Dear Pat, (01)
> >> ...
> >> To return to "individual". If this is taken to mean "not having
> >> instances" (or maybe, "of a kind that inherently does not have
> >> instances", to rule out the empty set) then my problem with it is
> >> that the actual logic of CL makes *everything* into a non-individual,
> >> because CL allows any name to be used in a relation or predicate
> >> position. And IMO this is the right way to approach this issue: it is
> >> not an ontological matter at all, but a *logical* matter.
> >
> > MW: At the language level I agree. A good language makes the smallest
> > number of commitments possible. CL is easily the best logical language
> > I have come across. In any case, just because any term can be used as
> > a predicate does not mean that you have to do that. It's your
> > philosophical ontology that leads you to choose not to do that. So
> > individuals (in my sense) are amongst those things that you would not
> choose to place in the predicate position.
>
> No, they are things that *you* would not choose to place there. I reserve
> the right to place anything in a predicate position. I have found good use
> cases, for example, for treating character strings and numbers as
> predicates, neither of which were predictable until I found a use for them
> while writing axioms. (02)
MW: Well ISO 15926 has had characters as classes anyway (unless you mean
particular marks on particular pieces of paper). I don't have numbers as
individuals either (if you recall) but I don't have any cases where I would
need to use one as a predicate, so I'd be interested in the examples you
have. (03)
> The moral I draw is that no matter what philosophical
> or a priori thinking is done, there is no way to know whether or not it
will
> be useful to treat something as a predicate; and when it is, to have
decided
> a priori that istcannot be, is simply to have shot oneself in the foot
> before beginning the actual work. (04)
MW: That is a "do whatever you like" approach. It's fine for one person, but
it just leads to chaos if you have say hundreds of people working on the
development of an ontology. When you have a team approach you need to have a
development paradigm that consists of commitments, rules, and choices that
as far as possible:
1. Allows you to say anything that is valid.
2. provides just one way to do it.
3. Are sufficient not to require guru intervention.
4. Are accessible at different levels of expertise. (05)
You then need to have a quality approach that means that if the paradigm
does not work, you improve the paradigm. (06)
Obviously there are real challenges in doing that, but there are some
problems you just aren't going to solve if you don't attempt to address
these issues, and you won't succeed if you don't try. (07)
Regards (08)
Matthew West
Information Junction
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>
> Pat
>
> >
> >
> > Regards
> >
> > Matthew West
> > Information Junction
> > Tel: +44 1489 880185
> > Mobile: +44 750 3385279
> > Skype: dr.matthew.west
> > matthew.west@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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> >
> > This email originates from Information Junction Ltd. Registered in
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