1. Do names lead to correct information ?
Marc Geoffroy & Walter G. Berendsohn
Department of Biodiversity Informatics,
Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin-Dahlem

2. That is the question

3. Potential taxa / Taxon concepts
Different biologists can use the same taxon name without having in mind the same opinion about which elements belong to the taxon.

4. Dicranum fuscescens:

5. Checking concepts: TAXLINK
Koperski, Sauer, Braun, & Gradstein: Reference list of German mosses
1548 accepted taxa are related to concepts in 11 floristic or taxonomic treatments (mostly very recent, earliest 1927)
Funded by a USER: German Federal Agency for Nature Protection

6. Basic relationships R1. PT1 and PT2 are congruent
PT1  PT2 x PT1  x PT2
R2. PT1 is included in PT2
PT1  PT2 x PT1  x PT2, y PT2 | y PT1
R3. PT1 includes PT2
PT1  PT2 x PT2 x PT1, y PT1 | y PT2
R4. PT1 and PT2 overlap each other
PT1  PT2 x PT1 | x PT2, y PT2 | y PT1,
z PT1 | z PT2
R5. PT1 and PT2 exclude each other
PT1 ! PT2 x PT1  x PT2

7. Circumscription references
Accepted taxon and name in list
Heterotypic synonym
Congruent potential taxon
Potential taxon with wider concept, fully including the accepted one
Included potential taxon
Potential taxon and accepted one overlap
With kind permission from Koperski, Sauer, Braun & Gradstein 2000

8. Stability for the 1.548 names / concepts
Legende:
Only tax. circumscription stable
xxx name and taxon circumscription stable (13%)
circumscription instable?
Circum

9. Nodes, edges and paths

10. Concatenation PT1  PT3 and PT3  PT5 PT1  PT3 and PT3  PT5 PT1 PT3

11. Simultaneous paths

12. Transmitting factual information

13. Informing the user of possible problems
Search-engine approach (no information)
Connect everything by name and tell users not to trust it
Connect only where information was verified OR
Develop methods how existing taxonomic knowledge and information can be incorporated in information transmission

14. “Applicability” Categories
Fully applicable: information applies to every element
Partially applicable:information applies only to a subset
Doubtful: information may apply to some elements
Not applicable: information does not apply to any element

15. Applicability and transmission
Applicability of transmitted factual information depends on
the applicability of factual information to the elements of the initial potential taxon and
the relationship assigned to the generalised path between the initial and the terminal potential taxon

16. Architecture of the system

17. Work in progress: www.bgbm.org/BioDivInf/Projects/MoReTax