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General Computer Science 320201 GenCS I & II Lecture ... - Kwarc

General Computer Science 320201 GenCS I & II Lecture ... - Kwarc

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Problem solving<br />

Problem: Find algorithms that help solving problems in general<br />

Idea: If we can describe/represent problems in a standardized way, we may have a chance to<br />

find general algorithms.<br />

We will use the following two concepts to describe problems<br />

States A set of possible situations in in our problem domain<br />

Actions A set of possible actions that get us from one state to another.<br />

Using these, we can view a sequence of actions as a solution, if it brings us into a situation,<br />

where the problem is solved.<br />

Definition 593 Offline problem solving: Acting only with complete knowledge of problem<br />

and solution<br />

Definition 594 Online problem solving: Acting without complete knowledge<br />

Here: we are concerned with offline problem solving only.<br />

c○: Michael Kohlhase 403<br />

We will use the following problem as a running example. It is simple enough to fit on one slide<br />

and complex enough to show the relevant features of the problem solving algorithms we want to<br />

talk about.<br />

Example: Traveling in Romania<br />

Scenario: On holiday in Romania; currently in Arad, Flight leaves tomorrow from Bucharest.<br />

Formulate problem: States: various cities Actions: drive between cities<br />

Solution: Appropriate sequence of cities, e.g.: Arad, Sibiu, Fagaras, Bucharest<br />

Problem Formulation<br />

c○: Michael Kohlhase 404<br />

The problem formulation models the situation at an appropriate level of abstraction.<br />

(do not model things like “put on my left sock”, etc.)<br />

it describes the initial state (we are in Arad)<br />

232

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