Chapter 3 – The Interconnected Nature of Expert Systems

Although expert systems in marketing, documentation, and legal practices serve different purposes, they share foundational technologies and principles. This segment explores the interconnected nature of these systems, emphasizing their shared reliance on automation and conditional logic.  Expert systems are designed to function automatically in the way an expert would have them function in so many different situations that it is like the person interacting with the expert system is actually interacting with an expert themselves.  You have to encode the expert system you are working on by systematically covering the different logic tree changes in direction at a conditional logic point by setting settings and properly phrasing the way elements of the expert system is worded.  You become more of an expert by putting together an expert system because you have to cover over small intricacies in the area you are covering which you may not have consciously dealt with in some time or even at all. 

All expert systems rely on conditional logic to navigate user interactions. This shared mechanism enables dynamic responses and personalized experiences, regardless of the system’s specific application. For example, marketing systems use logic to tailor advertisements, while document systems use it to determine necessary paperwork, and law systems send out documents and/or send out pre-written specific explanations of the best general routes through the described situations that fit the categories the people interacting with the expert law system indicates their situation fits into. 

This brings up a key element of an expert law system, it is not the application of the unaided human intellect to a fact pattern in order to dispense a proffered path through a legally significant situation.  A person with some sort of situation going on seeking out self-help tools who interacts then with an expert law system with a scope aimed at their type of situation is really interacting with a pre-written and first amendment expression of expression of general knowledge which was held in the author’s mind and then encoded into a conditional logic automation that produces a tailored output based on a priori to the interaction preset logic tree outputs.  This is like picking up a dynamic choose your own ending type of book off of a shelf and reading it.  The person who wrote it never had any foreknowledge of the existence of the person who ends up interacting with it nor with their situation.

Automation is another commonality among these systems. By automating repetitive tasks, expert systems save time and reduce errors. This is evident in marketing campaigns that run autonomously, document systems that generate files instantly, and legal systems that automate compliance checks.  Without automation in our modern business context, we would always have to look at some repetitive situations anew with the possibility of error.  Generally, the questions asked in an expert system are the types that, if well thought out enough, are not really possible to answer incorrectly and what they lead to conditionally are then in turn the proper next question.

Despite their similarities, these systems are purpose-driven and distinct in their objectives. Marketing systems focus on external engagement, document systems streamline internal workflows, and legal systems ensure procedural accuracy. These distinctions illustrate how shared technologies can be adapted to meet diverse needs. The interconnected nature of expert systems highlights the adaptability of foundational technologies. Understanding these connections allows professionals to innovate and apply automation across various domains effectively.