A Model-based Reasoning Approach to Circumscription

P. Fröhlich and W. Nejdl

Abstract

In this paper we show how model-based reasoning techniques can be used to solve circumscription entailment problems without computing the circumscription axiom. We characterize the circumscription by a small subset of the minimal models computed by a revision function. Using these models a filtering function decides, whether a given formula is entailed by the circumscription. We describe, how these functions can be efficiently implemented. Finally we demonstrate the power of our approach by applying it to current formalisms from the reasoning about action and change domain.

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