ROB MILLER - TEACHING

Taught courses, modules and course components

• INST0012: Database Theory and Practice. This module is intended as an introduction to the theory and practice of standard relational database design, construction and management. The module starts with an overview of the fundamental concepts of database management, and an explanation of the necessary elements of a database system. The focus then shifts to conceptual data modeling using established, industry-standard techniques and notation such as Entity Relationship (ER) and Universal Modeling Language (UML) diagrams. Finally, the module covers the construction, modification, maintenance and querying of a relational database using a standard query language such as SQL. [ mid-term feedback ]

• INST0072: Logic and Knowledge Representation. This module starts with an introduction to formal logic, focusing on classical propositional and predicate calculus. The notion of a proof procedure is introduced, along with the concepts of "soundness" and "completeness" with respect to a formal semantics. The focus then shifts to logic-based computation, with detailed study of a state-of-the-art logic programming paradigm - Prolog - as an example. The module covers the relationship between Prolog and classical logic. It ends with a basic application of the techniques covered to an artificial intelligence application area such as automated planning or diagnosis. [ mid-term feedback ]

• INST0074: Models of Human Reasoning. (Co-taught with Antonis Bikakis.) This module follows on from INST0072 "Logic and Knowledge Representation", exploring in more depth formal symbolic techniques used to model aspects of human reasoning and to provide a theoretical basis for artificial intelligence and automated reasoning systems. The module begins with a full coverage of natural deduction, and goes on to cover a selection of other logic topics such as many-sorted, modal and second-order and non-monotonic logics, and advances in logic programming. The module then covers argumentation theory and argumentation systems, giving more emphasis to the theory and applications of abstract argumentation frameworks.

Dissertation Supervision

I typically supervise computing-oriented dissertations on the MSc Knowledge, Information and Data Science (KIDS) and MSc Digital Humanities (DH) programmes. I have supervised many postgraduate dissertations, for example on web content management systems, on the use of logic programming techniques for optimisation problems, and on thems relating to Logic, Artificial Intelligence and Knowledge Representation.