Using expert systems and process models to enhance U.S. agriculture

Excerpt

TECHNOLOGICAL advantage has been one of the reasons for the past success of U.S. agriculture, both at home and in the world market. It is imperative that U.S. Producers have new technologies to maintain an efficient, environmentally sound production system and a competitive advantage over producers from other countries.

More and more of the population is becoming computer literate. Computers are much more powerful and readily available at relatively low cost. The state-of-the-art computer technology placed on the Voyager II more than a decade ago is now available in a hand-held computer. These changes in power, cost, and availability promise to speed the transfer of new technologies from scientist to producer via knowledge-based (expert) information systems and multiprocess models.

Farmers in the United States are better educated and manage larger, more capital-intensive farms than their counterparts in most other countries. In addition, the Cooperative Extension Service in most states has adopted computer-based technology transfer. This gives U.S. farmers a clear advantage in adopting computer technologies.

Indeed, computer applications are …