Inside Computer Understanding Five Programs Plus Miniatures Artificial Intelligence Series Jun 2026

QUALM (Question Answering via Logical Memory) sat atop SAM. It didn’t just retrieve facts; it understood why a character did something. For example, given the story "Mary wanted a new dress. She went to the mall," QUALM could answer "Why did Mary go to the mall?" (To get a dress) but also "Did Mary buy a dress?" (Unknown – the script says she intended to, but success is not guaranteed).

: Focuses on understanding stories by tracking the goals and plans of characters. : An early creative AI used for automatic story generation. QUALM (Question Answering via Logical Memory) sat atop SAM

At its heart, the book argues that true "understanding" in computers requires more than just parsing grammar; it requires that mimic human memory and reasoning. The "Five Programs" She went to the mall," QUALM could answer

, the programming language used for the programs, ensuring that even those without prior LISP knowledge can follow along. Each miniature is accompanied by exercises that guide readers in extending and elaborating on the code. At its heart, the book argues that true

SAM demonstrated that understanding requires default knowledge . It could handle ellipsis and inference, a major leap from keyword-matching chatbots like ELIZA.