Bill: - "Like everything in AI, it seems, it'll be useful in special cases, but not in general."
Alex: - Bill, I hope these "special cases" include at least science, technology, engineering, medicine and law;-)
A lot of thing to do:-)
And not a "multiple meanings" in different contexts is a problem but possibility and precision of definition.
Alex
2010/9/9 Burkett, William [USA] <burkett_william@xxxxxxx>
John: I understand your point that a "term" in a formal language (e.g., ontology) should have a single, unique definition - this allows automated processors to (soundly) do something with statements in the language.
It is important to point out, however, that this requirement addresses a very small set of users "out there in web-land" - less than 1% I would guess. The "semantic web" will never materialize with this requirement because, simply, a very very large percentage of data-creators don't have the understanding and won't devote the time/rigor required to create these semantically precise statements. Most will create their schemas and ontologies and create their data using their natural language skills/capabilities/facilities - leading to multiple and evolving meanings. So, realistically, except for a very small population, "terms" that are used to name things in web-land *will* have multiple meanings. We can exclude those undisciplined cases and operate in our own small, rigorous, well-defined world - but how useful will that really be? (Like everything in AI, it seems, it'll be useful in special cases, but not in general.)
As I write this, it brings the question of scope to my mind: in our discussions here are we ONLY interested in talking about formal ontologies with precisely-defined semantics that can soundly reasoned over, or are we talking about the "semantic web" (or "semantic enterprises") in general where, presumably, we can evolve to a point where processors can do something will all the data "out there in web-land"?
Bill
-----Original Message-----
From: ontolog-forum-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ontolog-forum-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of John F. Sowa
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2010 4:04 PM
To: ontolog-forum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [ontolog-forum] Semantic Enterprise Architecture - Interoperability?
David and Doug,
DF>> a Semantic Web needs ontologies of terms with fixed meanings
DE> Is this saying that a term (word, phrase, acronym, abbreviation,
> whatever) can only have a single meaning?
We must always distinguish the names of relations and instances
in any formal language from the words in any natural language
that is being mapped to that formal language.
DF used the word 'term' for the symbols in some formal language.
Those symbols should have unique definitions.
DE was talking about the words used in some NL that is being
mapped to the symbols of some formal language.
The names used in the formalism should never be identified
with the words in the NL -- even when their spelling happens
to be similar.
John
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