2,470 research outputs found
Using RDF to Model the Structure and Process of Systems
Many systems can be described in terms of networks of discrete elements and
their various relationships to one another. A semantic network, or
multi-relational network, is a directed labeled graph consisting of a
heterogeneous set of entities connected by a heterogeneous set of
relationships. Semantic networks serve as a promising general-purpose modeling
substrate for complex systems. Various standardized formats and tools are now
available to support practical, large-scale semantic network models. First, the
Resource Description Framework (RDF) offers a standardized semantic network
data model that can be further formalized by ontology modeling languages such
as RDF Schema (RDFS) and the Web Ontology Language (OWL). Second, the recent
introduction of highly performant triple-stores (i.e. semantic network
databases) allows semantic network models on the order of edges to be
efficiently stored and manipulated. RDF and its related technologies are
currently used extensively in the domains of computer science, digital library
science, and the biological sciences. This article will provide an introduction
to RDF/RDFS/OWL and an examination of its suitability to model discrete element
complex systems.Comment: International Conference on Complex Systems, Boston MA, October 200
Semantic Storage: Overview and Assessment
The Semantic Web has a great deal of momentum behind it. The promise of a ‘better web’, where information is given well defined meaning and computers are better able to work with it has captured the imagination of a significant number of people, particularly in academia. Language standards such as RDF and OWL have appeared with remarkable speed, and development continues apace. To back up this development, there is a requirement for ‘semantic databases’, where this data can be conveniently stored, operated upon, and retrieved. These already exist in the form of triple stores, but do not yet fulfil all the requirements that may be made of them, particularly in the area of performing inference using OWL. This paper analyses the current stores along with forthcoming technology, and finds that it is unlikely that a combination of speed, scalability, and complex inferencing will be practical in the immediate future. It concludes by suggesting alternative development routes
RDF Querying
Reactive Web systems, Web services, and Web-based publish/
subscribe systems communicate events as XML messages, and in
many cases require composite event detection: it is not sufficient to react
to single event messages, but events have to be considered in relation to
other events that are received over time.
Emphasizing language design and formal semantics, we describe the
rule-based query language XChangeEQ for detecting composite events.
XChangeEQ is designed to completely cover and integrate the four complementary
querying dimensions: event data, event composition, temporal
relationships, and event accumulation. Semantics are provided as
model and fixpoint theories; while this is an established approach for rule
languages, it has not been applied for event queries before
Grammar-Based Geodesics in Semantic Networks
A geodesic is the shortest path between two vertices in a connected network.
The geodesic is the kernel of various network metrics including radius,
diameter, eccentricity, closeness, and betweenness. These metrics are the
foundation of much network research and thus, have been studied extensively in
the domain of single-relational networks (both in their directed and undirected
forms). However, geodesics for single-relational networks do not translate
directly to multi-relational, or semantic networks, where vertices are
connected to one another by any number of edge labels. Here, a more
sophisticated method for calculating a geodesic is necessary. This article
presents a technique for calculating geodesics in semantic networks with a
focus on semantic networks represented according to the Resource Description
Framework (RDF). In this framework, a discrete "walker" utilizes an abstract
path description called a grammar to determine which paths to include in its
geodesic calculation. The grammar-based model forms a general framework for
studying geodesic metrics in semantic networks.Comment: First draft written in 200
View Selection in Semantic Web Databases
We consider the setting of a Semantic Web database, containing both explicit
data encoded in RDF triples, and implicit data, implied by the RDF semantics.
Based on a query workload, we address the problem of selecting a set of views
to be materialized in the database, minimizing a combination of query
processing, view storage, and view maintenance costs. Starting from an existing
relational view selection method, we devise new algorithms for recommending
view sets, and show that they scale significantly beyond the existing
relational ones when adapted to the RDF context. To account for implicit
triples in query answers, we propose a novel RDF query reformulation algorithm
and an innovative way of incorporating it into view selection in order to avoid
a combinatorial explosion in the complexity of the selection process. The
interest of our techniques is demonstrated through a set of experiments.Comment: VLDB201
Web and Semantic Web Query Languages
A number of techniques have been developed to facilitate
powerful data retrieval on the Web and Semantic Web. Three categories
of Web query languages can be distinguished, according to the format
of the data they can retrieve: XML, RDF and Topic Maps. This article
introduces the spectrum of languages falling into these categories
and summarises their salient aspects. The languages are introduced using
common sample data and query types. Key aspects of the query
languages considered are stressed in a conclusion
Grammar-Based Random Walkers in Semantic Networks
Semantic networks qualify the meaning of an edge relating any two vertices.
Determining which vertices are most "central" in a semantic network is
difficult because one relationship type may be deemed subjectively more
important than another. For this reason, research into semantic network metrics
has focused primarily on context-based rankings (i.e. user prescribed
contexts). Moreover, many of the current semantic network metrics rank semantic
associations (i.e. directed paths between two vertices) and not the vertices
themselves. This article presents a framework for calculating semantically
meaningful primary eigenvector-based metrics such as eigenvector centrality and
PageRank in semantic networks using a modified version of the random walker
model of Markov chain analysis. Random walkers, in the context of this article,
are constrained by a grammar, where the grammar is a user defined data
structure that determines the meaning of the final vertex ranking. The ideas in
this article are presented within the context of the Resource Description
Framework (RDF) of the Semantic Web initiative.Comment: First draft of manuscript originally written in November 200
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