: REM
Almost immediately after your message, the system got much better.
I tried to include steve.me2[let,jmc] in a spindle, got a complaint
that it contained a bare LF after which the CRU3 stopped, and I
lost t spindling of the previous ok files. STEVE.ME3 is an
incoming ARPANET message, and it should be possible to spindle them
and even to crunch them.
Also if SPINDL or crunch fails on a file, the user shouldn't lose
the previous results.
∂08-MAY-76 1230 JMC
To: REM
I have no requirement that the line feed be saved, so my suggestion
is that if your program thinks it may be that kind of file, it
ask permission to convert it to our form as it goes, saying something
like "bare line feeds, may be SNDMSG file, Convert or Skip?" expecting
C or S as an answer. Need Spindle have any problem at all though?
∂09-MAY-76 1209 JMC
To: REM
OK, do the reformat-abort one.
∂09-MAY-76 1433 JMC
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
Datamation has agreed to delete "I fear he made it up."
I hope your withdrawal of the quote can be included in your response there.
Let me suggest that you go easy on claiming that the quote substantially
accurately represents my position. There are context problems even with
literal quotes, and it would be better to devote any space the media may
offer to a statement of my position on the extent that machines can
"understand" human affairs and your criticism of it.
In a fast argument involving several people I might confirm a statement
that I believe the world can be formalized, but if given time to qualify
the statement, I would have, at any time since 1958, have said that
it can eventually be formalized to an extent that will give machines
an "understanding" as good or better than humans have. With regard
to machines "understanding" human affairs, I suppose I would claim
only that machines can understand humans only as well as men can
understand women - admitting that I can't make the claim precise
at present.
∂09-MAY-76 1622 JMC
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
I can't let the misquote go, because it was a substantial part of
the content of McCracken's review. However, the editor in charge
of the letters column agreed on Wednesday to make my change when
proofs come back, so if you phone him Monday, you may catch it.
∂09-MAY-76 1745 JMC
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
I will be quite happy with any statement that the words
put in quotation marks by you and quoted by McCracken don't appear
on the tape. You may make any inference you like from words I did
say to what I must have meant, because I think my letter
reasonably expresses my position about what "generality" means.
What I said and what appeared in quotes have quite different meanings
to me even if they say almost the same thing to you.
∂09-MAY-76 1751 JMC
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
I hadn't seen the paragraph, but I am happy with it.
∂09-MAY-76 1757 JMC
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
Well, reasonably happy. I dislike listening to or watching tapes
of my speech, and I don't think I watched the tape of debate at
3IJCAI, and I don't remember a subsequent discussion. However,
I won't pursue the matter further.
∂09-MAY-76 2325 JMC Anomaly
To: REM
After crunching lickli.le1,...,lickli.le6 and exiting for safety, I
try crunching lickli.me1 and lickli.me2. After I give cr for
default trees, it says @LICKLI.LE6[LET,JMC] but crunches the files.
Peculiar!
∂09-MAY-76 2331 JMC
To: REM
I think the directory of a spindle should allow a comment line for each file.
∂10-MAY-76 0001 JMC
To: REM
CTSS is long dead, so stick with SPINDL. It was the first major
time-sharing system - on the 7090 at M.I.T.
∂10-MAY-76 1243 JMC
To: REM
I assume it leaves the delete command in the input buffer so that CR
is required to perform the deletion.
∂11-MAY-76 0903 JMC
To: REM
I don't really have time to look for bugs. Few people use PRUNE
these days, but some kind of comment is more necessary for crunched
files, because they can't be inspected without uncrunching them.
I think putting the DELETE command in the input buffer is the best
solution.
∂11-MAY-76 0939 JMC
To: Dertouzos @ MIT-MULTICS
OK, I can send about 5 today.
∂15-MAY-76 0229 JMC pub macro
To: LES
foo[let,jmc] is a file to test the equation numbering feature in memo.pub[let,jmc]
It gives me undefined identifier E2 followed by undefined label E2 and
undefined label E1. Can you fix it or tell me how?
∂15-MAY-76 2250 JMC
To: PAW, LES, REG, REM, QIB
I will return Wednesday night. I will be in Portland, Oregon till
Monday and in Boston at Fredkin's house thereafter.
∂15-MAY-76 2256 JMC
To: PJ
What is your current estimate of the cost of the board?
∂16-MAY-76 0031 JMC
To: BZM
Why are you an unknown to our system?
∂16-MAY-76 0046 JMC
To: BZM
I leave you to square it with LES if you can.
∂20-MAY-76 1601 JMC
To: PAW
I need "Formal Philosophy" by Richard Montague - 1st from library and
then to buy a copy.
∂22-MAY-76 1121 JMC
To: JRA
I know of no other parallel project. I think Stoyan is reasonably
worthy of co-operation.
∂22-MAY-76 1145 JMC Theorem proving meetings
To: reiter @ BBN-TENEX
Assuming this message reaches Raymond Reiter, please put
John McCarthy, Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Stanford CA 94305
on the mailing list for the 1977 theorem proving meeting.
∂22-MAY-76 1429 JMC
To: PAW
Please pub takasu.le3.
∂22-MAY-76 1600 JMC
To: PAW
Please pub fair.le1.
∂24-MAY-76 0928 JMC
To: WD
OK, please do it.
∂24-MAY-76 1537 JMC
To: sigart @ CMU-10B
The review is weizen.rev[pub,jmc]. Please tell Weizenbaum to
answer the latest version.
∂24-MAY-76 1540 JMC
To: CALEND[ESS,JMC]
06-21 Bolles oral
∂24-MAY-76 2321 JMC
To: RSC
I have no schedule.
∂25-MAY-76 1100 JMC
To: PAW
I will be in Berkeley today.
∂26-MAY-76 0225 JMC
To: REM
What are you up to?
α ∂26-MAY-76 1209 JMC
To: REM
Don't get discouraged. The KL-10 without cache will be up in a few
days (1.5 times the crunchies) and with cache (5 times) in a week
or so.
∂26-MAY-76 1242 JMC
CC: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM
les,reg
∂26-MAY-76 2209 JMC
To: LES
mjc and one other are logged under project 105; if cs105 they should stop.
∂26-MAY-76 2239 JMC abstract
To: REM
I suggest you add a sentence, "The method is used in the utility program SPINDL
on that computer and requires approximately xxx seconds per character crunching
and yyy seconds per character uncrunching on the KA10 processor."
α ∂27-MAY-76 0144 JMC Offloading
To: LES, KRD
Is it reasonable to ask KRD, and others in a similar situation, to
pub their documents at SUMEX even though they print them here; i.e.
can pub be run on TENEX in compatibility mode?
∂27-MAY-76 0207 JMC Review
To: sigart @ CMU-10B
You correctly corrected my sentence.
The quotation from White is from "A History of the Warfare of Science with
Theology in Christendom" by Andrew Dickson White first published in 1896 and
as a Dover reprint in 1960.
It contains many more good things.
∂30-MAY-76 1240 JMC Summer
To: PLW
I now know what I would like you to work on. By the way, your plan is
somewhat out of date.
∂31-MAY-76 1417 JMC
To: sigart @ CMU-10B
Your interpretation is correct.
∂01-JUN-76 1206 JMC misquote
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
The Nature reviewer of your book again quotes your misquote. Please
write them.
∂02-JUN-76 1149 JMC SPINDL
To: REM
If I spindle a mail file that is composed of many tiny pages, do I
get full advantage or must I delete the page marks first? Ideally,
I would like to keep the directory page separate. There should be
a paragraph in spindl.rem saying how to deal with mail files.
∂02-JUN-76 1546 JMC Agoston
To: TOB
He was the only person to flunk the Comprehensive, scoring lowest in
both written and programming parts. Therefore, I don't think we should
employ him.
∂04-JUN-76 1500 JMC
To: pratt @ MIT-AI
Thanks. I know the Montague papers referred to and have ideas on
how to restrict the knowledge axioms to avoid the paradoxes. The
papers - with and without David Kaplan - are reprinted in Montague's
collected papers. If you are interested CONCEP[S76,JMC] contains
a version of my ideas, but the section on applications to AI should
be ignored in its present form; it's a false start.
∂05-JUN-76 0015 JMC
To: PLW
I have a project that involves developing a way of describing
(telephone directory e.g.) files at different sites on the ARPAnet
so that a program armed with a description of the file can
get information from it. It will require some explanation.
When can you come in?
∂05-JUN-76 0110 JMC
To: PLW
ok
∂05-JUN-76 2141 JMC Speed ratio
To: REG, JBR
The PUB took 20"38''' on the KL and 88"33''' on the KA, a ratio of 4.3.
∂06-JUN-76 1259 JMC
To: REG
Sure, let's do it, but how does he think Franklin will receive his mail?
∂09-JUN-76 0048 JMC
To: REM
Only 256K core is up now; more cables needed to go to 512 on KL system.
∂10-JUN-76 0951 JMC
To: baratz @ MIT-AI
You will be welcome, but probably I will be able to see you on the 17th only.
