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Related papers: Rational Counterfactuals

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Suppose that we are given a quantum computer programmed ready to perform a computation if it is switched on. Counterfactual computation is a process by which the result of the computation may be learnt without actually running the computer.…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2015-06-26 Graeme Mitchison , Richard Jozsa

In many applications, it is important to be able to explain the decisions of machine learning systems. An increasingly popular approach has been to seek to provide \emph{counterfactual instance explanations}. These specify close possible…

Artificial Intelligence · Computer Science 2021-09-22 Adam White , Artur d'Avila Garcez

Automated fact checking systems have been proposed that quickly provide veracity prediction at scale to mitigate the negative influence of fake news on people and on public opinion. However, most studies focus on veracity classifiers of…

Computation and Language · Computer Science 2022-06-15 Shih-Chieh Dai , Yi-Li Hsu , Aiping Xiong , Lun-Wei Ku

Counterfactual reasoning plays a crucial role in exploring hypothetical scenarios, by comparing some consequent under conditions identical except as results from a differing antecedent. David Lewis' well-known analysis evaluates…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2026-04-14 Ingita Banerjee , Kiarn T. Laverick , Howard M. Wiseman

Counterfactual statements, e.g., "my headache would be gone had I taken an aspirin" are central to scientific discourse, and are formally interpreted as statements derived from "alternative worlds". However, since they invoke hypothetical…

Artificial Intelligence · Computer Science 2012-06-26 Ilya Shpitser , Judea Pearl

Counterfactuals have been recognized as an effective approach to explain classifier decisions. Nevertheless, they have not yet been considered in the context of clustering. In this work, we propose the use of counterfactuals to explain…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2025-01-20 Georgios Vardakas , Antonia Karra , Evaggelia Pitoura , Aristidis Likas

Recent proposal for counterfactual computation [Hosten et al., Nature, 439, 949 (2006)] is analyzed. It is argued that the method does not provide counterfactual computation for all possible outcomes. The explanation involves a novel…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2015-06-26 Lev Vaidman

Building interpretable parameterizations of real-world decision-making on the basis of demonstrated behavior -- i.e. trajectories of observations and actions made by an expert maximizing some unknown reward function -- is essential for…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2021-03-31 Ioana Bica , Daniel Jarrett , Alihan Hüyük , Mihaela van der Schaar

Counterfactual explanations elucidate algorithmic decisions by pointing to scenarios that would have led to an alternative, desired outcome. Giving insight into the model's behavior, they hint users towards possible actions and give grounds…

Machine Learning · Statistics 2024-04-05 Susanne Dandl , Kristin Blesch , Timo Freiesleben , Gunnar König , Jan Kapar , Bernd Bischl , Marvin Wright

A qualification is suggested for the counterfactual reasoning involved in some aspects of time-symmetric quantum theory (which involves ensembles selected by both the initial and final states). The qualification is that the counterfactual…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2007-05-23 D. J. Miller

Counterfactual inference considers a hypothetical intervention in a parallel world that shares some evidence with the factual world. If the evidence specifies a conditional distribution on a manifold, counterfactuals may be analytically…

Machine Learning · Statistics 2024-07-03 Juha Karvanen , Santtu Tikka , Matti Vihola

Counterfactuals play a pivotal role in the two distinct data science fields of causal inference (CI) and explainable artificial intelligence (XAI). While the core idea behind counterfactuals remains the same in both fields--the examination…

Machine Learning · Statistics 2025-05-20 Galit Shmueli , David Martens , Jaewon Yoo , Travis Greene

Referred to as the third rung of the causal inference ladder, counterfactual queries typically ask the "What if ?" question retrospectively. The standard approach to estimate counterfactuals resides in using a structural equation model that…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2023-01-18 Edward De Brouwer

Work in Counterfactual Explanations tends to focus on the principle of "the closest possible world" that identifies small changes leading to the desired outcome. In this paper we argue that while this approach might initially seem…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2020-02-25 Rafael Poyiadzi , Kacper Sokol , Raul Santos-Rodriguez , Tijl De Bie , Peter Flach

As machine learning is increasingly used to inform consequential decision-making (e.g., pre-trial bail and loan approval), it becomes important to explain how the system arrived at its decision, and also suggest actions to achieve a…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2020-10-09 Amir-Hossein Karimi , Bernhard Schölkopf , Isabel Valera

Counterfactual explanations (CEs) are methods for generating an alternative scenario that produces a different desirable outcome. For example, if a student is predicted to fail a course, then counterfactual explanations can provide the…

Machine Learning · Statistics 2023-01-09 Bevan I. Smith

Transparency is a fundamental requirement for decision making systems when these should be deployed in the real world. It is usually achieved by providing explanations of the system's behavior. A prominent and intuitive type of explanations…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2021-07-23 André Artelt , Valerie Vaquet , Riza Velioglu , Fabian Hinder , Johannes Brinkrolf , Malte Schilling , Barbara Hammer

We investigate the limitations of random trials when the cause of interest is confounded with the effect by formalizing a counterfactual policy-space where the agent's natural predilection is input to a soft-intervention.

Artificial Intelligence · Computer Science 2022-06-07 Erik Skalnes

An analysis using classical stochastic processes is used to construct a consistent system of quantum counterfactual reasoning. When applied to a counterfactual version of Hardy's paradox, it shows that the probabilistic character of quantum…

Quantum Physics · Physics 2009-10-31 Robert B. Griffiths

Sophisticated machine models are increasingly used for high-stakes decisions in everyday life. There is an urgent need to develop effective explanation techniques for such automated decisions. Rule-Based Explanations have been proposed for…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2022-11-01 Zixuan Geng , Maximilian Schleich , Dan Suciu