ABSTRACT
In the previous chapter I was concerned with the process by which subjects could retrieve information that was more or less directly stored in long-term memory. In this chapter I will be concerned with the situation where that information is not directly stored but can be inferred from other information that is stored or is otherwise available. The capacity to make such inferences is a fundamental component of human intelligence. Ina certain sense, it enables us to transcend the limitations of our experience. Therefore, it is important that ACT be shown capable of modeling, and delivering accurate predictions about, the process of making inferences. This chapter reports what progress I have made in developing ACT models of inference making. Inference-making tasks serve as a useful testing ground for the production-related claims of ACT. As will be seen, ACT sometimes makes inferences by stringing together productions. More powerful tests of the character of productions are possible when we can see the effect of a number of productions in combination.