I presume you are proposing to come to Stanford in September 1977. You
should apply in Fall 1976. Anything else would be difficult to arrange.
∂11-JUN-76 0134 JMC two things
To: TED
REG thinks Ampex hasn't been told to fix new disk.
The Imlac in
Winkler's office needs to be well maintained. Also it is unattractively dirty.
Do you think a CSD graduate student with hardware experience could maintain
it if a volunteer could be found?
∂11-JUN-76 0943 JMC
To: baratz @ MIT-AI
1pm is ok tentatively, and I'll let you know otherwise.
The AI Lab is 5 miles from campus, at 1600 Arastradero Rd.,
Palo Alto. It is on Arastradero between Page Mill Road
and Alpine Road and is .8 mile from Page Mill Road and
is marked Stanford University Donald C. Power Laboratory.
If you have a car, you go West on Page Mill till you pass
Interstate 280 and take the next right onto Arastradero.
If not you scrounge a ride or take a taxi. Strong men
bicycle.
∂11-JUN-76 1555 JMC
To: PAW
Your PUB complained at end of pass 1, but <CR> sent it on to finish.
∂11-JUN-76 2259 JMC Space
To: RDR
Dickens promised me a plan, but I haven't seen it. I just around
to opening the mail that had your old space plan and your remarks
about SCIP and management of LOTS. As you may know, Franklin and
Dickens and I met with Massy yesterday, and Dickens supported my
statement that LOTS should not report to SCIP. Massy agreed and
it looks like I will be director reporting to Massy, and the
manager will report to me. Everyone expects that I will lose
interest in a couple years including me. I think the Advisory
Board can have more than one student member, but majorities are
not relevant, because the Advisory Board, if Stanford administrative
practice is followed, will be advisory and not a management. Since
the source of the money is the reduction of departmental computation
funds, it is absolutely essential that the professors who have to
convert their courses be satisfied and not demand their money back
to spend at SCIP. Since they will have to do considerable work,
everything needs to be carefully explained.
∂11-JUN-76 2312 JMC
To: RDR
Franklin and I must present a budget to Massy on Monday, and then
we must present an order to D.E.C. The current planned configuration
is config[s76,jmc]. We removed the second RPO6 in order to bring
the price below $400,000. I suppose that space will be the next
major issue, and Ed Shaw and I have agreed to meet, and I would like
you to keep planning until then. Shaw is the space tsar.
Please telephone me or come by at your convenience.
∂12-JUN-76 0134 JMC spindl
To: REM
I tried spindling may76.in[let,jmc] which is two months' worth of messages.
The result squeezed out about 35%, but the directory page was totally
garbaged, and the rest seemed to have crlf in the wrong places. With
the KL10 we are short on disk and in better shape with crunchies.
Can you try it again and look at the result?
∂12-JUN-76 1140 JMC long distance
To: MM
After 5pm is good, but after 11pm and before 8am - from 2am to 11am your time
is even better. I am not sure our computer will let you dial out - having
come in over the ARPA net.
∂12-JUN-76 1352 JMC
To: PAW
Please pub abdali.le1
∂12-JUN-76 1403 JMC
To: REM
I suppose you must ask Martin Frost about this. Evidently, the mail
receiving program creates directory entries for the pages of the
files without modifying the files themselves.
∂12-JUN-76 1646 JMC
To: REM
Well, perhaps I thought SPINDL behaved differently. Namely I tried to
TY the spindled file to check whether the messages were readable. The
Each line seemed to take two on the screen and their seemed to be some
garbage at the beginning. Should a spindled file be readable?
β ∂12-JUN-76 2308 JMC parry
To: DBH
Please don't run PARRY for entertainment at least until Librascope is working again.
∂13-JUN-76 0050 JMC
To: REM
Good luck with it.
∂13-JUN-76 0136 JMC
To: REG
budget[s76,jmc] awaits your comments.
∂13-JUN-76 1036 JMC mailing list
To: RDR
Thanks for setting it up. I'll use it, and I have added Tom Rindfleisch
at SUMEX who is on the hardware advisory committee.
∂14-JUN-76 0315 JMC BUDGET
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
A tentative budget for LOTS is in BUDGET[S76,JMC]. It will probably be
modified today.
∂14-JUN-76 2209 JMC Present state of LOTS.
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
1. The Trustees have approved LOTS.
2. J. McCarthy has been appointed Director. There will be an Advisory
Board.
3. The Director reports to the Provost; SCIP is not involved for now.
4. A formal search will be made for a manager.
5. The machine with RPO6 can be had in October or November, but
D.E.C. will try to get it for us in August.
6. Decwriter II is the current most probable terminal.
7. Further information in CONFIG[S76,JMC] and BUDGET[S76,JMC].
∧ ∂15-JUN-76 2335 JMC
To: RDR
Yes, we'll do it.
α ∂15-JUN-76 2344 JMC
To: REF
RWW is in the Tresidder Coffee House playing go.
∂16-JUN-76 0046 JMC LOTS Space Needs
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
SPACE.LOT[S76,JMC] contains some thoughts on LOTS space requirements.
Comments received before the meeting on June 21 with Ed Shaw on carving
up Pine Hall will be especially useful.
∂16-JUN-76 1019 JMC
To: rindfleisch @ SUMEX-AIM
I will try to follow your advice.
∂16-JUN-76 1051 JMC file directory
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
The BUDGET and CONFIG and SPACE files are now in a directory called LOT,JMC.
LOTS group members are welcome to look at it, but comments on unannounced
drafts should be made to me, because they are not ready for comment until
they are finished.
∂17-JUN-76 1235 JMC
To: RDR
There is no problem provided they can log in conveniently enough so that
communicating with them in this way is not an inconvenience to them. If
so please arrange the accounts with LES. By the way we will have to see
about message facilities in LOTS itself.
∂17-JUN-76 1238 JMC
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
We now have a delivery date from D.E.C. It is 19 November and is for
the whole configuration described in CONFIG[LOT,JMC] - not changed recently.
We still don't have good answers on getting manuals at reasonable prices.
∂17-JUN-76 1335 JMC
To: PAW
leng.le1[lot,jmc] is the first letter for LOTS stationery.
∂17-JUN-76 1344 JMC
To: RDR
Can you come to the Pine Hall space meeting bldg. 10 on Tuesday at 2pm to 3:30?
∂17-JUN-76 2323 JMC Accomplishments
To: carlstrom @ USC-ISI
We will try to get something to you Friday afternoon. The problem is
that Les is on vacation and I am getting married on Friday. The fact
is that I have actually made what I think is a major breakthrough - I
have not claimed such a thing before - in the representation of knowledge
about knowledge and belief, but the possibilities it opens haven't been
fully explored yet and are not yet easy to relate to DoD problems in
a very concrete way. However, I'll do what I can before tomorrow afternoon
as well as collecting the accomplishments of the others. My preliminary
writeup is in a file ACCOMP[S76,JMC] in case you want to preview it.
∂17-JUN-76 2357 JMC
To: RDR
I think I would like to confine the distribution list to people who
are likely to do some work. Perhaps we should have a larger distribution
list for potential LOTS users who are not involved in making LOTS work.
I don't feel strongly about the matter, and feigenbaum%sumex is the
obvious candidate. I have put my secretary Patte Wood on the list,
and she should be informed of any members of the list who should get
their notices by campus mail.
∂18-JUN-76 1111 JMC
To: REM
I think you are not so easily defeated by difficulties as you fear.
You have probably overcome more difficult problems in POX and SPINDL
than INFORM's lack of arrays.
∂18-JUN-76 1129 JMC
To: RDR
Feigenbaum does not want to be on the present LOTS distribution list -
but rather one for major announcements to potential users. He already
gets enought net mail. Others may feel the same way.
∂18-JUN-76 1127 JMC
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
According to Tom Gafford, who consults for a relevant company, there will
be mass-buss adapaters available in six months or so that will permit
attachment of other vendors disks to 2040s and 11/70s. This will permit
LOTS to expand its disk file at something closer to the $12,000 per
unit that the AI Lab pays rather than the $34,900 that D.E.C. charges.
This doesn't suggest any changes in the present order to D.E.C., but
it makes it look less like a box and confirms the choice of the
200 megabyte disk, because the 100 megabyte disks will probably not
be available from the independent manufacturers (or maybe even from D.E.C.)
much longer.
∂18-JUN-76 1217 JMC
To: carlstrom @ USC-ISI
STANFORD ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE LABORATORY
Here is our report on recent work. I can summarize it as follows:
1. McCarthy has made what he thinks is a major theoretical breakthrough
in the representation of knowledge about knowledge. Otherwise the
work in formal reasoning is proceeding about as planned. In particular,
the proof of correctness of the McCarthy-Painter compiler is not much
longer than informal proof in the paper.
2. Winograd and his students and collaborators at Xerox have preliminary
versions of their KRL knowledge representation language. This
is the main attempt to extend the ideas of Winograd's famous thesis
to a general capability.
