What is AI?

Artificial intelligence is the simulation of human intelligence processes by

machines, especially computer systems. Specific applications of AI include
expert systems, natural language processing, speech recognition and machine
vision.

Definition of AI:

Artificial Intelligence (AI) refers to the simulation of human intelligence in

machines that are programmed to think and learn like humans. It involves
creating computer systems that can perform tasks that typically require human
intelligence, such as problem-solving, reasoning, understanding natural
language, recognizing patterns, and making decisions.

Key Characteristics of AI:

​ Learning: AI systems have the ability to learn from data and improve
their performance over time. This is often achieved through machine
learning algorithms.
​ Reasoning: AI systems can process information and draw logical
conclusions, allowing them to make informed decisions.
​ Problem-Solving: AI systems excel in solving complex problems by
analyzing data and identifying patterns.
​ Language Processing: Natural Language Processing (NLP) enables AI to
understand and generate human language, making it useful in tasks like
chatbots and language translation.
​ Perception: AI systems can perceive their environment through sensors,
cameras, or other input devices, enabling tasks like image recognition and
autonomous driving.
​ Adaptation: AI systems can adapt to changing circumstances and make
decisions based on new information.
​ Automation: AI is often used for automating repetitive or labor-intensive
tasks, improving efficiency and productivity.

Types of AI:

​ Narrow or Weak AI: This type of AI is designed to perform a specific

task, such as virtual personal assistants like Siri or Alexa.
 ​ General or Strong AI: General AI possesses human-like intelligence and
can perform any intellectual task that a human can do. This level of AI
does not exist yet and remains a subject of research.

AI Problems

AI Problem Categories:

AI problems can be categorized into several domains:

​ Search and Optimization Problems: These involve finding the best

solution from a set of possible solutions. Examples include route planning
and scheduling.
​ Pattern Recognition: AI is used to identify patterns or regularities in data.
Applications include image and speech recognition.
​ Natural Language Processing (NLP): NLP focuses on enabling machines
to understand, interpret, and generate human language. This is used in
chatbots, translation services, and sentiment analysis.
​ Machine Learning: Machine learning involves training algorithms to
make predictions or decisions based on data. It is used in
recommendation systems, fraud detection, and more.
​ Planning and Decision Making: AI systems are employed to create
strategies and make decisions in complex environments, such as game
playing or autonomous vehicles.
​ Robotics: AI plays a crucial role in controlling robots and enabling them
to interact with their environment, perform tasks, and navigate.
​ Knowledge Representation: AI systems use knowledge representation
techniques to store and organize information in a way that is accessible
for reasoning and problem-solving.
​ Expert Systems: These are AI systems designed to mimic human experts
in specific domains, providing expert-level advice or solutions.

Problem Space and Search:

● Problem Space: The problem space represents all possible states and the
transitions between them in a given problem. It helps visualize the
problem-solving process.
 ● State Space Search: Many AI problems can be formulated as a search
through a state space. The goal is to find a sequence of actions (operators)
that lead from an initial state to a goal state.

AI Techniques

Common AI Techniques:

​ Rule-Based Systems: Rule-based AI uses predefined rules to make

decisions or perform actions based on conditions. These rules are
typically represented as "if-then" statements.
​ Machine Learning: Machine learning involves training algorithms on data
to recognize patterns and make predictions. Common machine learning
algorithms include decision trees, neural networks, and support vector
machines.
​ Natural Language Processing (NLP): NLP techniques enable machines to
understand and generate human language. This includes tasks like
sentiment analysis, speech recognition, and language translation.
​ Neural Networks: Neural networks are a subset of machine learning that
attempt to mimic the human brain's structure. They consist of layers of
interconnected nodes (neurons) and are used in image and speech
recognition.
​ Search Algorithms: Search algorithms are used for navigating problem
spaces to find solutions. Examples include depth-first search, breadth-first
search, and A* search.
​ Planning Algorithms: Planning algorithms are used to create strategies
and plans to achieve specific goals. These are commonly used in robotics
and game playing.
​ Expert Systems: Expert systems are built to emulate human expertise in
specific domains. They use knowledge representation and rule-based
systems to provide expert-level advice.
​ Genetic Algorithms: Genetic algorithms are optimization techniques
inspired by the process of natural selection. They are used for solving
complex optimization and search problems.

Criteria for Success in AI

Evaluating AI Systems:
To determine the success of an AI system, several criteria are considered:

​ Accuracy: The system's ability to provide correct and reliable results or

predictions.
​ Efficiency: How quickly and resource-efficiently the system can solve
problems or make decisions.
​ Robustness: The system's ability to handle unexpected situations, errors,
or noisy data gracefully.
​ Scalability: Whether the system can handle larger datasets or more
complex problems.
​ Interpretability: Providing insights into how the system makes decisions,
especially in critical applications like healthcare or finance.
​ Ethical Considerations: Ensuring that the AI system's behavior aligns
with ethical norms and doesn't perpetuate biases or discrimination.

