---
title: "Maximum Entropy and Variable Strength Defaults"
authors:
  - "Rachel A. Bourne"
  - "Simon Parsons"
doi: ""
url: "https://ijcai.org/proceedings/1999/8"
pdf: "https://ijcai.org/proceedings/1999/0008.pdf"
venue: "Proceedings of the Sixteenth International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence"
year: 1999
pages: "50-54"
track: "Automated Reasoning"
keywords:
---

# Maximum Entropy and Variable Strength Defaults

Rachel A. Bourne, Simon Parsons

*Proceedings of the Sixteenth International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence*, pages 50-54.

## Abstract

A new algorithm for computing the maximum entropy ranking over models is presented. The algorithm handles arbitrary sets of propositional defaults with associated strength assignments and succeeds whenever the set satisfies a robustness condition. Failure of this condition implies the problem may not be sufficiently specified for a unique solution to exist. This work extends the applicability of the maximum entropy approach detailed in [Goldszmidt et al., 1993], and clarifies the assumptions on which the method is based.