First-order probabilistic inference

Most probabilistic inference algorithms are specified and processed on a propositional level. In the last decade, many proposals for algorithms accepting first-order specifications have been presented, but in the inference stage they still operate on a mostly propositional representation level. [Poole, 2003] presented a method to perform inference directly on the first-order level, but this method is limited to special cases. In this paper we present the first exact inference algorithm that operates directly on a first-order level, and that can be applied to any first-order model (specified in a language that generalizes undirected graphical models). Our experiments show superior performance in comparison with propositional exact inference.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2003
• Where: IJCAI
• Authors: David Poole
• Keywords: Exact Inference, IJCAI 2003, IJCAI 2007, Inference, Inference Algorithm