Active Delivery for Lessons Learned Systems

Rosina Weber1,2, David W. Aha2, Hector Muoz-vila2,3, and Leonard A. Breslow2

1Department of Computer Science, University of Wyoming
Laramie, WY 82071-3682
2Navy Center for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence
Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375
3Department of Computer Science, University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742-3255
lastname@aic.nrl.navy.mil



Abstract. Lessons learned processes, and software systems that support
them, have been developed by many organizations (e.g., all USA
military branches, NASA, several Department of Energy organizations,
the Construction Industry Institute). Their purpose is to promote the
dissemination of knowledge gained from the experiences of an
organizations employees. Unfortunately, lessons learned systems are
usually ineffective because they invariably introduce new processes
when, instead, they should be embedded into the processes that they are
meant to improve. We developed an embedded case-based approach for
lesson dissemination and reuse that brings lessons to the attention of
users rather than requiring them to fetch lessons from a standalone
software tool. We demonstrate this active lessons delivery architecture
in the context of HICAP, a decision support tool for plan authoring. We
also show the potential of active lessons delivery to increase plan
quality for a new travel domain.
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