M1.

The History of AI

RAFFAELLA ESPOSITO/ UNINA

UNIT 1.1
Theoretical foundations of
AI
Unraveling Human Reasoning

The history of artificial intelligence is intertwined with man's long quest to

understand and represent his own thinking, trying to reproduce the
complexity and elegance of human reasoning. Since ancient times,
philosophers have sought to unlock the secrets of the human mind and
codify its modes of thought, contributing to the formal representation
of reasoning through symbolic systems. The latter, which are systems
consisting of symbols and rules for their manipulation, reflect our own
capacity for abstraction and reasoning. Therefore, the elaboration of
formal systems provided a solid foundation for implementing the
emulation of reasoning through machines.
From Aristotle To Symbolic Systems

Over the centuries, numerous philosophers have

contributed to the development of the foundations of
rational thought. Aristotle, one of the greatest thinkers
of ancient Greece, laid the foundation for the analysis of
reasoning with his “Logic”. Later, mathematicians began
to formulate formal systems that could represent and
manipulate mathematical symbols in a rigorous way.
One of the first steps in this direction was taken by
Euclid with his work "Elements“. Euclid introduced the
use of symbols to represent geometric figures and
established strict rules for proving geometric properties.
This formal approach provided a unified method for https://pixabay.com/it/vectors/filosofo-classic-
studying and proving geometric results. aristotele-6801770/
Shaping Mathematical Systems
During the Renaissance and the Modern Age, there was
considerable progress in mathematics and logic, which led
to the introduction of new symbolic means.
François Viète, a 16th-century French mathematician,
was one of the first to use letters of the alphabet to
represent unknowns in equations.
Later, René Descartes introduced the Cartesian
coordinate system. Isaac Newton and Leonhard Euler,
during the 18th century, contributed to the development
of a wide range of mathematical notations, such as the
use of the integral symbol (∫) and Greek letters to
represent constants and functions.
In the 19th century, many mathematicians continued the CC BY-SA

standardization of mathematical symbols and notations.

 Boolean logic

George Boole made a significant

contribution to the formalization of
thought by introducing fundamental
concepts in Boolean logic and
algebra. Boole introduced the
concepts of logical operators such
as AND, OR and NOT, which made it
possible to represent logical
propositions in a precise and formal
way. In addition, he developed a
CC BY
theory of Boolean algebra. Boolean
algebra provided the necessary tools
for processing complex logical
propositions.
Mathematical formalism in the 20th century
In the 20th century, with the development of mathematical
logic and the foundations of mathematics, logicians such as
David Hilbert, Bertrand Russell and Alfred North Whitehead
worked on formalizing mathematical symbols and notations
within formal systems.
In the 1900 conference at the International Congress of
Mathematicians in Paris, Hilbert presented a set of 23
mathematical problems, known as the "Hilbert Problems“.
One of the goals of Hilbert's program was to provide a
rigorous and comprehensive foundation for mathematics
through the use of axioms and rules of derivation in
order to eliminate ambiguity and uncertainty in the discipline.
CC BY-NC
Gödel's incompleteness theorems and
implications for mathematical formalization
In 1931, Kurt Gödel presented his incompleteness theorems.
Gödel proved that in any sufficiently powerful formal system
there is at least one proposition that can be formulated but
cannot be proved or disproved within the system itself. This
result demonstrated that absolute completeness and
consistency are unachievable in complex mathematical systems.
Gödel's work helped lay the foundation for the investigation of
computability, which was subsequently developed and
deepened by mathematicians such as Kleene, Church, Post and
Turing. Advances in mathematical formalization, in fact, paved
the way for the systematic study of the properties of problems
and their resolution through algorithms.
CC BY-SA
Algorithms and recursivity

According to computability theory, a problem or function is computable if there is an

algorithm that, given a specific input, can produce a correct output for that problem or
function. An algorithm is a set of well-defined instructions that can be executed by a
machine without the need for human interpretation or discretion. One technique used in the
design and implementation of algorithms is recursivity.
Recursivity is based on the concept of a function calling itself within its own body. This
recursive call allows a complex problem to be solved by breaking it down into simpler
subproblems that are similar to the original problem but smaller in size. The recursive call
continues until a base case is reached, that is, a condition in which the problem is simple
enough to be solved directly without further recursive calls. At that point, the results of the
recursive calls are combined to obtain the solution to the original problem.
Recursivity

Recursion theory as a branch of mathematical logic was

developed by Stephen Kleene, Alonzo Church, Kurt Gödel, Alan
Turing and others. One of the pioneers in the study of
recursivity was Emil Post, who became interested in rigorously
defining the concept of computability. Post developed a theory
focusing on recursively enumerable sets, which are sets
that can be generated mechanically through a process of
enumeration. This made it possible to identify a set of problems
that can be solved algorithmically.
Church and the lambda calculus

Alonzo Church, in turn, proposed the lambda

calculus as a formal system for describing
computable functions. In the lambda calculus,
the idea of recursive definition is expressed
using lambda-termini. Lambda-termini are like
instructions that tell the lambda calculus what
to do. An important feature of the lambda
calculus is that it allows us to define functions
recursively. We can say to the lambda calculus,
"To compute this function, use yourself within
the definition."
https://it.findagrave.com/memorial/7076221/alonzo-church
Kleene and recursive functions

Kleene collaborated closely with Alonzo Church. One of

his major contributions was the introduction of
recursive functions. Kleene defined recursive
functions as a set of functions that can be defined by
calling themselves during their definition. In addition,
Kleene studied finite-state automata, which are
abstract models of machines that perform operations
on sequences of symbols. Finite-state automata have
been used to represent and analyze computational
processes and formal languages.
CC BY-SA
Alan Turing
In 1936, Turing proposed the concept
of the Turing machine as an abstract
model to describe the concept of
computability and the ability to solve
algorithmic problems. Turing wondered
about the possibilities of a machine
capable of "thinking" and emulating
human intelligence. His work laid the
foundation for the development of
modern computers and paved the way
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/236000/whats-a-turing-machine
for new research on computability,
algorithmic complexity, and artificial
intelligence.
 The Turing machine

The Turing machine can be viewed as a formal

system because it precisely defines the rules
and operations that can be performed on a given
input. It is a mathematical model that describes
an abstract computational procedure that
can be applied to a set of symbols by following a
set of well-defined rules. In addition, the Turing
machine was fundamental in the development of
computability theory. Turing showed that any
algorithmic computation can be simulated by a
Turing machine. As a formal system, the Turing
Example of an algorithm that can machine helps us understand both the
executed by a Turing machine capabilities and constraints of human reasoning.
https://isaaccomputerscience.org/concepts/dsa_toc_turing_machines?examBoard=all&stage=all
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