Reasoning with Inconsistent Information

Abstract

In this thesis we are concerned with developing formal and representational mechanisms for reasoning with inconsistent information. Strictly speaking there are two conceptually distinct senses in which we are interested in reasoning with inconsistent information. In one sense, we are interested in using logical deduction to draw inferences in a symbolic system. More specifically, we are interested in mechanisms that can continue to perform deduction in a reasonable manner despite the threat of inconsistencies as a direct result of errors or misrepresentations. So in this sense we are interested in inconsistency-tolerant or paraconsistent deduction. … ¶ In this thesis we adopt a novel framework to unify both logic-as-deduction and logic-as-representation approaches to reasoning with inconsistent information. … ¶