A framework for utility data integration in the UK

In this paper we investigate various factors which prevent utility knowledge from being fully exploited and suggest that integration techniques can be applied to improve the quality of utility records. The paper suggests a framework which supports knowledge and data integration. The framework supports utility integration at two levels: the schema and data level. Schema level integration ensures that a single, integrated geospatial data set is available for utility enquiries. Data level integration improves utility data quality by reducing inconsistency, duplication and conflicts. Moreover, the framework is designed to preserve autonomy and distribution of utility data. The ultimate aim of the research is to produce an integrated representation of underground utility infrastructure in order to gain more accurate knowledge of the buried services. It is hoped that this approach will enable us to understand various problems associated with utility data, and to suggest some potential techniques for resolving them

Automated schema matching techniques: an exploratory study

Manual schema matching is a problem for many database applications that use multiple data sources including data warehousing and e-commerce applications. Current research attempts to address this problem by developing algorithms to automate aspects of the schema-matching task. In this paper, an approach using an external dictionary facilitates automated discovery of the semantic meaning of database schema terms. An experimental study was conducted to evaluate the performance and accuracy of five schema-matching techniques with the proposed approach, called SemMA. The proposed approach and results are compared with two existing semi-automated schema-matching approaches and suggestions for future research are made

SUPPORTING TERMINOLOGICAL STANDARDIZATION IN CONCEPTUAL MODELS - A PLUGIN FOR A META-MODELLING TOOL

Today´s enterprises are accumulating huge repositories of conceptual models, such as data models, organisational charts and most notably business process models. Those models often grow heterogeneously with the company and are thus often terminologically divers and complex. This terminological diversity originates from the fact that natural language allows an issu to be described in a large variety of ways especially when many modellers are involved. This diversity can become a pitfall when conceptual models are subject to model analysis techniqus, which require terminologically comparable model elements. Therefore, it is essential to ensure model quality by enforcing naming conventions. This paper introduces a prototype, which intends to resolve all associated issus of terminological standardisation already during the modelling phase or ex-post based on existing models. The modeller is guided through the standardization process by providing an automated list of all correct phrase propositions according to his entered phrase. In this approach, naming conventions can easily be defined and enforced. This leads to terminologically unambiguous conceptual models, which are easier to understand and ready for further analysis purposes

Mitigating response distortion in IS ethics research

Distributed construction of conceptual models may lead to a set of problems when these models are to be compared or integrated. Different kinds of comparison conflicts are known (e.g. naming conflicts or structural conflicts), the resolution of which is subject of different approaches. However, the expost resolution of naming conflicts raises subsequent problems that origin from semantic diversities of namings – even if they are syntactically the same. Therefore, we propose an approach that allows for avoiding naming conflicts in conceptual models already during modelling. This way, the ex-post resolution of naming conflicts becomes obsolete. In order to realise this approach we combine domain thesauri as lexical conventions for the use of terms, and linguistic grammars as conventions for valid phrase structures. The approach is generic in order to make it reusable for any conceptual modelling language

Distribution of immunodeficiency fact files with XML – from Web to WAP

BACKGROUND: Although biomedical information is growing rapidly, it is difficult to find and retrieve validated data especially for rare hereditary diseases. There is an increased need for services capable of integrating and validating information as well as proving it in a logically organized structure. A XML-based language enables creation of open source databases for storage, maintenance and delivery for different platforms. METHODS: Here we present a new data model called fact file and an XML-based specification Inherited Disease Markup Language (IDML), that were developed to facilitate disease information integration, storage and exchange. The data model was applied to primary immunodeficiencies, but it can be used for any hereditary disease. Fact files integrate biomedical, genetic and clinical information related to hereditary diseases. RESULTS: IDML and fact files were used to build a comprehensive Web and WAP accessible knowledge base ImmunoDeficiency Resource (IDR) available at . A fact file is a user oriented user interface, which serves as a starting point to explore information on hereditary diseases. CONCLUSION: The IDML enables the seamless integration and presentation of genetic and disease information resources in the Internet. IDML can be used to build information services for all kinds of inherited diseases. The open source specification and related programs are available at

