Carneades is an argument mapping application, with a graphical user interface, and a software library for building applications supporting various argumentation tasks.
The argument mapping application is written in Java FX and is being made available under Version 3 of the GNU Public License (GPL). The software library, written in in a declarative, functional style using R6RS Scheme, provides modules for constructing arguments from ontologies, defeasible inference rules and cases, as well as for argument evaluation, visualization and interchange. The library uses Version 3 of the GNU Lesser Public License (LGPL).
Carneades provides tools supporting a variety of argumentation tasks, including:
- argument mapping and visualization
- argument evaluation, applying proof standards and respecting the distribution of the burden of proof
- argument construction from defeasible rules, precedent cases, ontologies and testimonial evidence
- argument interchange in XML, using the Legal Knowledge Interchange Format (LKIF)
The argument construction module uses resource-bounded heuristic strategies to search the space of arguments induced by a set of computational models of various argumentation schemes. Several heuristic search strategies are available, including depth-first, breadth-first, best-first and iterative deepening. The system includes a simple API for extending the system with computational models of other argumentation schemes. Any number of argumentation schemes may be used together, making Carneades an open architecture for hybrid reasoning.
Carneades uses the Legal Knowledge Interchange Format (LKIF) as its native file format for storing argument maps.
Development of Carneades has been funded in part by the ESTRELLA European research project (IST-2004-027655), which developed an open platform for legal knowledge systems. Work on the graphical user interface was funded in part by Google in 2008, as part of its Summer of Code program.