A Reference Architecture for Building Semantic-Web Mediators

The Semantic Web comprises a large amount of distributed and heterogeneous ontologies, which have been developed by different communities, and there exists a need to integrate them. Mediators are pieces of software that help to perform this integration, which have been widely studied in the context of nested relational models. Unfortunately, mediators for databases that are modelled using ontologies have not been so widely studied. In this paper, we present a reference architecture for building semantic-web mediators. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reference architecture in the bibliography that solves the integration problem as a whole, contrarily to existing approaches that focus on specific problems. Furthermore, we describe a case study that is contextualised in the digital libraries domain in which we realise the benefits of our reference architecture. Finally, we identify a number of best practices to build semantic-web mediators.Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia TIN2007-64119Junta de Andalucía P07-TIC-2602,Junta de Andalucía P08-TIC-4100Ministerio de Industria, Turismo y Comercio TIN2008-04718-EMinisterio de Ciencia e Innovación TIN2010-21744Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad TIN2010-09809-EMinisterio de Ciencia e Innovación TIN2010-10811-EMinisterio de Ciencia e Innovación TIN2010-09988-

Towards structured sharing of raw and derived neuroimaging data across existing resources

Data sharing efforts increasingly contribute to the acceleration of scientific discovery. Neuroimaging data is accumulating in distributed domain-specific databases and there is currently no integrated access mechanism nor an accepted format for the critically important meta-data that is necessary for making use of the combined, available neuroimaging data. In this manuscript, we present work from the Derived Data Working Group, an open-access group sponsored by the Biomedical Informatics Research Network (BIRN) and the International Neuroimaging Coordinating Facility (INCF) focused on practical tools for distributed access to neuroimaging data. The working group develops models and tools facilitating the structured interchange of neuroimaging meta-data and is making progress towards a unified set of tools for such data and meta-data exchange. We report on the key components required for integrated access to raw and derived neuroimaging data as well as associated meta-data and provenance across neuroimaging resources. The components include (1) a structured terminology that provides semantic context to data, (2) a formal data model for neuroimaging with robust tracking of data provenance, (3) a web service-based application programming interface (API) that provides a consistent mechanism to access and query the data model, and (4) a provenance library that can be used for the extraction of provenance data by image analysts and imaging software developers. We believe that the framework and set of tools outlined in this manuscript have great potential for solving many of the issues the neuroimaging community faces when sharing raw and derived neuroimaging data across the various existing database systems for the purpose of accelerating scientific discovery

Using cooperatives ontologies for the customization of hybrid mediator interrogation process

The explosion of information sources accessible via the Web created the need for mediation tools between users and heterogeneous information sources on the Web. However, the interface design of these mediators, with taking into account the wide variety of skills and knowledge of users, and the need for them to share their preferences, requires systems able to guide the user through the interrogation process. In this paper, we try to raise this challenge  by proposing, on one hand, the use of a cooperative ontology’s models, which adapt with the evolution of user’s profiles and the dynamic change of integrated sources, and secondly ensure sharing the knowledge between users which will facilitate analysis of information and improve the data quality research process in space  and time.