3. Luckham continues to extend his program verification methods
to ever more realistic problems including those of verifying operating
systems.
4. Lenat (these results are more fully reported by Feigenbaum) has
had considerable success in generating mathematical results and
checking them for "interest". This may also be a major breakthrough,
but the limits of his techniques have to be checked.
The following pages contain brief writeups by the group leaders and researchers:
!FORMAL REASONING (Part 1)
We think we have made a major breakthrough in the representation
of knowledge about knowledge and related topics. Its importance
comes from the fact that intelligent systems must reason about what
they know and what other people and machines know and where information
is to be found. To give a military example, a program intended to
help predict enemy action must reason about what the enemy knows,
believes and wants. It must also reason about what it wants to know
and whether it can hope to find out by reasoning or must seek external
sources of information. The ability to reason about
sources of information is important in all areas of artificial intelligence.
The advance consists in introducing concepts as mathematical
objects and introducing functions that have concepts as values along
with the functions that have things as values. This permits treating
knowledge, belief, intention, wanting, etc. in ordinary first order
logic for which a good theory and powerful programs already exist
rather than in modal logic which is much less satisfactory and
for which programs don't exist. The new way of handling knowledge
can also be used by PLANNER-like systems and probably by production
systems as well.
The main ideas were developed by McCarthy in May and are
being actively pursued by him and his students Robert Moore and
Christopher Goad.
A preliminary version of a Stanford AI Memo is
contained in the file CONCEP[S76,JMC], but the section on applications
to artificial intelligence is not yet incorporated.
!FORMAL REASONING (Part 2)
The formal reasoning group at Stanford is primarily interested in
how general reasoning can be done using computers. This requires
both an understanding of how to make proper deductions and how to
represent the information content of common knowledge. Our major
software effort has been a computer program, FOL, which serves as
an environment for experimenting with computer reasoning.
During the past six months we have used FOL to prove the correctness
of the McCarthy-Painter compiling algorithm, and to check the proofs
of about 100 theorems of mathematics. These particular tasks were
chosen in order to give us information about what the formal proofs
of informally well understood theorems look like. These proofs, as
well as some of those done last year, are being carefully examined
to analyze how well this particular computer representation of
reasoning behaves and in what ways it can be improved. The ultimate
aim is to find a general theory of computer reasoning. As a result of
similiar studies done late last year on the relation between solving
problems by reasoning and observing things in the real world,
we designed a new semantic attachment mechanism for FOL, which
allows us a greater flexibility to do either. This is presently
being implemented, but is not yet running. Several other improvements
either have been or are being coded.
One reason for looking at proofs in mathematics and about programing
languages is that the informal methods of reasoning about them
have already been formalized, so we have a starting place for computer
reasoning. Unfortunately, there are many areas of ordinary discourse
for which this formalization has not been as well carried out. For
example, it is difficult to reason about other people's belief systems,
or to make deductions about what I know you know. There are presently
three people working on new axiomatizations of this kind of reasoning.
Substantial recent progress has been made on axiomatizing knowledge.
Accomplishments in the last six months.
1. New version of FOL. (April)
2. McCarthy Painter compiler proved correct using FOL.
3. 100 propositions of Kelly set theory proved using FOL.
4. Design of new semantic attachment mechanism. (coding almost complete)
5. Design of subgoaling facility. (some code runs but none on system)
6. Design of SWITCH routines. (code runs, but not on system)
7. Implementation of Sussman and Steele like SCHEME.
a. for call by value interpreter.
b. for call by name interpreter.
8. Axiomatization of the metamathematics of binary trees.
9. Axiomatization of reasoning about knowledge.
!LANGUAGE UNDERSTANDING
The research of the language understander group, directed by
Terry Winograd and supported by several sources, is guided
by the belief that more powerful and flexible representational
tools are needed to construct programs which reason and use
natural language. Over the last year, in conjunction with
several other researchers, we
have been developing a Knowledge Representation Language.
This language is intended to facilitate the integration of
procedural and declarative knowledge, the representation and use
of partial knowledge, and the ability to reason by analogy.
In the initial implementation of this language, we have thus far
written and debugged two extensive test programs. The first of
these is a language understanding system which accepts several
simple stories in English, then summarizes and answers questions
about them. It demonstrates the capability in the language for
representing large, related segments of real-world knowledge,
and for integrating syntactic and semantic knowledge. The
second program, a medical diagnosis system which accepts a
set of patient symtoms and responds with a set of explanatory
diseases, exercises the facilities provided in the language for
factoring knowledge along many dimensions, and reasoning from
partial information.
-------
!PROGRAM VERIFICATION:
1.Methods for verifying programs containing operations on POINTERS
have been developed and implemented in the verifier. The verifier has been
used to check the correctness of about 20 pointer programs including
a garbage collector and part of a scheduler (one page of Pascal code).
2. A study of the application of verifiers to the software maintainence
problem has been completed. A sophisticated sorting program, QUICKSORT,
which has many variants, was used. It was shown that the verifier
could prove the correctness of 6 variants of QUICKSORT using a single
standard set of specifications. Bugs were introduced into the code.
it was found that the user could quickly (7 minutes for 3 bugs)
identify the bugs from the output of the verifier without first
checking the code.
3.The verifier has been used to analyze the implementation of a basic
queuing system in an operating system [1]. A total of 31 specifications
of the queuing system were proved by the verifier (these required the
new proof rules for RECORDS and POINTERS). These results showed
(a) the queues would be maintained correctly under all circumstances,
(b) the queuing system was fair, but (c) there were situations in which
the queuing system would leave resources idle [2].
The verifier is currently being extended to handle PROTECTION and
DEADLOCK problems in the SOLO operating system [3], a working
and widely distributed PDP-11 system.
4. New fast theorem provers using graph representations of data for
arithmetical problems and for pointer manipulation problems have been designed
and coded. These theorem provers are crucial subsystems of program verifiers.
Their response time directly reflects on the feasibilty of using
verifiers as programming aids.
[1] A. SAXENA and T. BREDT, "A structured specification of an operating
system", Proc. International Conference on Reliable Software, April 1975,
pp. 310-318.
[2] R. KARP and D. LUCKHAM, "Proof of Fairness in an implementaion of
Monitors", forthcoming International Conference on Software Engineering, Oct. 1976.
[3] P. BRINCH HANSEN, "The purpose of Concurrent Pascal"
Proc. International Conference on Reliable Software, April 1975,
pp. 305-309.
!AUTOMATED MATHEMATICS
An Artificial Intelligence computer program which learns new
elementary mathematics by itself has recently been completed by D.
Lenat. This system, called "AM", has rediscovered several basic math
concepts (e.g., prime numbers), and was instrumental in the discovery
of one new result in elementary number theory. AM views mathematics
as a collection of interrelated concepts. AM decides which concept to
define next, determines the resources to expend on developing that
concept, and then judges the interestingness of the new concept. A
large knowledge base of elementary mathematics knowledge is present,
in the form of heuristic rules which are used to guide each of these
processes. This project represents a significant advance in the
state of the art in symbolic learning programs. It is anticipated
that the technology developed will be applicable to computer learning
of new concepts in other, less theoretical domains.
∂18-JUN-76 2348 JMC Reasons for accepting delay
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
The delay in delivery from August to November is indeed painful.
Stafford claims that going from 128K to 256K requires a new back
plane that won't be ready until then, and frankly this claim is
puzzling. RPO6s are also only available in November. We were
offered delivery with 128K and an RPO4 in August with the possibility
of trade-in in November with an $8000 loss. This might be acceptable
if the money existed, but we are constrained by the $400,000 limit on
purchase order. In my opinion, RPO6s are an absolute necessity; the
AI Lab now has 800 megabytes in its file system, and I think LOTS
will eventually need even more. The 100 megabyte 3330 type disk is
now a technological orphan, whereas 200 megabyte disks will soon be
available on the 2040 at much lower cost than D.E.C. now charges.
One can speculate that D.E.C. could do better on delivery if they
were so motivated, but I don't know any way to motivate them right
now.
∂19-JUN-76 1307 JMC
CC: SGK
les
∂19-JUN-76 1314 JMC Frege
To: RS
It seemed to me that Frege's use of concept in that paper was as a predicate
of one argument. Incidentally, putting the concept of Mike's telephone number
into a formalism does not, alas, determine how we are going to treat the concept
of a chair.
∂22-JUN-76 0032 JMC Sarah
To: minsky @ MIT-AI
She is on the AA flight that left at 12:05am and arrives at approx. 10:30.
∂22-JUN-76 0035 JMC
To: SGK
For now DATADISC is the short resource. Please don't use it when
your using it makes 31 users.
∂22-JUN-76 2340 JMC
To: ELM
Well, that's enough to be useful.
