William J. Clancey (born 1952) is an American computer scientist who specializes in cognitive science and artificial intelligence. He has worked in computing in a wide range of sectors, including medicine, education, and finance,[1] and had performed research that brings together cognitive and social science to study work practices and examine the design of agent systems.[2] Clancey has been described as having developed “some of the earliest artificial intelligence programs for explanation, the critiquing method of consultation, tutorial discourse, and student modeling,”[3] and his research has been described as including “work practice modeling, distributed multiagent systems, and the ethnography of field science.” He has also participated in Mars Exploration Rover mission operations, “simulation of a day-in-the-life of the ISS, knowledge management for future launch vehicles, and developing flight systems that make automation more transparent.”[3] Clancey’s work on "heuristic classification" and "model construction operators" is regarded as having been influential in the design of expert systems and instructional programs.[2]
Clancey was chief scientist for Human-Centered Computing at NASA Ames Research Center, Intelligent Systems Division from 1998-2013, where he managed the Work Systems Design & Evaluation Group. During this intergovernmental personnel assignment as a civil servant, he was also employed at the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition in Pensacola, where he holds the title of senior research scientist.[3][4][5][6]
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