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1 SNAP and SPAN Barry Smith and Pierre Grenon University at Buffalo and Institute for Formal Ontology and Medical Information Science (ifomis.de) University of Leipzig
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2 Formal Ontology = domain-neutral Examples of categories: Substance, Process, Agent, Property, Relation, Location, Spatial Region Part-of, Boundary-of
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3 Material Ontology = regional or domain-specific ontology, e.g. GeO Examples of categories: River, Mountain, Country, Desert … Resides-In, Is-to-the-West-of
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4 Realist Perspectivalism There is a multiplicity of ontological perspectives on reality, all equally veridical and transparent to reality vs. Reductionism: “Only my preferred perspective on reality is veridical”
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5 Realist Perspectivalism Perspectivalism: all views are ontologically admissible. Realist Perspectivalism: only those perspectives are admissible that are transparent to reality
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6 Need for different perspectives Double counting: 3 apples on the table 7 x 10 16 molecules at spatial locations L1, L2 and L3 Not one ontology, but a multiplicity of complementary ontologies Cf. Quantum mechanics: particle vs. wave ontologies
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7 Cardinal Perspectives Formal vs. Material Micro- vs. Meso- vs. Macro SNAP vs. SPAN
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8 A Network of Domain Ontologies BFO BFO = Basic Formal Ontology
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9 A Network of Domain Ontologies BFO MedO
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10 A Network of Domain Ontologies BFO MedOGeO
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11 A Network of Domain Ontologies BFO MedOGeOLexO
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12 A Network of Domain Ontologies BFO MedOGeOLexOMilO
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13 A Network of Domain Ontologies BFO MedOGeOLexOMilOEcO
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14 Cardinal Perspectives Formal vs. Material Ontologies Granularity (Micro vs. Meso vs. Macro) SNAP vs. SPAN
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15 Granular Partitions
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16 Ontological Zooming
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17 Ontological Zooming folk geography land survey
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18 Ontological Zooming both are transparent partitions of one and the same reality
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19 Cardinal Perspectives Formal vs. Material Ontologies Granularity (Micro vs. Meso vs. Macro) Time: SNAP vs. SPAN
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20 Substances and processes exist in time in different ways substance t i m e process
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21 Snapshot vs. video substance t i m e process
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22 Endurants and perdurants Substances and processes Continuants and occurrents In preparing an inventory of reality we keep track of these two different categories of entities in two different ways (stocks vs. flows)
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23 Endurants vs. perdurants Endurants - have continuous existence in time - preserve their identity through change - exist in toto if they exist at all Perdurants - have temporal parts - unfold themselves through time - exist only in their phases/stages
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24 Endurants vs. perdurants Substances vs. their lives
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25 You are a substance Your life is a process You are 3-dimensional Your life is 4-dimensional
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26 Substances do not have temporal parts The first 5-minute phase of my existence is not a temporal part of me It is a temporal part of that complex process which is my life
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27 How do you know whether an entity endures or perdures?
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28 SNAP vs. SPAN 1.SNAP: a SNAPshot ontology of endurants existing at a time 2.SPAN: a four-dimensionalist ontology of processes
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29 Three kinds of SNAP entities 1.Substances 2.SPQR… entities 3.Spatial regions, Contexts, Niches
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30 SPQR… entities States, powers, qualities, roles …
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31 Other SPQR… entities: functions, dispositions, plans, shapes SPQR… entities are all dependent on substances relations
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32 Examples of simple SNAP ontologies 1 space
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33 Examples of simple SNAP ontologies 2
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34 Examples of simple SNAP ontologies 3
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35 each SNAP section through reality includes everything which exists at the corresponding now
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36 Many SNAP Ontologies t1t1 t3t3 t2t2 here time exists outside the ontology, as an index or time-stamp
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37 The SPAN Ontology t i m e
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38 here time exists as part of the domain of the ontology The SPAN ontology
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39 t i m e campaign The SPAN ontology
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40 They are windows on just that portion of reality which is visible through the given ontology ( … Pat Hayes … ) SNAP and SPAN ontologies are partial only (Realist perspectivalism)
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41 SNAP: Entities existing in toto at a time
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42 Three kinds of SNAP entities 1.Substances 2.SPQR… entities 3.Spatial regions, Contexts, Niches
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45 SNAP
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46 SPAN: Entities extended in time
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47 SPAN: Entities extended in time
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48 SPAN: Entities extended in time
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49 Rule: Respect Granularity spatial regionqualitysubstance parts of spatial regions are always spatial regions
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50 Respect Granularity spatial regionqualitysubstance parts of substances are always substances
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51 Respect Granularity spatial regionqualitysubstance parts of qualities are always qualities
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52 Respect Granularity process parts of processes are always processes
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53 Relations crossing the SNAP/SPAN border are not part- relations John’s life substance John physiological processes sustaining in existence
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54 Parts of processes (1) c c: boundary a a a: scattered part b b: temporal slice
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55 Parts of processes (2) a a: sub-process b b: phase
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56 Relations between SNAP and SPAN SNAP-entities participate in processes; they have lives, histories.
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57 SPQR… entities and their SPAN realizations the expression of a function the exercise of a role the execution of a plan the realization of a disposition the application of a therapy
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58 SPQR… entities and their SPAN realizations function role plan disposition therapy SNAP
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59 SPQR… entities and their SPAN realizations expression exercise execution realization application SPAN
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60 Temporal Co-Incidence x y SNAP-t At time t, colony of bacteria in the throat. time SPAN Migration of a colony of bacteria from the mouth to the small intestine. B
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61 Participation x y substances x, y participate in process B time B x y SNAP-t i. time SPAN B
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62 Projections process material regionspatial region participants spatio-temporal region SNAP t i SPAN
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63 SNAP-SPAN relations (3) Ontological dependence. Some forms of participation: -initiation, termination -creation, destruction -sustenance, degradation
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64 Ontology for Geographical Information Science
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65 GeO
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66 An adequate ontology of geography has to have those three components: 1. SNAP 2. FIELD 3. SPAN
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67 SNAP GeO
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68 An adequate ontology of geography has to have those three basic categories: 1. Geographical Objects 2. Geographical Attributes 3. Places, Niches, Environments
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69 FIELD GeO
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70 An adequate ontology of geography has to have those three categories: 1. Fields 2. Fields Attributes 3. Spatial Regions
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71 SPAN GeO
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72 An adequate ontology of geography has to have those two categories: 1. Processual Entities 2. Space-Time Worms
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73 Relations in GeO Of course, all the Basic Formal Relations obtain here. There are GeO specific relations or GeO specifics forms of Basic Formal Relations.
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74 Relations in GeO Forms of geo-spatial location -orientation (east of, etc.) -field elements -geographical location (projection on Earth's surface, 2-D) -geo-spatial location (with considerations of altitude, 3-D) Relations defined based on participation in specific geographical processes.
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75 Geo Location ground, 2d-location underground, 3d-location above ground, 3-d location
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76 Relations between SNAP and SPAN (and FIELD) in GeO
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77 Geographical Changes Some types of processes: -Movements (location change) -Substantial Change -Property Change
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78 Movement from location x ends begins movement to location y
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79 begins movement from location x to location y ends Moving Outside
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80 Initiation Destruction
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81 Creation a process P t1 a region of space R where P is ongoing R Snap-t1
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82 Creation P t1 R Snap-t1 t2>t1 R Snap-t2 P initiates a, a's birth at t2 a's life (overlaps P)
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83 Property change
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84 Scenario
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