∂23-JUN-76 0056 JMC
To: RDR
∂23-JUN-76 0051 RDR last message
I just said roughly--
I have been thinking about the space options(I was not too happy with
the meeting today, although I get the impression Provost wants to be
nice to LOTS, and that is good.) and the more I think, the more I like
the Cedar Hall option, despite some strong initial reservations. We would
only need to be sure of electricity which is probably there, and could ask
for carpets and airconditioning. This, and any wires run, would not be wasted
when we moved to the Quad, as any SCIP functions in the building will want
lines to Pine Hall (the TRAN) too...
`I'll see what Shaw, who is Assistant to Provost, says on Friday.
∂23-JUN-76 0243 JMC Phil Hilts
To: minsky @ MIT-AI
Phil Hilts, who seems like a reasonable guy and to whom I have been talking,
gave you as a reference. In accordance with my principle of always checking
references, I would like your impression. I assume Sarah made it ok.
ε ∂23-JUN-76 0250 JMC Manna
To: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM
1. Manna was just promoted to full professor at the Weizman Institute.
2. Lieberman just turned down our application to make him a principal
investigator on an NSF proposal.
3. I want very much to keep him, but we will have to take some positive
action.
Could you call Lieberman and tell him that Manna really has a high
scientific reputation? I had to tell Manna that he really should encourage
offers from elsewhere in the U.S. if he wants any decent treatment from
Stanford.
∂23-JUN-76 1059 JMC
To: levy @ RUTGERS-10
The command to print the directory should be di[lot,jmc]. You
apparently used a period instead of a comma. The two parts of
a file name are separated by period, but the two parts of a directory
name are separated by comma. If this doesn't work, ask again.
∂24-JUN-76 2333 JMC
To: RDR, REG
If MAINSAIL is available, we should have it. We should also have whatever
else is available. What languages will be used in courses is up to the
instructors, and what individual users use is up to them. I belabor this
obvious point, because I don't want LOTS as an institution to have a party
line on languages except in so far as decisions about staff effort are
concerned or conceivably concerning languages like INTERLISP that require
a lot of computer time to support a few users.
↓ ∂24-JUN-76 2357 JMC
To: REM
Usually the calling party re-establishes the connection
after a cut-off, and, when you didn't I assumed you were done.
I didn't notice the three minutes.
Had you mentioned it, I would have.
∂25-JUN-76 1541 JMC
To: *
Kits for Lear-Siegler display terminals at $750 may be available through SCIP.
Terminal viewable in Pine. Buyer must decide by 15 July.
∂25-JUN-76 2120 JMC
To: REM
Very soon all jobs will be swapping on Librascope again. Do you want
to work more on crunching - or are we still paying you?
∂25-JUN-76 2329 JMC
To: LES
Till when is Bill van Melle?
∂26-JUN-76 0147 JMC Widdoes's project
To: LES
Ask him to send me a letter telling status of project and
precisely what he wants from us including disk quotas, login names,
terminal access and projected completion date.
∂26-JUN-76 1920 JMC
To: RDR
Go ahead, but we may have to decide about LSI by 15 July.
∂27-JUN-76 1153 JMC
To: PAW
There is a bug in you LOTS letter head. LENG.LE1[LOT,JMC] doesn't work.
∂27-JUN-76 1320 JMC
To: FRIEDMAN @ SRI-AI
"General John Cocke of Bremo, Virginia, a well-to-do planter of
old family, who dominated the Board of Visitors of the University
of Virginia for thirty-three years, led the demand for nation-wide
prohibition, and was elected president of the American Temperance
Union in 1836."
Boorstin - The Americans - the National Experience, p. 214.
∂29-JUN-76 0102 JMC
To: RDR
Dickens will try to get a kit for inspection. Suggest you ask him to
inquire about cursor model. Ask Ralph whether its characteristics will
be good for us.
∂01-JUL-76 2239 JMC
To: LES
We shouldn't allow any new users who just want to use PUB.
∂01-JUL-76 2241 JMC PUB
To: LCW
Please minimize use of PUB in your project.
↓ ∂01-JUL-76 2245 JMC Feinler
To: LES
Please tell her NO until we see how crowded our machine turns out to be.
∂01-JUL-76 2247 JMC
To: KRD
Are you using PUB for other documents than your thesis?
∂01-JUL-76 2339 JMC
To: KRD
OK, I'm just getting edgy about the KL-10 not being the millenium after all.
∂02-JUL-76 1025 JMC
To: REM
Would you time a crunch and uncrunch that you timed on the KA?
∂02-JUL-76 1609 JMC
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
∂02-JUL-76 1221 REG TOPS-20 sources
To: JMC, REG
Stafford called today and said the TOPS-20 source are normally $30K but
for us, $10K. However, the sources for RSXF20F (the program that runs in
the 11) are normally $50K, for us $30K.
The reason the 11 source is expensive is that obviously the most likely
place to add a brand x peripheral is on the 11.
My own feeling is that we should, budget permitting, buy the TOPS20 source
and expect to write our own 11 front end software should we need it.
(and we will need it if we're going to add fancy displays, links to the
370, etc.).
¬
∂03-JUL-76 1313 JMC
To: RDR
Your test with lightly loaded machine gives 1'51 and 3'23 best results.
∂03-JUL-76 1715 JMC Timing
To: REM
On may 3 you sent me a message giving timings on crunch.pln (then 8039 words).
That message is page 171 of may76.in[let,jmc], but I think you did some
others as well.
↓ ∂03-JUL-76 1825 JMC
To: REM
I presume the number of words refers to the original file, and I presume it
is packed 5 characters to the word so that the uncrunch rate is
a little less than 22,000 words per second. I suggest you include these
results in SPINDL.REM.
∂04-JUL-76 1617 JMC
To: REM
Yes characters.
∂05-JUL-76 2012 JMC
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
I agree that LOTS should never get into the position where people
are cut off when resources are available. Since we are not bound
by the "flexible pricing agreement", I can't see it happening and
will endorse a suitable statement of it.
∂05-JUL-76 2203 JMC Job description
To: GF
P[LOT,JMC] contains job descriptions. Do you have comments before I
ship it to Ed Shaw?
∂05-JUL-76 2204 JMC P
To: REG
I added communicating with faculty to job of manager, co-ordinating non-course
use by students to student manager, and typing letters to secretary job.
I am about to ship it.
∂05-JUL-76 2311 JMC
To: *
After 1 Aug no service level for jobs that are mainly PUB and POX. Research is
being crowded by documentation. Comments to JMC.
∂06-JUL-76 0050 JMC Visitors from Kyoto
To: PAW
Professor Takasu and three students, Takeshi Hayashi, Masahiko Sato, and
one named Kasai whose first name I don't have will be visiting the Lab
for about 40 days starting about Aug. 25. Hayashi will bring his wife;
the others will be alone. We need to find an apartment for Hayashi and
another for the three others. Takasu will be the only driver, and he
has asked us to send him the driver's license booklet so he can take the
test right away. I also need to send official letters of invitation to
Sato and Hayashi. Please decorate HAYASH.LE1 with a corresponding letter
to Sato. Richard Weyhrauch will work on housing and other arrangements
for them. Their financing is entirely Japanese. Their address is the
same as Takasu's.
α ∂06-JUL-76 0203 JMC
To: JC
Who is Ken Shoemaker?
∂06-JUL-76 0204 JMC
To: TOB
It is said that RSS works for you. If so, get him legitimized.
∂06-JUL-76 1533 JMC
To: *
No service level for PUB and POX met with such universal approval
that we have decided to do it right away.
∂06-JUL-76 2003 JMC Documentation vs. Research
To: LIS
1. Pretty documentation is not a necessary part of research.
2. Documentation was beginning to overwhelm other uses.
3. I hoped that the KL-10 would improve matters, but it seems that the
`tendency to PUB again after small changes in the text has proved
irresistible, and usage has expanded to fill the gap. I never use
service level and could always PUB through eventually but often
PUBbed only once a day because of the slow service.
β ∂06-JUL-76 2140 JMC Coleman
To: LES
I fear that this reports program has gotten out of hand. Why does it
use so much computer time.
∂06-JUL-76 2207 JMC
To: RDR
I think LOTS should take initial responsibility for its terminals.
We may later contract with SCIP for their maintenance if that seems
like a good deal. SCIP has been helpful in keeping us informed of
the terminal opportunities, but LOTS should not become dependent on
SCIP. Subordination follows dependence. Whether LOTS succeeds or
fails depends on us, and I don't want to get into a position where
SCIP can be blamed for a failure or take credit for a success.
∂07-JUL-76 1421 JMC
To: RDR
I am looking into getting TENEX time between now and our machine arrival
for such things. Suppes will sell, but maybe SUMEX can give.
Can you get draft memo for LSI purchase done today?
π ∂07-JUL-76 1839 JMC
To: *
It is proposed to outlaw service level for batch jobs. Comments to JMC.
∂07-JUL-76 2234 JMC
To: *
Lest there be confusion, there is still no service level for PUB or POX.
∂07-JUL-76 2328 JMC A name.
To: RF
Do you have the name and possibly the telephone of the younger of
the two women who talked at the I-Center about their visit
two the Soviet Union and their contacts with Jews there.