Problem Characteristics

Key Problem Characteristics:

AI problems can exhibit various characteristics:

​ Search Space Size: Some problems have enormous search spaces, making
them computationally challenging. Efficient search algorithms are
required.
​ Optimization: Optimization problems involve finding the best solution
among many possible solutions, considering constraints and objectives.
​ Determinism: Problems can be deterministic, where outcomes are known,
or stochastic, with probabilistic outcomes.
​ Admissibility: A heuristic used in search algorithms is admissible if it
never overestimates the cost to reach the goal. This property ensures the
correctness of heuristic-guided searches.
​ Completeness: Some search algorithms are complete, guaranteeing that
they will find a solution if it exists, while others may not offer such
guarantees.

Heuristic Search Techniques

Heuristic Search Overview:

 ● A heuristic is a technique that is used to solve a problem faster than the
classic methods. These techniques are used to find the approximate
solution of a problem when classical methods do not. Heuristics are said
to be the problem-solving techniques that result in practical and quick
solutions.
● Heuristics are strategies that are derived from past experience with
similar problems. Heuristics use practical methods and shortcuts used to
produce the solutions that may or may not be optimal, but those solutions
are sufficient in a given limited time frame.

Why do we need heuristics?

Heuristics are used in situations in which there is the requirement of a

short-term solution. On facing complex situations with limited resources and
time, Heuristics can help the companies to make quick decisions by shortcuts
and approximated calculations. Most of the heuristic methods involve mental
shortcuts to make decisions on past experiences.

The heuristic method might not always provide us the finest solution, but it is
assured that it helps us find a good solution in a reasonable time.

Based on context, there can be different heuristic methods that correlate with the
problem's scope. The most common heuristic methods are - trial and error,
guesswork, the process of elimination, historical data analysis. These methods
involve simply available information that is not particular to the problem but is
most appropriate. They can include representative, affect, and availability
heuristics.
Generate and Test:

● Generate and Test is a straightforward problem-solving approach. It

involves generating potential solutions and testing them against specified
criteria until a satisfactory solution is found.

Hill Climbing:

● It is a technique for optimizing mathematical problems. Hill Climbing is

widely used when a good heuristic is available.
● It is a local search algorithm that continuously moves in the direction of
increasing elevation/value to find the mountain's peak or the best solution
to the problem. It terminates when it reaches a peak value where no
neighbour has a higher value. Travelling-salesman Problem is one of the
widely discussed examples of the Hill climbing algorithm, in which we
need to minimise the distance travelled by the salesman.
● It is also called greedy local search as it only looks to its good immediate
neighbour state and not beyond that. The steps of a simple hill-climbing
algorithm are listed below:

Step 1: Evaluate the initial state. If it is the goal state, then return success and
Stop.

Step 2: Loop Until a solution is found or there is no new operator left to apply.

Step 3: Select and apply an operator to the current state.

Step 4: Check new state:

If it is a goal state, then return to success and quit.

Else if it is better than the current state, then assign a new state as a current
state.

Else if not better than the current state, then return to step2.

Step 5: Exit

Types of Hill Climbing Algorithm:

 ○ Simple hill Climbing:

○ Steepest-Ascent hill-climbing:

○ Stochastic hill Climbing:

1. Simple Hill Climbing:

Simple hill climbing is the simplest way to implement a hill climbing algorithm.
It only evaluates the neighbour node state at a time and selects the first one
which optimises current cost and sets it as a current state. It only checks it's
one successor state, and if it finds better than the current state, then move else
be in the same state. This algorithm has the following features:

○ Less time consuming

○ Less optimal solution and the solution is not guaranteed

Algorithm for Simple Hill Climbing:

○ Step 1: Evaluate the initial state, if it is goal state then return success and
Stop.

○ Step 2: Loop Until a solution is found or there is no new operator left to

apply.

○ Step 3: Select and apply an operator to the current state.

○ Step 4: Check new state:

a. If it is goal state, then return success and quit.

b. Else if it is better than the current state then assign new state as a
current state.

c. Else if not better than the current state, then return to step2.

○ Step 5: Exit.

2. Steepest-Ascent hill climbing:

The steepest-Ascent algorithm is a variation of a simple hill climbing algorithm.
This algorithm examines all the neighbouring nodes of the current state and
selects one neighbour node which is closest to the goal state. This algorithm
consumes more time as it searches for multiple neighbours

Algorithm for Steepest-Ascent hill climbing:

○ Step 1: Evaluate the initial state, if it is goal state then return success and
stop, else make the current state as the initial state.

○ Step 2: Loop until a solution is found or the current state does not
change.

a. Let SUCC be a state such that any successor of the current state
will be better than it.

b. For each operator that applies to the current state:

a. Apply the new operator and generate a new state.

b. Evaluate the new state.

c. If it is a goal state, then return it and quit, else compare it to

the SUCC.

d. If it is better than SUCC, then set a new state as SUCC.

e. If the SUCC is better than the current state, then set the
current state to SUCC.

○ Step 5: Exit.