Unified Enterprise Knowledge Representation with Conceptual Models - Capturing Corporate Language in Naming Conventions

Conceptual modeling is an established instrument in the knowledge engineering process. However, a precondition for the usability of conceptual models is not only their syntactic correctness but also their semantic comparability. Assuring comparability is quite challenging especially when models are developed by different persons. Empirical studies show that such models can vary heavily, especially in model element naming, even if they are meant to express the same issue. In contrast to most ontology-driven approaches proposing the resolution of these differences ex-post, we introduce an approach that avoids naming differences in conceptual models already during modeling. Therefore we formalize naming conventions combining domain thesauri and phrase structures based on a linguistic grammar. This allows for guiding modelers automatically during the modeling process using standardized labels for model elements, thus assuring unified enterprise knowledge representation. Our approach is generic, making it applicable for any modeling language

Uma proposta de extensão à API XQuery do framework.NET

Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro Tecnológico. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciência da Computação.A tecnologia XML vem ganhando nos últimos anos um espaço considerável nas comunidades de pesquisa de sistemas de banco de dados e aplicações voltadas para a World Wide Web. O sucesso de tal tecnologia pode ser verificado na adoção desta como um recurso adicional, de extrema necessidade, para a manipulação e o intercâmbio de informações em sistemas fornecidos pelas grandes corporações tanto na área de banco de dados como na área de aplicações Web. Na Conferência Internacional de Engenharia de Software (ICSE 2002

The role of positive and negative childhood events in the risk of developing personality disorders

Existing research has predominantly focused on a limited range of childhood events and personality disorders, such as childhood maltreatment and borderline personality disorder. Moreover, researchers rarely account for multiple risk factors within the same study, despite the reality that childhood events do not occur in isolation. Therefore, the current research aims to contribute to the knowledge on childhood events and personality disorder symptoms by investigating a wider range of risk and protective factors in a community-based sample. The first study was a survey that identified common positive childhood events for inclusion in a new childhood events checklist that was designed to assess a wider range of both positive and negative childhood events. Study Two used latent class analysis to profile the childhood events and personality disorder symptoms. Study Three provided an examination of the association between the latent classes of negative childhood events, positive childhood events and personality disorder symptoms. Study Four provided a more in-depth understanding into the factors underpinning the relationships between childhood events and personality disorder symptoms from a qualitative perspective

MDSSF: a federated architecture for product procurement

In the AEC (Architecture / Engineering / Construction) industry, large construction projects are tackled by consortia of companies and individuals, who work collaboratively for the duration of the project. The consortia include design teams, product suppliers, contractors and inspection teams who must collaborate and conform to predefined scheduling constraints and standards. These projects are unique, complex and involve many participants from a number of organisations. Construction projects require consortia to procure supplies such as building materials and furniture from product suppliers. In large AEC projects, procurement of products, services and construction materials is an important and time consuming activity. Materials are sourced on a global basis from a large number of suppliers. The scale of the purchases made in large projects show that their procurement is a non-trivial exercise. Therefore, consortia members or the contractors require access to a large body of information about products or material information to aid procurement decision making. Web based communication and network technologies play an increasingly important role in supporting collaboration in AEC projects. However collaborative working in the construction industry is still restricted by the current limitations of network and communication technologies and their system architectures which are usually client/server based. The construction industry has been examining how the advancements in distributed computing technologies such as the Grid computing can remove some of the existing limitations and enhance collaboration. This research investigated how the procurement challenges such as accessing up-to-date product information available from a large number of products suppliers in an integrated manner using standard means could be addressed. A novel solution to the procurement challenges in the form of a distributed information sharing architecture is presented. The architecture uses the concepts of federated databases such as distribution of data and autonomy of databases and couples it with Grid computing to facilitate information exchange in a collaborative, coherent and integrated way to address the product procurement challenges