Virtual Knowledge Graphs: An Overview of Systems and Use Cases

In this paper, we present the virtual knowledge graph (VKG) paradigm for data integration and access, also known in the literature as Ontology-based Data Access. Instead of structuring the integration layer as a collection of relational tables, the VKG paradigm replaces the rigid structure of tables with the flexibility of graphs that are kept virtual and embed domain knowledge. We explain the main notions of this paradigm, its tooling ecosystem and significant use cases in a wide range of applications. Finally, we discuss future research directions

A Flexible Graph-Based Data Model Supporting Incremental Schema Design and Evolution

Web data is characterized by a great structural diversity as well as frequent changes, which poses a great challenge for web applications based on that data. We want to address this problem by developing a schema-optional and flexible data model that supports the integration of heterogenous and volatile web data. Therefore, we want to rely on graph-based models that allow to incrementally extend the schema by various information and constraints. Inspired by the on-going web 2.0 trend, we want users to participate in the design and management of the schema. By incrementally adding structural information, users can enhance the schema to meet their very specific requirements

CREATING THE FOUNDATION FOR A STARTUP: DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A DATABASE SYSTEM FOR AN ELECTRICAL BICYCLE RENTAL COMPANY

BoltAbout was started by 4 Cal Poly students, and their COO is a fellow Industrial Engineering student that I met during the first half of the senior project series class. He presented the project to me and I decided to work with him in developing this new database for his startup company. BoltAbout’s customer base is growing and current operations are not fit to meet the demand of a growing company. More specifically, their data management system can’t be used by all current employees to perform essential tasks such as rental processing, bicycle and equipment organization, and customer data analysis. This is the origin and need for this project. The end goal was to design a completely new database with an appropriate structure and user friendly interface that would allow all employees to utilize it efficiently. The current and future needs of the company were used as the main requirements for the database design, this decision would ensure that the database is functional today but also five years down the line. The final design meets the need for a simpler and more intuitive user friendly interface with a main form that serves as a starting point for all functions or tasks employees might need to perform. From this main form, a user can simply click a button to go to a form to either register or update a customer, register new equipment, add equipment maintenance details to the maintenance log, create, edit, or end a customer order, and view statistics about their monthly performance. All these tasks are one click away. As a conclusion, the design successfully meets BoltAbout’s needs for a simpler and functional data management system. In addition, it allows for flexibility if the company wants to add a new product line or different additional equipment models in the future with minimal to no changes required to the database structure or design. Future recommendations would be related to data security. Currently, to be able to fully use the database and all its operations, the user needs to have access to all the information. As the company and the employee base grows, this availability to information might have to be limited or address as a potential area of improvement

Building Semantic Knowledge Graphs from (Semi-)Structured Data: A Review

Knowledge graphs have, for the past decade, been a hot topic both in public and private domains, typically used for large-scale integration and analysis of data using graph-based data models. One of the central concepts in this area is the Semantic Web, with the vision of providing a well-defined meaning to information and services on the Web through a set of standards. Particularly, linked data and ontologies have been quite essential for data sharing, discovery, integration, and reuse. In this paper, we provide a systematic literature review on knowledge graph creation from structured and semi-structured data sources using Semantic Web technologies. The review takes into account four prominent publication venues, namely, Extended Semantic Web Conference, International Semantic Web Conference, Journal of Web Semantics, and Semantic Web Journal. The review highlights the tools, methods, types of data sources, ontologies, and publication methods, together with the challenges, limitations, and lessons learned in the knowledge graph creation processes.publishedVersio

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE THE USE OF KNOWLEDGE GRAPHS

In this digital age, an overwhelming amount of unstructured data found in the web is increasing at an unprecedented rate. In response, information extraction techniques have been developed to automatically extract information from unstructured text and populate knowledge bases. This thesis will introduce the reader to the idea of Knowledge Graphs, the history of how they were first experimented on and later developed, and in particular, this thesis is going to elaborate how Diffbot, Wikidata and IBM Watson technologies are modeled, stored and queried. By having this information at our fingertips, we believe that we can make smarter decisions, keep up with business trends, and even find ways to further improve our overall operations regarding data analysis. Different businesses demand different types of Business Intelligence Software. To understand well which one suits us, through this study we have evaluated features of Diffbot, Wikidata and IBM Watson by taking into consideration their conditions, features and costs

Semantic technologies: from niche to the mainstream of Web 3? A comprehensive framework for web Information modelling and semantic annotation

Context: Web information technologies developed and applied in the last decade have considerably changed the way web applications operate and have revolutionised information management and knowledge discovery. Social technologies, user-generated classification schemes and formal semantics have a far-reaching sphere of influence. They promote collective intelligence, support interoperability, enhance sustainability and instigate innovation. Contribution: The research carried out and consequent publications follow the various paradigms of semantic technologies, assess each approach, evaluate its efficiency, identify the challenges involved and propose a comprehensive framework for web information modelling and semantic annotation, which is the thesis’ original contribution to knowledge. The proposed framework assists web information modelling, facilitates semantic annotation and information retrieval, enables system interoperability and enhances information quality. Implications: Semantic technologies coupled with social media and end-user involvement can instigate innovative influence with wide organisational implications that can benefit a considerable range of industries. The scalable and sustainable business models of social computing and the collective intelligence of organisational social media can be resourcefully paired with internal research and knowledge from interoperable information repositories, back-end databases and legacy systems. Semantified information assets can free human resources so that they can be used to better serve business development, support innovation and increase productivity

Designing a Modern Software Engineering Training Program with Cloud Computing

The software engineering industry is trending towards cloud computing. For our project, we assessed the various tools and practices used in modern software development. The main goals of this project were to create a reference model for developing cloud-based applications, to program a functional cloud-based prototype, and to develop an accompanying training manual. These materials will be incorporated into the software engineering courses at WPI, namely CS 3733 and CS 509