@techreport{R-88-08, TITLE = {Formal Semantics for Reasoning about Change with Ramified Causal Minimization}, AUTHOR = {Erik Sandewall}, YEAR = {1988}, NUMBER = {R-88-08}, INSTITUTION = ida, ADDRESS = idaaddr, ABSTRACTURL = {/publications/cgi-bin/tr-fetch.pl?r-88-08+abstr}, ABSTRACT = {We deal with the frame problems, including the qualification problem, by requiring that for every state change there is a corresponding action causing it, and minimize the set of actions. An action may cause other actions occurring at the same time, or afterwards. The syntax and semantics are specified for a logic where this approach to the frame problem can be expressed stringently, and the proper minimization criterium is formulated.One characteristic feature of this work is that sub-structures which are used in the semantics, such as partial states and descriptors, are also "first class citizens" from the syntactic point of view. In this way we obtain a kind of reification, but with less formal overhead than when formulas are reified directly.}, IDANR = {LiTH-IDA-R-88-08}