Coupling ontologies with document spanners

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Ontology-based Document Spanning Systems for Information Extraction

Information Extraction (IE) is the task of automatically organizing in a structured form data extracted from free text documents. In several contexts, it is often desirable that extracted data are then organized according to an ontology, which provides a formal and conceptual representation of the domain of interest. Ontologies allow for a better data interpretation, as well as for their semantic integration with other information, as in Ontology-based Data Access (OBDA), a popular declarative framework for data management where an ontology is connected to a data layer through mappings. However, the data layer considered so far in OBDA has consisted essentially of relational databases, and how to declaratively couple an ontology with unstructured data sources is still unexplored. By leveraging the recent study on document spanners for rule-based IE by Fagin et al., in this paper we propose a new framework that allows to map text documents to ontologies, in the spirit of OBDA. We investigate the problem of answering conjunctive queries in this framework. For ontologies specified in the Description Logics DL-LiteR and DL-LiteF , we show that the problem is polynomial in the size of the underlying documents. We also provide algorithms to solve query answering by rewriting the input query on the basis of the ontology and its mapping towards the source documents. Through these techniques we pursue a virtual approach, similar to that typically adopted in OBDA, which allows us to answer a query without having to first populate the entire ontology. Interestingly, for DL-LiteR both the spanners used in the mapping and the one computed by the rewriting algorithm belong to the same class of expressiveness. This holds also for DL-LiteF , modulo some limitations on the form of the mapping. These results say that in these cases our framework can be easily implemented by decoupling ontology management and document access, which can be delegated to an external IE system able to compute the extraction rules we use in the mapping

Creative arts and STEM fusion in and around the UK creative industries: a multi-level study

The most innovative firms in the creative industries have been shown to be those which draw on, or ‘fuse’, creative arts and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) skills. However, little is known about how this fusion operates in practice. The thesis addresses this gap by investigating how the fusion of creative arts and STEM skills at the individual, firm and inter-firm level contribute to innovation in and around the UK creative industries. At the individual level, the thesis examines the relationship between STEAM (STEM+Arts) education and graduate employment outcomes in the creative industries using official data from the UK Higher Education Statistics Agency. At the firm level, the thesis explores how the interplay of different forms of common and diverse knowledge shapes the way in which new knowledge is formed, through a qualitative case study of a major London based visual effects company. At the inter-firm level, the thesis examines the fusion of creative arts and STEM skills in the context of publicly funded R&D collaborations, using a dataset of all InnovateUK funded projects between 2004-2020. Overall, this interdisciplinary and mixed methods thesis makes a significant original contribution to knowledge by firstly defining and subsequently expanding upon a definition of fusion as a multi-level construct. By bringing together theories of fusion from differing disciplines to examine fusion at each key level of analysis, the thesis contributes a more extensive investigation of the notion of fusion than has previously been achieved. In doing so, the thesis offers significant contribution to innovation studies literatures and theoretical debates around diverse/common knowledge, developing a novel theoretical framework which helps to explicate the interplay of different forms of knowledge in innovation processes. Moreover, the thesis contributes empirical findings on the value of STEAM education and the extent to which UK innovation policy is supporting fused collaboration projects, both of which have significant implications for policy making

A virtual-community-centric model for coordination in the South African public sector