∂07-JUL-76 2341 JMC
To: DBL
Thanks.
∂07-JUL-76 2342 JMC
To: RF
I have the name.
∂08-JUL-76 0049 JMC
To: RDR
I'll try Franklin on it tomorrow.
∂08-JUL-76 0255 JMC
To: RDR
Perhaps I should have asked Suppes for free time. I will ask SUMEX for
free time. The AI Lab can afford disk storage for all I imagine
will be needed.
∂08-JUL-76 1015 JMC
To: lindsay @ SUMEX-AIM
Files with first name WEIZEN in the directory PUB,JMC concern this matter,
and I'll mail you a copy of my review.
π ∂08-JUL-76 1017 JMC
To: PAW
Please mail a copy of my review of Weizenbaum's book to
Robert Lindsay
1305 Challmers Drive
AAnn Arbor, Michigan 48104
∂08-JUL-76 1330 JMC
To: lieb @ MOFFETT-ARC
I am presently waiting for two things. 1. The appointment of a manager
(I am director) who will have much say about appointments and for
it to become clearer about the ratio between need for system programming
and someone who will talk to faculty.
Your qualifications are interesting to us, and we will keep it in mind.
One choice of manager would make a system programmer opening at the AI
Lab.
∂08-JUL-76 2314 JMC
To: RDR, REG
Terminals and SCIP
It is now very important for us to get some kind of quote either from LSI
or its distributor. If SCIP makes a purchase order for its employees at
one price while LOTS has to pay more, I think that Massy - who has to come
up with the money - will draw suitable conclusions.
However, if we don't have a quote, then there is nothing to discuss.
So, Dave, please pursue it vigorously. You may call yourself Acting
Assistant Manager, and you may ask the help of Dick Hyfield in purchasing.
¬ ∂08-JUL-76 2316 JMC
To: RDR
I talked to Dickens at 10pm, and he said he'd see what he could do tomorrow.
∂08-JUL-76 2319 JMC Second thought.
To: RDR
Talk to Hyfield first.
Tell him I told you to,
∂09-JUL-76 0005 JMC
To: RDR, REG
Fine, ask Stafford about the others. Also, you might run your calibration
problem and some others - Franklin knows about an EDUCOM set of calibration
problems - on the 2040 at ISI. Perhaps you - and Ralph if he thinks it
worthwhile - should visit ISI and run a few problems.
∂09-JUL-76 0007 JMC
To: ME
NS is broken.
∂09-JUL-76 0007 JMC
To: ME
hot is broken
∂09-JUL-76 1425 JMC
To: ZM
I suggest that you call him.
∂09-JUL-76 2053 JMC
To: TVR
So how many good tracks are there actually?
∂10-JUL-76 0417 JMC
To: RDR
Yes, ask Franklin; it will make him move faster on transferring some
money to a LOTS account.
No word. I couldn't get Yundt, but talked to Williams. I'll talk to
Yundt on Monday. Thanks for the usage reports.
∂10-JUL-76 1434 JMC Reference
To: hewitt @ MIT-AI
I have found the reference. It is in a paper I was asked to referee
for the AI Journal by Stuart C. Shapiro and Mitchell Wand of the
Computer Science Department of Indiana University. They refer to
papers by N. Belnap, a well known philosopher. Their manuscript
is Technical Report No. 46 - The Relevance of Relevance, so they
should be willing to send you a copy.
Best Regards,
π ∂10-JUL-76 2311 JMC
To: DCL
Yes, we'll have to squeeze them, and I'll have to figure out how to
do it without more system tools until we get them.
∂10-JUL-76 2326 JMC usage
To: DCL
Music is a factor of two high for the 1st ten days of July. However, given that
your groups usage was 7% of the non-service use, it is hard to say that
your output was limited by available computer time.
α ∂11-JUL-76 1227 JMC
To: RWG
REM's 11 July proposal seems like a good idea, but not of sufficient
interest to the AI Lab. Does Xerox like this sort of thing enough
to pay for it?
∂11-JUL-76 1228 JMC
To: gosper @ PARC-MAXC
Are you there?
∂11-JUL-76 1303 JMC
To: LES
Reclassify Robert Poor to music. How did he get called a network guest?
∂11-JUL-76 1305 JMC Query
To: TJW
What are you up to these days? Should your computer usage be called
computer facility or is it connected with your thesis - a purely statistical
question?
π ∂11-JUL-76 2308 JMC
To: TJW
It doesn't matter, because the accounting program is incapable of using
the difference.
∂12-JUL-76 1841 JMC
To: REG
highfi.le1[let,jmc] is a memo about changing the purchase order.
∂13-JUL-76 0137 JMC
To: PAW
Did I ask for a driver's booklet for Takasu and did you?
β ∂13-JUL-76 1613 JMC
To: DWP
Bob Trick of Ampex would like to talk to you some time: phone 733-2900.
∂13-JUL-76 2046 JMC E segment
To: REG, JBR
I think I have noticed the E segment swapped out. It seems to me that this is
so rarely the right thing for the system to do that perhaps the segment should
be nailed in place.
∂14-JUL-76 0320 JMC
To: RSC
If you can do the flatten proof, I would like to see the output.
∂14-JUL-76 0345 JMC
To: minsky @ MIT-AI
Sarah back. Many thanks for your hospitality.
β ∂14-JUL-76 1258 JMC
To: REM
I don't know whether this system P uses Librascope, but I think your
expectations may be too high for this part of the 20th century.
∂14-JUL-76 1423 JMC
To: REG
Look at leng.le3[let,jmc], but it occurs to me that if you are
going to Boston, it might be better to explore the matter there.
∂15-JUL-76 2152 JMC
To: MDD
Vera is climbing Mt. Whitney next weekend. Is a week night feasible?
¬ ∂16-JUL-76 0255 JMC
To: TOB
I know nothing about ARPA situation.
π ∂19-JUL-76 0014 JMC
To: REG
I'll call Franklin and make all those points - and then some.
∂19-JUL-76 1436 JMC Letter to Minker
To: PAW
Dear Jack:
Thanks for Lerner material and send him my regards at first
opportunity. I heard a different rumor - this from Ershov, but I
didn't ask whether the information was first hand - that Lerner had
been the chairman of a committee concerned with classified
dissertations. I would like to ask Lerner about this, but please
don't do it in a communciation subject to Soviet censorship.
Best Regards,
∂21-JUL-76 1639 JMC
To: RWW
∂21-JUL-76 1513 RWW
To: FOL.DIS[FOL,RWW]:;
The file INFO.FOL[DOC,RWW] now contains documentation for new FOL features,
which are not documented in the manual.
Can you print some copies for the active users including me.
∂22-JUL-76 0115 JMC Knowledge paper
To: CG
The new axioms are much clearer. Is it obvious that they are consistent?
∂22-JUL-76 1529 JMC
To: *
ARPA visit Aug. 12, presentations by all groups. By Monday we need
plans for activity till Oct. '77. There will be a budget cut.
∂23-JUL-76 2353 JMC
To: RWW
Have you written to Takasu?
∂23-JUL-76 2353 JMC
To: PAW
Has Takasu been sent the Driver's Handbook?
∂24-JUL-76 1236 JMC knowledge
To: CG
I suggest that you work out a much simpler example than the three wise men
problem - in fact the simplest example that exhibits the ideas.
∂24-JUL-76 1507 JMC
To: LES, RWG, KJK
∂24-JUL-76 0207 RWG
is it possible to relegitimize Kevin Karplus on this system?
KJK is my one and only 390 student (reading and research), trying to extend
my rearrangement results to continued fractions and other iterated structures.
He does most of the work on MACSYMA, but records it here.
OK, till the end of 1976.
∂24-JUL-76 1610 JMC
To: *
Question for today: Is there any way Viking can be moved - even an inch per day?
Ideas to JMC.
∂25-JUL-76 0154 JMC
To: REM
As to risk, after a while Viking will have no other value, but
most likely the arms isn't strong enough. Note that there are
two senses of strength: (1) what the motors can pull, and (2)
the load the arm can stand without breaking. If the latter is
adequate, it is a question of finding a suitable mechanical
advantage. If there were two by fours lying around the surface,
it might be done, but its hard to see how to do much prying with
rocks. I haven't figured any way, but I am not yet convince it
is impossible.
∂25-JUL-76 1312 JMC
To: RDR
Please phone me.
∂25-JUL-76 1440 JMC
To: REM
Usually the opinion that something is impossible has not been
actually stated, it is simply a boundary condition of people's
thinking. In my opinion, people and societies often die
because they haven't troubled to think about what might save
them. One also needs to understand the known impossibility
results like Godel's theorem, non-constructibility, irrationality,
and the first and second laws of thermodynamics. Trying to make
a real proof that something is impossible often suggests
a way of doing it.
In my Technology Essays there are a number of such things in
partial states of completion.
∂25-JUL-76 2137 JMC
To: RWW
show commands is broken
∂26-JUL-76 0013 JMC
To: REM
I have forgotten.
