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␈↓ ↓H␈↓␈↓βS␈↓∧ Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, Stanford, California 94305
␈↓ ↓H␈↓∧Telephone 415 497-4430␈↓ 	TDecember 27, 1976




␈↓ ↓H␈↓Professor Norman M. Weinberger
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Department of Psychobiology
␈↓ ↓H␈↓University of California, Irvine
␈↓ ↓H␈↓ Irvine, California 92717

␈↓ ↓H␈↓Dear Professor Weinberger:

␈↓ ↓H␈↓        Arthur␈α∩Thomas␈α∩came␈α∩to␈α∩the␈α∩Arti≡cial␈α∩Intelligence␈α∩Laboratory,␈α∩because␈α∩we␈α∪thought␈α∩we
␈↓ ↓H␈↓needed␈α∂a␈α∂psychology␈α∂student␈α∞to␈α∂make␈α∂psychological␈α∂experiments␈α∞in␈α∂vision␈α∂suggested␈α∂by␈α∂our␈α∞AI
␈↓ ↓H␈↓work.␈α⊂ I␈α∂started␈α⊂him␈α⊂on␈α∂making␈α⊂a␈α⊂program␈α∂to␈α⊂display␈α⊂random-dot-stereograms␈α∂with␈α⊂a␈α⊂view␈α∂to
␈↓ ↓H␈↓continuing␈αwith␈αa␈α
program␈αto␈αanalyze␈αthem␈α
and␈αsome␈αfurther␈αexperiments␈α
to␈αde≡ne␈αthe␈α
limits␈αof
␈↓ ↓H␈↓human␈αcapabilities.␈α Unfortunately,␈αThomas␈αturned␈αout␈αto␈αbe␈αa␈αmember␈αof␈αthe␈αten␈αpercent␈αof␈αthe
␈↓ ↓H␈↓population␈α∞that␈α∞can't␈α∞see␈α∞random-dot-stereograms␈α∞at␈α∞all,␈α∞and␈α∞I␈α∞had␈α∞no␈α∞other␈α∞immediate␈α∞idea␈α∞on
␈↓ ↓H␈↓vision experiments connected to AI.

␈↓ ↓H␈↓        He␈α∞turned␈α∞out␈α∞to␈α
have␈α∞strong␈α∞philosophical␈α∞interests␈α
and␈α∞undertook␈α∞the␈α∞large␈α∞problem␈α
of
␈↓ ↓H␈↓constructing␈α
vision␈α
programs,␈α
connecting␈α
them␈α
with␈α
our␈α
proof-checking␈α
program␈α
in␈α
predicate␈α
logic,
␈↓ ↓H␈↓and␈α_constructing␈α_a␈α↔theory␈α_of␈α_vision␈α_and␈α↔a␈α_philosophical␈α_framework␈α_connecting␈α↔arti≡cial
␈↓ ↓H␈↓intelligence, philosophy and the physiology of vision.

␈↓ ↓H␈↓        He␈α⊃produced␈α⊂an␈α⊃elephant␈α⊃of␈α⊂a␈α⊃thesis␈α⊃draft,␈α⊂and␈α⊃we␈α⊃blind␈α⊂men␈α⊃on␈α⊃his␈α⊂interdisciplinary
␈↓ ↓H␈↓committee␈α⊃felt␈α⊃our␈α⊃various␈α⊂parts␈α⊃of␈α⊃the␈α⊃elephant␈α⊃and␈α⊂pronounced␈α⊃it␈α⊃promising␈α⊃but␈α⊃of␈α⊂rather
␈↓ ↓H␈↓uneven␈αquality.␈α He␈αhas␈αsome␈αrevision␈αto␈αdo,␈α
but␈αI␈αthink␈αhe␈αwill␈αproduce␈αa␈αthesis␈αwe␈α
will␈αaccept.
␈↓ ↓H␈↓In␈α
my␈α
opinion,␈αthere␈α
are␈α
enough␈αnew␈α
ideas␈α
in␈αit␈α
concerning␈α
the␈αconnections␈α
of␈α
AI␈αand␈α
philosophy,
␈↓ ↓H␈↓even␈αif␈αI␈αdon't␈α
agree␈αwith␈αmost␈αof␈α
them.␈α He␈αwould␈αhave␈α
≡nished␈αsooner␈αand␈αwith␈α
more␈αacclaim
␈↓ ↓H␈↓had he undertaken something less ambitious, but he has not been easy to in∨uence.

␈↓ ↓H␈↓        He␈α∩is␈α⊃very␈α∩articulate,␈α∩and␈α⊃this␈α∩is␈α∩a␈α⊃favorable␈α∩omen␈α∩for␈α⊃teaching.␈α∩ His␈α∩knowledge␈α⊃and
␈↓ ↓H␈↓capabilities in neurophysiology were not exercised here in the Stanford AI Lab.


␈↓ ↓H␈↓Sincerely,



␈↓ ↓H␈↓John McCarthy
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Director
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Professor of Computer Science