Reviews the development of artificial intelligence systems and the mechanisms used, including knowledge representation, programing languages, and problem processing systems. Eleven books and 6 journals are listed as sources of information on artificial intelligence. (23 references) (CLB)

Scientists feel that progress in artificial intelligence and the availability of thousands of experimental results make this the right time to build and test theories on how people think and learn, using the computer to model minds. (MSE)

Describes (in separate articles) 25 developments in science, technology, and medicine that have potential impact on the near future. They include discoveries related to space butterflies, drugs, twenty-first century software, experimental mathematics, brain drugs, egg development, ultrasmall microchips, the biology of birth, cancer-causing genes,…

Described is the computer science program at the Harbin Shipbuilding Institute in Harbin, China. Required courses are listed, facilities are described, and observations are provided. (MNS)

Presents a collection of teaching activities suitable for students in the upper grades. These activities focus on practical programming projects, use of word processors for learning a foreign language, an Atari program for making a starburst, and a program (with deliberate errors) to determine the thickness of folded paper. (JN)

Supplying data from mainframe computers to microcomputers is tedious because IBM mainframe computers use Extended Binary-Coded Decimal Interchange Code (EBCDIC) to represent data and microcomputers use an American National Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) code set. (MLF)

Examines high school and small college applications of computer bulletin-board service. Considers administrative problems. Suggests further applications. (JM)

Presents computer-oriented activities which (although requiring a certain level of computer expertise) can be easily adapted for students in any grade. They include making greeting cards, rotating figures (while creating interesting designs and learning key geometric concepts), and examining LOGO procedures that will build a database. (JN)

Built-in data structures are the registers and memory words where binary values are stored; hard-wired algorithms are the fixed rules, embodied in electronic logic circuits, by which stored data are interpreted as instructions to be executed. Various topics related to these two basic elements of every computer program are discussed. (JN)

Discusses four types of computer programs that can manipulate linguistic symbols with great facility. These programs deal with: (1) machine translation; (2) word processing; (3) question answering; and (4) adjuncts to electronic mail known as coordination systems. Also considers the future of computer software dealing with language. (JN)

Interactive computer graphics is fast becoming the standard medium of communication between computers and all kinds of users. Reasons for this trend, the technology of interactive graphics displays, software considerations, applications (including classroom and laboratory applications), and future developments are discussed. (JN)

Courses for a computer technology program are listed. Hardware purchases necessary to use a mainframe computer in a single-user environment in a computer organization course is described, and sample runs from three programs are included. (MNS)

Dr. Michael Hoban responds to questions concerning the role and future of computers and microcomputers in education, the design of computer education, computer software, and faculty development. (DMM)

Eleven free or low-cost databases are described. Services, current costs, and (when applicable) address and telephone number are provided for Data-Net, GTE Telenet, General Videotex's Delphi Service, National Aeronautics and Space Administration Awareness database, Alternative Fuels Data Bank, Searchmart's software library, National Meteorological…

Designed to determine whether abstract and concrete concepts are classified similarly, this study used three separate experiments to explore the vertical and horizontal dimensions used by computer scientists to categorize the common concepts of their field. It found that concrete concept categorization operates over a wider range than previously…