ARTIFICIAL-INTELLIGENCE AND WOMENS KNOWLEDGE - WHAT CAN FEMINIST EPISTEMOLOGIES TELL US

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the branch of computer science which s eeks to model intelligent human behavior on a computer. In this paper the way in which symbolic AI is predicated on a traditional rationalis t epistemology is described. Traditional criticisms of AI converge on the possibility of creating true artificial intelligence, whereas a fe minist argument looks instead to the cultural setting of AI - whose kn owledge and what type of knowledge is to be represented. Feminist epis temology can be used to support and to extend these arguments in two m ain directions, both of which have links to other philosophical or soc iological traditions. The first direction focuses on the knowing subje ct and the second is concerned with the distinction between ''knowing that'' and ''knowing how,'' or the propositional/skills distinction.