Course Information

Content

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    Course Summary

    Informatics 2D - Reasoning and Agents (INF2D) is a 20 credit course at Level 8, normally taken in Year 2. It runs in Semester 2. The exam is in April/May, and is worth 70% of the course mark. The University descriptor is here.
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    Informatics Teaching Organisation: Information for Students

    You can also email the Informatics Teaching Organisation (ITO) at ito@inf.ed.ac.uk  or the Student Support Team (SST) at inf-sst@inf.ed.ac.uk.
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    Learning Outcomes

    On successful completion of this course, you should be able to: 

    1. Use task constraints to make search efficient.
    2. Perform Inference with First Order Logic and appreciate the strengths and weaknesses of this and other logic representations (eg Propositional).
    3. Use PDDL to plan and execute actions using either Propositional or First Order Logic representations.
    4. Create and reason with a representation of a Bayesian agent for handling a non-deterministic planning problem.
    5.  Constructively engage in both self-study and peer-learning.
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    Course Outline

    This course focuses on approaches relating to representation, reasoning and planning for solving real world inference.  The course illustrates the importance of (i) using a smart representation of knowledge such that it is conducive to efficient reasoning; and (ii) the need for exploiting task constraints for intelligent search and planning. The notion of representing action, space and time is formalized in the context of agents capable of sensing the environment and taking actions that affect the current state. There is also a strong emphasis on planning and reasoning methods in probabilistic domains: that is, in situations where the agent has to cope with uncertainty about the state its in and/or the effects of the actions it chooses to execute.  
    The course takes 10 weeks, and the topics are (roughly) as follows:
    1. Introduction
    2. Search algorithms
    3. Automated inference
    4. Symbolic Planning
    5. Probabilistic inference
    6. Rational decision making
    By the end of the course, students should know how to build an agent that can make rational decisions even though it's uncertain about the state it's in, uncertain about what the consequences of its actions might be, it has to consider not just the immediate consequence of its next action but also whether desirable states are reaching from that outcome via further subsequent actions, and the agent is also facing  dilemmas from its conflicting preferences (`you can't have it all').
    The course is delivered through pre-recorded lecture videos, readings from the required textbook (Russell and Norvig, see the Library Resources),  quizzes, live question and answer sessions, weekly tutorials and discussion boards.
    Assessment consists of  2 pieces of coursework and an exam (see Assessment for details).
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    Timetable

    The timetable of all live Q&As and all tutorials for all tutor groups is here.

    If you are looking for your class times for this course, these can be found via your University of Edinburgh calendar (links provided below):

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    Weekly Activities

    This year, the course will be delivered mainly on campus. Because this is a big class, however, not everyone can attend every lecture.
    • There are 3 in-person lectures each week (see the timetable for times).  We will use a rota system to limit those who can attend to the university guidelines of 120 students maximum (there are around 200 of you!).  For those who are not attending in person, there is the following:
      • For lectures in weeks 1--5, the lecture will be streamed live, and you will be able ot access the recording afterwards.
      • For lectures in weeks 6--10, as well as the in-person lecture recording, there are also already pre-recorded lectures (approximately three videos per lecture, ranging in length from 5 minutes to 24 minutes).  These videos have edited captions.  We recommend you watch these videos in the week that the corresponding in-person lecture is given, so that if you are attending the in-person lecture you can come with questions prepared to ask the lecturer.
      • There are also 3 online post-lecture quizzes each week, to be done in your own time after watching the lecture videos and/or attending the in-person lecture, to test your understanding of the content in the lecture.
    • 1 in-person tutorial each week.  You should attempt to do the tutorial exercises in advance.  There are 10 tutorials, in weeks 2 to 11 inclusive.  Check out which tutorial group you're in under Users and Groups.
    • In weeks 4--9, there are lab sessions in Appleton Tower.  These are clinic sessions for the two pieces of coures work.  Weeks 4--6 cover coureswork 1 (logic and search); weeks 7--9 cover coursework 2 (symbolic planning).  There will be two demonstrators present to help you with any problems you might have.
    Because the course is delivered partly online and partly in person, it is more important than ever that you schedule your study activities effectively.  We suggest the following weekly schedule:

    Monday:
    •  Work on the tutorial exercises that are to be discussed in tutorials that week.  Try to complete as much of them as you can before your tutorial, so that you can discuss any problems or issued you had with your tutor.
    • Start reading that week's required reading.
    • If in weeks 6--10, then you can start to work on the week's content (pre-recorded lecture videos, online quizzes).  
    The online quizzes, required reading and videos are available in Course Materials.  It should take you about 6 hours total each week to watch the videos or attend the lectures, do the quizzes and read the required reading that is set for that week. 
    Tuesday:
    • Continue working through the week's content (lecture videos, online quizzes, required reading).
    • 3:10pm: attend the in person lecture
    Wednesday:
    • Continue working through the week's content (lecture videos, online quizzes, required reading).
    Thursday:
    • 3:10pm: in person lecture
    • Start working on the tutorial exercises due at 10am the following Monday
    Friday:
    • 11am-1pm in weeks 4 to 9: drop in lab session with demonstrators. These are clinic sessions, for answering queries on the two pieces of Inf2D courseworks (questions about tutorial exercises should be addressed in the tutorials, and not addressed in these sessions).  So only come to these if you have specific questions or problems that you would like addressed.
    • 3:10pm: in person lecture
    • Continue working on the tutorial exercises, to be completed by 10am the following Monday.

    In addition to the above, you will also get an in person tutorial (in weeks 2 to 11): the schedule for that depends on which group you are in.  Check this out under Groups.

    Overall, each week, the Directed Learning and Independent Learning activities (i.e. the guided self-study activities, such as preparing your tutorial assignments, doing the required reading, or attending the drop-in labs) should take you about 10 hours in total.  This estimate does not include the time you need to do the two pieces of Inf2D coursework.

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    Our Partnership with You

    We agree to:
    • provide materials and support that will help you learn.
    • set assessments that will fairly assess the learning outcomes.
    In turn, you must agree to:
    • devote the time needed to work through the course materials
    • maintain standards of academic integrity (see the school policy on academic misconduct).