information artifact ontology barry smith 1
DESCRIPTION
Blinding Flash of the Obvious Continuant Occurrent process Independent Continuant thing Dependent Continuant qualityTRANSCRIPT
Information Artifact Ontology
Barry Smith
http://ontology.buffalo.edu/smith
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– not a mathematical object– not a contingent object with physical properties, taking part in causal relations– but a historical object, with a very special provenance, relations analogous to those of ownership, existing only within a nexus of working financial institutions of specific kinds
What is a credit card number?
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Blinding Flash of the Obvious
Continuant Occurrent
processIndependentContinuant
thing
DependentContinuant
quality
.... ..... .......3
Basic Formal Ontology (BFO)
Continuant Occurrent
biological processIndependent
Continuant
cellular component
DependentContinuant
molecular function
..... ..... ........4
Blinding Flash of the Obvious
Continuant Occurrent
processIndependentContinuant
thing
DependentContinuant
quality
.... ..... .......quality dependson bearer
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Blinding Flash of the Obvious
Continuant Occurrent
processIndependentContinuant
thing
DependentContinuant
quality, …
.... ..... .......process dependson participant
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Blinding Flash of the Obvious
Continuant Occurrent
processIndependentContinuant
thing
DependentContinuant
quality
.... ..... .......process is change in quality
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Information vs. Information Artifact
‘information’ – mass noun (Shannon and Weaver)
‘information artifact’ – count noun (Information Artifact Ontology)
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Information Artifacts in Scienceprotocoldatabasetheoryontology gene listpublicationresult...
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Information Entity (labeling)serial numberbatch numbergrant numberperson numbernameaddressemail addressURL...
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Information artifacts are tied to provenance and to processors in
a way in which types are not
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http://code.google.com/p/information-artifact-ontology/
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What is a datum?
Continuant Occurrent
processIndependentContinuant
laptop, book
DependentContinuant
quality
.... ..... .......datum: a pattern in some medium with a certain kind of provenance
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type or instance
Continuant Occurrent(Process)
IndependentContinuant
human being,protocol document
DependentContinuant
pattern of ink marks
Applying the protocol Side-Effect …
... .. ..... .... .....14
Continuant Occurrent
IndependentContinuant
DependentContinuant
.... ..... .......Information
EntityAction
creating a datum
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Type: human beingInstance: Leon Tolstoy
Type: novelInstance: War and Peace
Type: bookInstance: this copy of War and Peace
types and instances
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Is the Classic Coca Cola trademark a type or an instance?If the Classic Coca Cola trademark were a type, and the copies on my laptop and on your laptop instances, then there would be many Classic Coca Cola trademarks
Hence the Classic Coca Cola trademark is an instance
What is a trademark?
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Is UniProt a type or an instance?If UniProt were a type, and the copy of UniProt on my laptop were an instance, thenthere would be many UniProts and many War(s) and Peaces.
Hence UniProt is an instance.
What is a database?
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Is War and Peace a type or an instance?If War and Peace were a type, and the copies of War and Peace in my library and in your library were instances, then
• there would be many War(s) and Peaces.Hence War and Peace is an instance.
What is a work of literature?
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There can be two copies of the Declaration of Independence
There cannot be two Declarations of Independence
There are not two Declarations of Independence
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Rule for types
Their names are pluralizable
There can be three peopleThere cannot be three Condoleezza Rices
Information Entities = entities which can exist in many perfect copies
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Specific dependence
Continuant Occurrent
process
IndependentContinuant
thing
DependentContinuant
quality
.... ..... .......headache dependson human being
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Generically Dependent Continuants
GenericallyDependentContinuant
Information Entity Sequence
if one bearer ceases to exist, then the entity can survive, because there are other bearers (copyability)
the pdf file on my laptop
the DNA (sequence) in this chromosome
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are realized through being concretized in specifically dependent continuants(the plan in your head, the protocol being realized by your research team)
Generically dependent continuants
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Types vs. generically dependent continuants
types have subtypes (kinds): if you can have a kind of something, then it’s a type
you can’t have a kind of Bill Clintonyou can’t have a kind of The
Constitution of the United States
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they have a different kind of provenance
◦Aspirin as product of Bayer GmbH◦aspirin as molecular structure
Generically dependent continuants are distinct from types
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Generically Dependent Continuants
GenericallyDependentContinuant
Information Entity
Sequence
.pdf file .doc file
instances 28
are concretized in specifically dependent continuants
Beethoven’s 9th Symphony is concretized in the pattern of ink marks which make up this score in my hand
Generically dependent continuants
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do not require specific media (paper, silicon, neuron …)
Generically dependent continuants
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Realizable Dependent Continuants
SpecificallyDependentContinuant
Quality, PatternRealizable Dependent Continuant
inert ert
Occurrent
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Examplesperformance of a symphonyprojection of a filmutterance of a sentenceapplication of a therapycourse of a diseaseincrease of temperature
OccurrentRealizable Dependent Continuant
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ContinuantOccurrent
IndependentContinuant
Specifically DependentContinuant
Quality Disposition
Realization
Role
Realizable DependentContinuant
GenericallyDependentContinuant
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A violinist reads the score of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony and a concretization of the Symphony is created in his mind (something like a plan)
In playing he realizes this plan, thereby generating a performance of the Symphony
Realizable Dependent Continuants are always specifically dependent
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Nature Protocols
vs.
The protocol McDoe has been following in this project since March
Realizable Dependent Continuants are always specifically dependent
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McDoe reads the protocol as published and a concretization of the protocol is created in his mind (something like a plan)
In his laboratory work he realizes this plan, thereby generating an experiment
Realizable Dependent Continuants are always specifically dependent
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standard examples: nurse, student, patient
that a person plays a role holds in virtue of some (social) decision
the role is optional (someone else assigns it, the entity acquires it by moving it into a specific context)
Roles
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Different kinds of rolesfistlast in queuepatientFDA-approved drug
Many roles come in reciprocally dependent pairsbuyer/seller husband/wife
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ContinuantOccurrent
IndependentContinuant
Specifically DependentContinuant
Quality Disposition
Realization
Role
Realizable DependentContinuant
GenericallyDependentContinuant
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BFO
Continuant Occurrent(Process)
IndependentContinuant
(molecule, cell, organ,organism)
DependentContinuant
(quality, function,disease)
Functioning Side-Effect, Stochastic Process, ...
..... ..... .... ...
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