Organizations face challenges constantly owing to limited resources. As such, to take advantage of new opportunities and to mitigate possible risks they look for new ways to collaborate, by sharing knowledge and competencies. Coordination among partners is critical in order to achieve success. The segmented South African public sector is no different. Driven by the desire to ensure proper service delivery in this sector, various government bodies and service providers play different roles towards the attainment of common goals. This is easier said than done, given the complexity of the distributed nature of the environment. Heterogeneity, autonomy, and the increasing need to collaborate provoke the need to develop an integrative and dynamic coordination support service system in the SA public sector. Thus, the research looks to theories/concepts and existing coordination practices to ground the process of development. To inform the design of the proposed artefact the research employs an interdisciplinary approach championed by coordination theory to review coordination-related theories and concepts. The effort accounts for coordination constructs that characterize and transform the problem and solution spaces. Thus, requirements are explicit towards identifying coordination breakdowns and their resolution. Furthermore, how coordination in a distributed environment is supported in practice is considered from a socio-technical perspective in an effort to account holistically for coordination support. Examining existing solutions identified shortcomings that, if addressed, can help to improve the solutions for coordination, which are often rigidly and narrowly defined. The research argues that introducing a mediating technological artefact conceived from a virtual community and service lenses can serve as a solution to the problem. By adopting a design-science research paradigm, the research develops a model as a primary artefact to support coordination from a collaboration standpoint. The suggestions from theory and practice and the unique case requirement identified through a novel case analysis framework form the basis of the model design. The proposed model support operation calls for an architecture which employs a design pattern that divides a complex whole into smaller, simpler parts, with the aim of reducing the system complexity. Four fundamental functions of the supporting architecture are introduced and discussed as they would support the operation and activities of the proposed collaboration lifecycle model geared towards streamlining coordination in a distributed environment. As part of the model development knowledge contributions are made in several ways. Firstly, an analytical instrument is presented that can be used by an enterprise architect or business analyst to study the coordination status quo of a collaborative activity in a distributed environment. Secondly, a lifecycle model is presented as meta-process model with activities that are geared towards streamlining the coordination of dynamic collaborative activities or projects. Thirdly, an architecture that will enable the technical virtual community-centric, context-aware environment that hosts the process-based operations is offered. Finally, the validation tool that represents the applied contribution to the research that promises possible adaptation for similar circumstances is presented. The artefacts contribute towards a design theory in IS research for the development and improvement of coordination support services in a distributed environment such as the South African public sector

How do public private partnerships influence business school performance in English-speaking Caribbean?

This thesis addresses the question of how business schoolsestablished as public privatepartnerships (PPPs) within a regional university in the English-speaking Caribbean survived for over twenty-one years and achieved legitimacy in their environment. The aim of the study was to examine how public and private sector actors contributed to the evolution of the PPPs. A social network perspective provided a broad relational focus from which to explore the phenomenon and engage disciplinary and middle-rangetheories to develop explanations. Legitimacy theory provided an appropriate performance dimension from which to assess PPP success. An embedded multiple-case research design, with three case sites analysed at three levels including the country and university environment, the PPP as a firm and the subgroup level constituted the methodological framing of the research process. The analysis techniques included four methods but relied primarily on discourse and social network analysis of interview data from 40 respondents across the three sites. A staged analysis of the evolution of the firm provided the ‘time and effects’ antecedents which formed the basis for sense-making to arrive at explanations of the public-private relationship-influenced change. A conceptual model guided the study and explanations from the cross-case analysis were used to refine the process model and develop a dynamic framework and set of theoretical propositions that would underpin explanations of PPP success and legitimacy in matched contexts through analytical generalisation. The study found that PPP success was based on different models of collaboration and partner resource contribution that arose from a confluence of variables including the development of shared purpose, private voluntary control in corporate governance mechanisms and boundary spanning leadership. The study contributes a contextual theory that explains how PPPs work and a research agenda of ‘corporate governance as inspiration’ from a sociological perspective of ‘liquid modernity’. Recommendations for policy and management practice were developed

Semantic discovery and reuse of business process patterns

Patterns currently play an important role in modern information systems (IS) development and their use has mainly been restricted to the design and implementation phases of the development lifecycle. Given the increasing significance of business modelling in IS development, patterns have the potential of providing a viable solution for promoting reusability of recurrent generalized models in the very early stages of development. As a statement of research-in-progress this paper focuses on business process patterns and proposes an initial methodological framework for the discovery and reuse of business process patterns within the IS development lifecycle. The framework borrows ideas from the domain engineering literature and proposes the use of semantics to drive both the discovery of patterns as well as their reuse

Open access in theory and practice : the theory-practice relationship and openness

Open Access in Theory and Practice investigates the theory-practice relationship in the domain of open access publication and dissemination of research outputs. Drawing on detailed analysis of the literature and current practice in OA, as well as data collected in detailed interviews with practitioners, policymakers, and researchers, the book discusses what constitutes ‘theory’, and how the role of theory is perceived by both theorists and practitioners. Exploring the ways theory and practice have interacted in the development of OA, the authors discuss what this reveals about the nature of the OA phenomenon itself and the theory-practice relationship. Open Access in Theory and Practice contributes to a better understanding of OA and, as such, should be of great interest to academics, researchers, and students working in the fields of information science, publishing studies, science communication, higher education policy, business, and economics. The book also makes an important contribution to the debate of the relationship between theory and practice in information science, and more widely across different fields of the social sciences and humanitie