1. Sample elicitation scripts Execution of the elicitation scripts
Scenario elicitation modules
Scenario elicitation
Sample elicitation scripts
Execution of the elicitation scripts
Script editor

2. Scenario elicitation: hands-on experience
The ontology tools presented before are appropriate for a knowledge engineer.
They are too complex to be used by a subject matter expert that has no computer science training.
Scenario Elicitation is a tool specially designed for the subject matter expert.
It is used to define the instances that characterize a certain situation or scenario.

3. This is a typical screen of the Scenario Elicitation module.
The left hand side is a tree of titles and subtitles. It is similar to a table of contents.
Each title (or node) corresponds to a certain type of information.
When the user clicks on such a node, the agent displays relevant questions about that node in the right hand side of the screen.
If the user has previously provided answers to some of those questions, these answers are also displayed and the user can revise them.
Otherwise the user is asked to provide the corresponding answers.
Some answers provided by the user may generate additional nodes in the left hand side.
For instance, if the user has indicated that an opposing force is a multi-state alliance, the agent will ask the user to indicate the member states. Then, for each such state the agent will create additional nodes in the left hand side. Clicking on such a node will initiate the dialog for providing relevant information about that state.
This interaction may continue until the user has answered all the agent’s questions.

4. Disciple Client: Domain  KB Manager
Select “Sicily” under “COG-MAAI-demo/KB1-elicitation-demo”
Open KB
Close Window
Disciple Client: Modules  Scenario Elicitation
Name the opposing forces in Sicily 1943
Answer Anglo Allies 1943
European Axis 1943

5. Click on Force Composition under Anglo_allies_1943
Select Multi_state_force
Indicate the members of Anglo Allies 1943:
US 1943
Britain 1943
Select Equal_partner_multi_state_alliance

6. Under US_1943
Under Political_factors
Click on Governing_body
Select Representative_democracy
Click on “Representative democracy”
Enter
Political leader: President Roosevelt
Other controlling element: Congress
Select President Roosevelt …
Click Close

7. Disciple Client:Ontology  Association browser
Expand the window on the entire screen
Click on Force
Click on US 1943
Close
Disciple Client:Domain  KB Manager
Select KB1-elicitation-demo
Close KB

8. Sample elicitation scripts
<object>
subconcept_of
Script type: Elicit instances of Scenario
Controls:
Question: “Provide a name for the scenario to be analyzed:”
Answer variable: <scenario-name>
Default value: “new-scenario”
Control type: single-line
Ontology actions:
<scenario-name> instance-of Scenario
Script calls:
Elicit the properties of the instance <scenario-name>
elicitation_script
Scenario
After assisting the subject matter expert in defining the general ontology, the knowledge engineer has to define elicitation scripts. These scripts are associated with the concepts and the features from the general ontology and they are used elicit instances and their properties from the subject matter expert, as has just been illustrated.
For instance, here the concept Scenario has two associated elicitation scripts: one script for eliciting instances of it, and another one for eliciting properties of its instances. The first script specifies that in order to elicit instances of the concept Scenario, the system should ask the expert to provide a name for the instance, create the instance with that name, and execute the script that specifies how to elicit properties of that instance. The second script specifies that in order to elicit the properties of an instance of the concept Scenario, the system should execute three scripts, each of which specifies how to elicit a certain feature for that instance.
We have defined a language for these scripts and have developed a tool that allows a knowledge engineer to create the scripts in an easy way, similar with the way database programmers can create database entry forms.
(In the future, these scripts might be defined based on generic scripts and might be learned from examples of interactions.)
elicitation_script
Script type: Elicit properties of an instance <scenario-name> of Scenario:
Script calls:
Elicit the feature brief_description for <scenario-name>
Elicit the feature description for <scenario-name>
Elicit the feature has_as_opposing_force for <scenario-name>

9. Has_as_opposing_force
Sample elicitation scripts (cont.)
<feature>
subfeature_of
Script type: Elicit the feature Has_as_opposing_force
for an instance <scenario-name>
Controls:
Question: Name the opposing forces in <scenario-name>
Answer variable: <opposing-force>
Control type: multiple-line, height 4
Ontology actions:
<opposing-force> instance-of Opposing_force
<scenario-name> Has_as_opposing_force <opposing-force>
Script calls:
Elicit properties of the instance <opposing-force>
in new window
Has_as_opposing_force
elicitation_script
This an example of a script associated with a feature. This script specifies that in order to elicit the feature Has_as_opposing_force for an instance of any concept, the system should ask the expert to provide the names of the opposing forces, create an instance for each given opposing force, and create the relationship Has_as_opposing_force between the initial instance and each opposing force. After that, the system should elicit the properties of each opposing force.