∂26-JUL-76 0145 JMC usage
To: LES
We have no justification for asking for ARPA for any money for
any new computer resources. According to accounting, musicians
are now using more resources than all projects for which ARPA
is paying (eliminating all overheads).
∂26-JUL-76 0147 JMC
To: JAM
Who is Beverly Grigsby and how come she is biggest user?
∂26-JUL-76 0157 JMC
To: LES
Please authorize no more music login names till further notice.
∂26-JUL-76 1703 JMC
To: LES
I talked to Lieberman and he claims something like
what I have just written should work.
While this research will be carried out by Dr. Manna and
graduate students, it is a part of the Artificial Intelligence
Laboratory's program in verifying computer programs initiated by
and under the direction of Professor John McCarthy. Professor
McCarthy will exercise general supervision and will co-ordinate
the work with the other work of the Laboratory in program
correctness - in particular with the work on proof-checking, formal reasoning,
and program verification conducted with ARPA support.
This will require about two percent of McCarthy's time, although
no charges will be made to this grant, because the co-ordination
is appropriately charged to the larger effort.
∂26-JUL-76 1709 JMC
To: LES
I talked to Lieberman and he claims something like
what I have just written should work.
You might check the wording with him though.
While this research will be carried out by Dr. Manna and
graduate students, it is a part of the Artificial Intelligence
Laboratory's program in verifying computer programs initiated by
and under the direction of Professor John McCarthy. Professor
McCarthy will exercise general supervision and will co-ordinate
the work with the other work of the Laboratory in program
correctness - in particular with the work on proof-checking, formal reasoning,
and program verification conducted with ARPA support.
This will require about two percent of McCarthy's time, although
no charges will be made to this grant, because the co-ordination
is appropriately charged to the larger effort.
∂26-JUL-76 2214 JMC Levinthal call
To: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM
Elliot Levinthal tried to reach you at 397-3588, but was told the number
was disconnected. He would like you to call him at his Pasadena office
or at his "Pasadena pad" which is 449-0853.
∂27-JUL-76 1416 JMC exile
To: LCW, LES
Because of heavy data-disc and III load during the day,
we have to exile Stanford-1 to the night-time hours.
Please inform your colleagues that they should work
between 7pm and 9am.
∂28-JUL-76 1204 JMC
To: WD
Because of shortage of DD channels, guests like you should work at night.
∂29-JUL-76 0121 JMC
To: REM
Why not ask them if they are interested in paying for its improvement
and adaptation? You can ask them yourself or I can send a message
to Licklider.
∂29-JUL-76 1147 JMC
To: LES
∂29-JUL-76 0927 FXB via AMET Keyboards
If the AI Lab is going to or is able to order some more AI Lab keyboards
from Microswitch, I would like to order several myself. Could you let
me know what the prospects or possibilities are?
∂29-JUL-76 1151 JMC keyboards
To: FXB
We have no immediate plan to order more. LOTS will use ADM-3 displays to start
most likely. I forwarded your message to LES in case your requirement might
tip the scales. Can you get me a Cray-1 manual?
∂29-JUL-76 2153 JMC
To: HVA
That seems an easy way to do it.
∂30-JUL-76 2320 JMC
To: MDD
Sure.
∂31-JUL-76 2057 JMC System load from E.
To: JBR, REG, ME
Perhaps the system could recognize the most common case of continuous input
and store up to five lines at the end of a page in a buffer suitably updating
the display before calling E.
∂01-AUG-76 0126 JMC
To: ME
ns broken again.
∂03-AUG-76 1118 JMC
To: RDR
Please phone.
∂03-AUG-76 1415 JMC
To: LES
Put Phil Wadler under Formal reasoning.
∂04-AUG-76 2357 JMC
To: JC
I guess this message is for you. - JMC
∂04-AUG-76 2230 100 : WVS MUNICH...
HI, JOHN!
My friend's adress in Munich is:
Hans-Juergen von Bose (that's his name...)
Hiltensperger Strasse 65
8 Muenchen 40
(he lives downtown in the reknown Schwabing district...)
his phone number: (089)300-6288
So, maybe, I'll be there in early September, too...
See you then!! greetings, Wolfgang
∂05-AUG-76 1332 JMC
To: reddy @ CMU-10A
I would like to receive the reports, but I don't know whether I can
attend the worksop.
∂05-AUG-76 1440 JMC
To: newell @ CMU-10A
Dear Allen:
ARPA seems to be increasingly in a mode in which they
want to determine research goals according to the whims of
Heilmeyer, Russell, and assorted underlings. This is a bad
way to do research. The review by the Jasons might have helped,
but it didn't, probably because the physicists re-invented
AI for themselves.
My question is whether some very high level lobbying
may be in order? Perhaps with Stever in his new capacity
or possibly waiting until after the election with whoever
succeeds him.
The point is that research sponsored by DoD must be
real research and not just a collection of the hobbies
of program managers. It seems to me that if the present
trend continues, ARPA supported university AI research
may become impossible.
Have you and Herb thought about this?
∂05-AUG-76 2104 JMC
To: JMC
That was USY333 or VSY333 or CSY333.
∂06-AUG-76 0216 JMC tovar
To: LES
He seems to be spending much of his time hacking net graphics
which seems unlikely to have much payoff at present.
∂06-AUG-76 1038 JMC
To: raphael @ SRI-AI
Vera and I are happy to accept for Tuesday.
∂07-AUG-76 1527 JMC Goto
To: deutsch @ PARC-MAXC
I hear that Professor Goto of Tokyo University is visiting you.
Please transmit to him an invitation to visit us - both professional
and social - if he has time.
∂07-AUG-76 2346 JMC
To: REG
∂07-AUG-76 2341 REG
To: RDR
CC: JMC
Things to do for LOTS
I shall be away thru August 23. In the meantime I'm counting on you (RDR) to
carry the ball in several important respects as outlined below.
1. Need furniture for the office in Cedar. A desk and chair are the minimal
necessity. A bookcase might be useful. Way to procede is
via a purchase requistion. $300 or $400 should be more
than adequate for this purpose. Should come from summer money.
A further decision about furniture can wait. RDR: ask Hersche
or Queenie how to do it. JMC's approval of the requistion is required.
Then try to get procurement services to agree to let you buy
it at the Desk Depot or whatever. Anyhow impress on them
the urgency of our need for something. Also, keep bugging
Clasphill.
2. Need to order the terminal kits soon.
Need to establish an account for this (it's not included in any
account we have already). I think JMC will have to talk to Massey
about this.
Before ordering these terminals we ought to verify that the one
we have is working.
Once we decide to go on these terminals, we ought to organize
a staggered delivery schedule. Say 10 terminals in a clump
every two or three weeks.
A decision about how to construct the terminals is also needed.
Perhaps it's not so big a job as we thought. I like JMC's idea
about contracting for the completion of the kits.
3. A decision about space for LOTS is needed immediately. My parameters
are that I'm unwilling to put the machine in Pine unless we have a definite
promise of better space to be occupied before January 1978.
If all of LOTS could be squeezed into Pine, allocating the same amount
of space in Pine as has been allocated in Cedar, I would be agreeable.
This would be the cheapest possible solution.
I'm not too happy about the machine only in Pine. This requires new
cable laying between pine and cedar. a sink for energy. If this
is decided on, RDR should talk to the planners about cabling. Plan on
at least 150 pair of wires. Talk to TED or TAG about line recievers and
drivers for that distance (also about the possible ground mesh problem).
Once the site has been selected, RDR should determine what needs to be
done regarding site preparation. Bob Esparza has my site preparation
materials. If you can't get them back from him, get Stafford to send
you another. Prepare lists of things for my perusal August 24.
4. The Printronix printer, hopefully, has been ordered. RDR: check
with Dick Highfield on the progress of that order. If he hasn't seen
the purchase requistion yet, then it must be hung up either at Franklin
or the Provost. Must unwedge it (although there's no need for the printer
to arrive before about Sept 15).
5. We'll need tools and workspace for terminal assembly. Maybe the backroom
of the AI lab will suit. Ought to buy tools and some test equipment anyway.
Startup budget isn't big enough! Need to outfit one room in cedar as a
shop. Any decisions about tools and test equipment that imply spending more
than about $200 should be deferred to my return.
6. I feel there must be 10 more things, but I can't think of them. I'll
see if I can borrow a TI terminal to take with me, so I can keep in touch.
∂07-AUG-76 2346 JMC error and stuff
To: REG
I maild your message back by mistake. Suggest you mail someone at ALOHA
and ask for their TIP number.
∂09-AUG-76 2334 JMC
To: ZM
Ah so desu ka.
∂10-AUG-76 1338 JMC
To: REG
Amy Blue is quite firm that $24.5K is their maximum starting salary.
