Expert Systems

ICASIT began as the Business Expert Systems Center in 1986, one of the first business school venues in the US aimed exclusively at leveraging Expert Systems in business applications. Systems and training programs were developed for clients like the World Bank, UN University, International Trade Commission, and others. Currently most expert system capability is built into other systems, like CAPBUILD.

Other work in expert systems has taken place in Egypt, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Working with Dr. Ryszard Michalski of George Mason University's Computer Science Department, ICASIT Director Stephen Ruth developed software and training modules to assist Egyptian farmers in the growing of tomatoes and cucumbers in indoor, protected environments. The expert system worked on a laptop PC so rural extension services could deploy the best crop advice to the most distant regions.

In a separate project funded by the United Nations University, Dr. Merrill Warkentin of ICASIT, developed an expert system to aid farmers in Haiti and Dominican Republic to assess the proper conditions for making use of agroforestry in their farming. Strategic placement of trees under certain farming conditions provides windbreak, reduces pests like nematodes, and offers added fertilizer from leaves. Dr. P.K. Nair of University of Florida provided the data used in the expert system.