I cant seem to find the short version on what Markov is? Is it a common term for a learning AI.

Andrei Markov was a Russian mathematician who made some of the most important discoveries in probability theory as it applies to sequences of random variables.

When you hear the term Markov associated with AI it is in reference to a Markov process, or the methods used to model such processes.

In lay terms, a Markov process obeys the following principle: The future is independent of the past given the present. It can be argued that most processes in the real world are Markovian and hence understanding Markov processes helps us to understand the real world (and hence model it better).

Keep your eyes peeled on GameDev in the near future. I am currently writing an article about Markov processes, Markov models and Belief Networks that should be coming out soon. It should answer most of your questions, although I would be happy to answer specific questions here.

Cheers,

Timkin

Edited by - Timkin on July 25, 2001 9:58:40 PM