10. … Execution of the elicitation scripts <object>
Script type: Elicit the feature Has_as_opposing_force
for an instance <scenario-name>
Controls:
Question: Name the opposing forces in <scenario-name>
Answer variable: <opposing-force>
Control type: multiple-line, height 4
Ontology actions:
<opposing-force> instance-of Opposing_force
<scenario-name> Has_as_opposing_force <opposing-force>
Script calls:
Elicit properties of the instance <opposing-force>
in new window
subconcept-of
subconcept-of
Force
subconcept-of
Scenario
Opposing_force
instance-of
instance-of
Has_as_opposing_force
Sicily_1943
Anglo_allies_1943
instance-of
Has_as_opposing_force
European_Axis_1943
This is an illustration of what happens when a script is executed.
When the script from the upper left part is executed, an input control is created on the screen where the expert can type the names of the opposing forces.
When the expert enters a name, for instance Anglo_allies_1943, the system creates the instance Anglo_allies_1943 and its relationship with the instance Sicily_1943. When the expert enters European_Axis_1943, the system does the same. …

11. Script editor: hands-on experience

12. From the Ontology menu open the Object Browser and the Feature Browser
In the Object Browser select the concept Scenario and click on the button Script
Resize the panes if necessary

13. Click on New under Controls
Type the text in the fields as in the figure

14. Click on New under Ontology Actions
In the first edit type “<s” then Control+. (press Ctrl and . In the same time) then select the variable <scenario-name>
The finder proposed only variables because in that area there can be only variables and concepts and only variables begin with “<”
In the second edit type “in” then Control+. then select the feature instance-of
The finder proposed only features because in that area there can be only features
In the third edit type “sc” then Control+. Then select the concept Scenario
The finder proposed only concepts because in that area there can be only variables and concepts but variables begin with “<”

15. Click on New under Script Calls
In the instance field type “<s” then Control+. then select the variable from the menu
The concept doesn’t need to be specified, because the instance will have only one direct superconcept (Scenario)
Press Save
The text eliciting instances of Scenario becomes bold in the top drop-down box
Check the check-box is root (located in the bottom right corner)

16. From the top drop-down box select eliciting properties of an instance of Scenario
The default name of the instance variable is generated from the concept name

17. Press New under Script Calls
In the Feature box type “br” then Control+. then select the feature brief_description from the menu

18. Similarly make a script call for eliciting values for the features description and has_as_opposing_force
Press Save

19. In the Feature Browser select the feature brief_description and click on the button Script
The default name of the instance variable is generated from the upper bound of the feature domain (in this case OBJECT)
Resize the panes if necessary

20. Enter the information as in the figure and press Save

21. Press New under Controls
In the Feature Browser select the feature description
The right pane is updated with the script editor for this feature
Press New under Controls
Change the control type from single-line to multiple-paragraphs
Enter the information as in the figure and press Save

22. Press New under Controls
In the Feature Browser select the feature has_as_opposing_force
The right pane is updated with the script editor for this feature
The default name of the instance variable is generated from the upper bound of the feature domain (in this case Scenario)
Press New under Controls
Change the control type from single-line to multiple-line
Enter the information as in the figure and press Save
The concept name was necessary at the script call because the instance may have more than one direct superconcept
(e.g. Opposing_force and Single_state_force when the Scenario Editor is open later)
The name of the new folder is not necessary (it is the name of the instance when calling scripts of this type)

23. From the Modules menu select Scenario Elicitation

24. Enter the information as in the figure
The folders created for Anglo_allies_1943 and European_Axis_1943 are empty because if a script is not defined it is considered empty (i.e. no controls, no ontology actions, no script calls)

25. Recommended reading
License, Learning Agents Laboratory, George Mason University, October (required)
Disciple-RKF/COG: Demo Guide, Learning Agents Laboratory, George Mason University, October 2001.
Installation,
General Functions,
Scenario Elicitation,
Script Editor,
Learning Agents Laboratory, George Mason University, October 2001.
Michael Bowman, Sicily COG Report, US Army War College, Spring 2001.