The role of time in information processing

Abstract

Numerous researchers in a handful of disciplines have been concerned, in recent years, with the special role (or roles) that time seems to play in information processing. Designers of computerized information systems have had to deal with the fact that when an information item becomes outdated, it need not be forgotten. Researchers in artificial intelligence have pointed to the need for a realistic world model to include representations not only for snapshot descriptions of the real world, but also for histories, or the evolution of such descriptions over time. Many logicians have regarded classical logic as an awkward tool for capturing the relationships and the meaning of statements involving temporal reference, and have proposed special "temporal logics" for this purpose. Finally, the analysis of tensed statements in natural language is a principal concern of researchers in linguistics.