∂10-AUG-76 1510 JMC politics
To: simon @ CMU-10A
According to the ARPA staffers, the problem is not merely Heilmeyer
but the House Armed Service Committee and its subcommittee on
research and development. The chairman of this committee is
Price of Illinois, and the staffer who gives the problems is
named Batista. Their habit is to zap program areas either because
the problem is a "already solved" or because the problem should
be solved by industry. Perhaps Stever or his office could be
induced to look into it or perhaps his successor would help.
I don't have a clear impression of their attitude towards research
per se; I think it has fluctuated.
∂10-AUG-76 1630 JMC no cost extension
To: CCG, TW, RWW, TOB, DCL
As you probably know ARPA has asked us to take a three months no-cost
extension from 1 July 1977 to 1 October 1977. This means we must reduce
personnel. Please give me a list of all ARPA supported people in your
area with a rank order.
I will then prepare a retrenchment plan and discuss it with you.
∂11-AUG-76 1234 JMC
To: TED
Till when is McGuire on vacation?
∂12-AUG-76 1026 JMC
To: LES
Please legitimize SMC (Susan McCarthy) till 30 October - nominal guest quotas.
∂12-AUG-76 1420 JMC
To: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM, CCG
Because of the budget cut, it looks like the AI Lab will have
to renege on supporting Cordell Green full time in this coming
academic year. Can he go back to the regular 50% on the academic
budget?
∂12-AUG-76 2208 JMC
To: LES
I think we must take at least 2 or 3 new students.
∂12-AUG-76 2340 JMC
To: LES
I never intended to support Wadler beyond this summer. Who is Pattis?
∂12-AUG-76 2342 JMC
To: TW
Can the NSF be used for this summer simply be retroactive bookkeeping?
∂12-AUG-76 2358 JMC
To: REG
Where would you like the confirmation sent?
∂13-AUG-76 0014 JMC
To: REG
Where would you like gorin.le1[let,jmc] mailed, or will you eat it here?
∂14-AUG-76 1128 JMC Primer
To: RWW, REF
The Primer looks good.
On p. 21 the section title has a misprint.
Perhaps there should be some exercises at the end, perhaps one
of the set theory axiom systems and some theorems to be proved.
However, it is publishable as it stands.
∂14-AUG-76 1135 JMC Primer
To: RWW, REF
I fixed the misprint in PRIMER.PUB[PMR,REF]. Two more comments:
The difference between boldface and regular print isn't always
apparent. Perhaps italics could be used; don't bother if more
is required than changing a font declaration. Second, every
document should say somewhere what file it is.
∂14-AUG-76 1619 JMC letter
To: PAW
Please get the complete address for stone.le1, pub it, and include
the reprint about Lerner that I left on your desk.
∂16-AUG-76 2143 JMC
To: RDR
Put "Call Dave Roode, Acting Assistant Manager at ext. yyyy" instead
of just call the extension.
∂18-AUG-76 1143 JMC
To: ZM
It is not surprising that Dijkstra is a snob about this too.
∂18-AUG-76 1426 JMC
To: PAW
Please thank Erik for report (on yr desk) and ask for p.21
∂19-AUG-76 1206 JMC
To: lieb @ SUMEX-AIM
The position has been posted, and you are welcome to apply for it
through personnel. Ralph Gorin, who will be interviewing candidates
on the 23rd is on vacation.
∂19-AUG-76 1211 JMC
To: DLB
I don't know what is involved. This is up to the numerical analysis
faculty, but I would be grateful for any initiative anyone can take.
The opportunities and consequences for CSD of moving classes to LOTS
will be taken up officially when school starts, but any headstart would
be valuable. Computer time here and at a KL20 in Los Angeles is available.
I will be away for two weeks, and the only person available is the
student assistant manager David Roode, whose extension is 7-3214.
∂19-AUG-76 1352 JMC
To: RDR
I gave the purchase requisition to Ed Shaw at 4:58pm Monday.
∂19-AUG-76 1521 JMC
To: RDR
Please call Chris Forester (56) 249-7020 x2761 right away.
∂19-AUG-76 1601 JMC
To: RDR
Thanks for the benchmarks. The only additional benchmark I want
for now is in LISP. Please see Chris Goad about this.
∂20-AUG-76 1018 JMC
To: PAM
I have already arranged for Chris Goad to TA CS206.
∂20-AUG-76 1502 JMC
To: RDR
Please polish your RESULT.TXT[BCH,RDR] by changing SAIL results to
decimal - the reader shouldn't have to convert, and making a column
with relative times compared to 168.
∂20-AUG-76 1510 JMC
To: RDR
I didn't realize that Stanford was so slow. I called Shaw to ask for
promptness, but he wasn't there. I left a message asking for a prompt
decision and a prompt start on site preparation. I said that you would
call Shaw 7-3815 Monday afternoon, but if Ralph is available, it would
be better if he did it.
∂20-AUG-76 1531 JMC
To: RDR
I also sent Shaw a memo.
∂20-AUG-76 2018 JMC →11030
To: ___JMC.PLN[2,2]
I will be in Tampere, Finland until Aug 27, then in Helsinki and
Leningrad until Sept. 1, then in Western Europe till Sept 4, and
expect to arrive home on the evening of Sept. 4.
∂21-AUG-76 0954 JMC
To: REG
Have fun interviewing. Where in Hawaii shall we move the Lab?
∂04-SEP-76 2214 JMC
To: LES
I'm back.
∂05-SEP-76 1114 JMC
To: RDR
I'm back. What's up?
∂05-SEP-76 1343 JMC Call about doctor for your wife.
To: SVE
Earl Shorthouse, 854-5708, was looking for you in connection with
having made a doctor's appointment for your wife on Tuesday.
∂05-SEP-76 1345 JMC message for Mossige
To: QIB
Earl Shorthouse, 854-5708, is looking for him concerning a doctor's
appointment for his wife. I sent him a message, but I see he doesn't
log in.
∂06-SEP-76 0425 JMC
To: PMF
Chris Goad will TA CS206.
∂06-SEP-76 0803 JMC
To: PJ
How is the display coming?
∂06-SEP-76 0943 JMC
To: LPL
Deborah Spencer and her mother won't have lunch with you today.
∂07-SEP-76 1116 JMC
To: AJT
I'm tied up today. How about tomorrow?
∂07-SEP-76 1500 JMC
To: LOTS.DIS[P,DOC]:;
Concerning Networks
We are currently pursuing a plan called DIALNET that would allow any
computer that equips itself with a telephone dialer to communicate
in ARPAnet style with any other. Thus there would be no need for the
politics of joining a formal network. A description of this plan
is in DIALNE.PRO[E76,JMC]. Academic credit is available for work
contributing to implementing it. Later there may be money.
∂08-SEP-76 0046 JMC
To: LES
∂08-SEP-76 0037 FTP:Jonathan Day (DAY @ MIT-MC) Dialnet proposal
Date: 8 SEP 1976 0337-EST
From: Jonathan Day (DAY @ MIT-MC)
Subject: Dialnet proposal
To: JMC at SU-AI
I would appreciate receiving copies of further
communicanda relating to your Dialnet proposal.
Could I be added to a "distribution list" or some such.
Net address is "DAY@MIT-MC". The Dialnet
idea seems to be the solution to a problem we have
been thinking about here for awhile - namely, how to
connect the numerous UNIX installations in the
Baltimore/Washington DC area at low cost. We (Johns
Hopkins) have a FX to Washington, and the installations
in DC are mostly government so have dialing privileges.
Since Unix is exceedingly modular and easy to modify it might
be a good testbed for some of these ideas you mention.
J. Day
Thanks for your help.
-------
∂08-SEP-76 1527 JMC Personnel
To: REG
Amy Blue, Provost's Office, 497-3493, has a number of questions
about the personnel requisitions. Rather than deciding them
myself, I have let her hold them up pending discussion with you.
You can either call her or wait till you come back.
∂10-SEP-76 1921 JMC LISP notes
To: CG
title[e76,jmc] has a title page I would like to put in front of the
table of contents. I used different macros to get it printed the
way I want so you will have to change the source appropriately as
well as figure out how to make it come out in front. The copy on
206,cg has been updated to include internal notation in all the
sections of chapter I. Comments are solicited.
∂10-SEP-76 2005 JMC
To: CG
Attaching limits to that integral seems to need more work.
∂11-SEP-76 1549 JMC
To: REG, RDR
Well, I'll talk to Amy Blue.
∂11-SEP-76 2210 JMC
To: REG
If you go to DEC again, prod about manuals and number of directories.
∂12-SEP-76 1321 JMC
To: MWK
Call Murray, he requests.
∂14-SEP-76 1141 JMC
To: EHF
You are right that networking is not of high priority.
Ralph has accepted the position of Manager and will be back
next Monday. Any help you can offer him will be appreciated.
∂15-SEP-76 1448 JMC
To: AJT
You should ask him, and you should ask the graduate school office
to schedule the exam and find a chairman. Both of these are
their prerogative.
∂16-SEP-76 0959 JMC
To: FXB
Yes, many thanks. How is the work going?
∂16-SEP-76 1128 JMC
To: REM
What are you doing that uses all that computer time?
