Knowledge acquisition for systems based on knowledge can be called knowledge engineering, according to Feigenbaum (1980) who used the term to describe the reduction of a wide context of knowledge for a set of facts and rules. The term Knowledge…

In the restricted single-machine common due date problem the goal is to find a schedule for the n jobs which jointly minimizes the sum of earliness and tardiness penalties, while for the weighted tardiness problem the goal is to find…

In an m-machines n-jobs flow-shop sequencing problem each job consists of m operations and each operation requires a different machine, so n jobs have to be processed in the same sequence on m machines. The processing time of each job…

Most neural network learning algorithms cannot use knowledge other than what is provided in the training data. Initialized using random weights, they cannot use prior knowledge such as knowledge stored in previously trained networks. This manuscript thesis addresses this problem.…

Cultural resources like traditional medicinal knowledge need to be recognized in their role tied to important regional practices in Zimbabwe. This is especially as a nexus of legal definitions for biological, intellectual and cultural resources will inform a National Sui…

This dissertation addresses the issues pertaining to composite products (CPs). CPs are defined as products formed by combining knowledge from two distinct domains, for example, digital cameras, which combine knowledge from digital products and cameras. The three research questions addressed…

This thesis is a theoretical and practical investigation of the role played by informal learning and teaching in the development of identity and applied knowledge. With the advent of mass schooling, there came to be a distinction between formal and…

Searching for information pervades a wide spectrum of human activity, including learning and problem solving. With recent changes in the amount of information available and the variety of means of retrieval, there is even more need to understand why some…

In this thesis, I investigate the nature of geometric knowledge and its relationship to spatial intuition. My goal is to rehabilitate the Kantian view that Euclid's geometry is a mathematical practice, which is grounded in spatial intuition, yet, nevertheless, yields…

This thesis sets out to show that a philosophical reflection on history is, in the strongest possible way, an essential feature of Hume's project of a science of human nature: a philosophical investigation of human nature, for Hume, cannot be…