∂16-SEP-76 1250 JMC
To: joseph @ MIT-MC
Bruce Buchanan at Stanford is making a report of various reviews of
your book. I have added the following note to mine:
[Noted added September 1976 - The first of the above statements has
been quoted in a large fraction of the reviews of Weizenbaum's book
(e.g. in %2Datamation%1 and %2Nature%1) as an example of the arrogance
of the "artificial intelligentsia". Weizenbaum firmly insisted that
he heard it in the Lighthill debate, and cited his notes as corroboration,
but later admitted (in %2Datamation%1) after reviewing the tape that he
didn't, but claimed I must have said it in some other debate. I am
confident I didn't say it, because it contradicts views I have held
and repeatedly stated since 1959. My present conjecture is that
Weizenbaum heard me say something on the importance of formalization,
couldn't quite remember what, and quoted "what McCarthy must have said"
based on his own misunderstanding of the relation between computer
modeling and formalization. (His two chapters on computers show no
awareness of the difference between declarative and procedural
knowledge or of the discussions in the AI literature of their
respective roles). Needless to say, the repeated citation by reviewers
of a pompous statement that I never made and which is in opposition to
the view that I think represents my major contribution to AI
is very offensive].
∂17-SEP-76 1023 JMC
To: REM
Do not run them when the load is above 1.0.
∂17-SEP-76 1113 JMC
To: AJT
I'll ask Suppes, since I need to talk to him anyway.
∂17-SEP-76 1114 JMC
To: DEW
Please come and explain your patterns to me.
∂17-SEP-76 1346 JMC
To: AJT
Suppes agreed to be chairman of exam and on reading committee. Call him.
∂17-SEP-76 1354 JMC
To: AJT
I didn't know about that. If so choose or let him choose. I just thought
the exam chairman couldn't be from the Department when there is one.
∂17-SEP-76 1604 JMC
To: RDR, REG
My present plan is to reach faculty and staff through Campus
Report and students through the Daily. We should have additional
copies in the office. However, we will give Ralph a chance to modify
it before we ship it. I have removed the remark about no operators.
∂17-SEP-76 1717 JMC
To: LES
See attached from Luckham.
I think we should support Nelson instead of Strong and try to stretch to
support Drysdale.
∂17-SEP-76 1638 DCL v. Henke and new students
John-It turns out with the departure of Cartwright, Schreiber (both in Sept.)
and Morales (in Dec.) that the Verification group has a total of 2.25 students
being supported by the lab. Since our NSF supports two of these, this
means that the ARPA contract is supporting less than one student in PV.
I believe the ARPA budget allows for 3.25 students in PV plus myself and Oppen.
The NSF also supports a share of Oppen and myself.
1. I would therefore like to take on Scott Drysdale (0.25 time since he is
partially supported by a Danforth ; he is excellent and has already done
a good piece of work in verification) and Greg Nelson (an new Ph.d.
student who I met at Harvard and is also firstclass).
This would allow the PV project to replace Schreiber and Cartwright and still be
underspending.
2. If there is any cash remaining can we give first priority to honor our
commitment to v. Henke.
∂18-SEP-76 1718 JMC
To: RDR
"departmental" → "departmental and living group". Such issues are
the reason I solicited comments.
∂18-SEP-76 1719 JMC
To: RDR
Apart from that, an undergraduate petition for a computer science
major would put the issue on the department's agenda.
∂19-SEP-76 1251 JMC
To: JBR
Louis called.
∂20-SEP-76 1126 JMC
To: RDR, REG
I have fixed up blurb to clear up the misconception about retyping.
∂20-SEP-76 1655 JMC
To: TOB
OK if there is NSF money for it. Check with Les.
∂22-SEP-76 0923 JMC
To: reddy @ CMU-10A
We are getting a DECsystem-20 in November for student computing.
I am Director of the center - called LOTS for "Low overhead time sharing".
I understand that CMU is also getting one in November for the same purpose.
I would like to find out who is involved, because we need to put joint
pressure on D.E.C. for low cost manuals and for more file directories.
∂22-SEP-76 1811 JMC Department meeting.
To: FEIGENBAUM @ SUMEX-AIM
Two problems:
1. I would like to discuss problems of switch to LOTS.
2. I have my regular bimonthly LOTS appointment with Miller
at 4pm.
Therefore, could the meeting start with LOTS. Naturally, if
the meeting could begin earlier than 3pm, I would be even happier.
∂22-SEP-76 1844 JMC
To: EJG
We are still about to send in the proposal.
Talk to Les.
∂22-SEP-76 2007 JMC Account
To: uncapher @ USC-ISI
Would it be possible for LOTS to have an account on the KL-20 separate
from the general account until ours comes November 19?
∂22-SEP-76 2116 JMC
To: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM
Thanks, by the way there needs to be a committee on converting CSD courses
chaired by someone other than me.
∂23-SEP-76 0102 JMC
To: CG
I take it the whole document PUBs ok?
∂23-SEP-76 1120 JMC
To: ZM
Thanks for the information about Culik. I assume it's senior Culik
from Massachusetts and not junior Culik from Canada.
∂23-SEP-76 1222 JMC papers
To: PLW
Congratulations on Forsythe award, which I somehow just learned about.
The judges seem to like Lisp garbage collection. Since syntax directed
input-output is dear to my heart, I may want to use your system in
CS206 this fall once I understand it. Could you come by and discuss
the operational aspects of this?
∂23-SEP-76 1226 JMC
To: PLW
By the way, you should run the spelling checker over your paper.
∂23-SEP-76 1435 JMC
To: feigenbaum @ SUMEX-AIM
OK on Denny
∂24-SEP-76 1425 JMC foo
To: JMC
foo
∂24-SEP-76 1430 JMC
To: JMC
foo yourself
∂24-SEP-76 1514 JMC III
To: tk @ MIT-AI
Dick Martin is here and says you haven't sent the info you promised
about your terminal.
∂25-SEP-76 1458 JMC
To: TED
Are there some hours when one can be reasonably sure of finding you?
∂27-SEP-76 0748 JMC Esparza
To: REG
Please jput what you can remember of his proposed schedule in a file today
unless you can get it in writing from him today. I will see Miller in a
larger meeting at 9 and will get his initial reaction to putting on some
pressure, but we should have a proposal tomorrow at 4pm.
∂27-SEP-76 1835 JMC
To: buchanan @ SUMEX-AIM
Yes, Creative Computing.
∂27-SEP-76 2038 JMC
To: DEK
Vera will also be coming to the lunch for new students.
∂28-SEP-76 2110 JMC dinner Sunday
To: TOB
Vera and I are happy to accept. Thanks much.
∂28-SEP-76 2149 JMC
To: RDR
I will also come tomorrow AM. We didn't hear from Martin. Please
find out whether double character problem is general or
whether the warranty is to be pursued on this particular terminal.
If we go with Heavey, there won't be separate engineering.
∂29-SEP-76 0742 JMC
To: RDR, REG
∂29-SEP-76 0158 RDR Sipb@mit
I asked Ralph about sending a copy to Prof. Adams of LOTS and Prof. Franklin.
The cover letter is in your mailbox, and the file is of course SIPB75.TXT[LOT,RDR].
Fine about SIPB material. I trust you realize the implications
of the fact that LOTS and SIPB don't have the same responsibilities
and resources. Namely, SIPB can devote its resources entirely to
independent student computing. Stanford has merely repackaged the
money and responsibilities and hopes to get independent student
computing as a bonus. This hope is substantially justified, I think,
but at some time new decisions will have to be made about emphasis
and new resources requested if independent student computing is to
get all it might usefully use. I expect this to happen in connection
with disk allocation when disk gets tight and in connection with the
relocation of terminals.
∂29-SEP-76 1138 JMC
To: RDR, REG
I would be happiest if you would put off trying for an SIPB
until LOTS is functioning and we can see how much of a problem remains.
Nothing will be done seriously until then anyway, and the effect of
such agitation now will be to make the officials worry about whether
they did the right thing in starting LOTS. Others will say, "Look,
the students can't make up their minds what they want; maybe they
just like meetings".
∂29-SEP-76 1145 JMC
To: RDR
Please telephone.
∂29-SEP-76 1205 JMC Department meeting
To: FEIGENBAUM @ SUMEX-AIM, dbrown @ SUMEX-AIM
Bob Floyd called me about getting CHIRON up on LOTS, among other things
he mentioned that he had recommended an all-department meeting to report
on his chairmanship and at which the new administration could introduce
itself. Ralph reminds me that the CSD graduate students haven't been
told about LOTS and that we would like to arouse their enthusiasm
and enlist their support.
∂30-SEP-76 2352 JMC
To: day @ MIT-MC
The files weizen.<anything>[pub,jmc] concern the book.
While I have debated with Dreyfus, I have nothing in
writing. The most general statement of my position is
in the review of the Lighthill Report published in the
AI journal.
∂02-OCT-76 1502 JMC dinner
To: TAK
a week from tomorrow will be fine.