Towards the Information Artifact Ontology 2.0 May 1, 2012 – CUBRC, Buffalo NY

1. Towards the Information Artifact Ontology 2.0May 1, 2012 – CUBRC, Buffalo NY Werner CEUSTERS, MD Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences, Ontology Research Group and Department of Psychiatry University at Buffalo, NY, USA http://www.org.buffalo.edu/RTU

2. data organization model development further R&D (instrument and study optimization) add verify use Δ= outcome Generic beliefs application Data generation and use observation & measurement

3. data organization First- Order Reality “is about” ??? model development Representation further R&D (instrument and study optimization) add verify use Δ= outcome Generic beliefs application A crucial distinction: data and what they are about observation & measurement

4. Information Artifact Ontology

5. Origin: (cleaned up) Ontology of Biomedical Investigations

6. Information Artifact Ontology • def: an entity that is generically dependent on some artifact and stands in relation of aboutness to some entity

7. is about • def: is_about is a (currently) primitive relation that relates an information artifact to an entity.

8. Another view on the subject Ceusters W, Manzoor S. How to track absolutely everything? In: Obrst L, Janssen T, Ceusters W (eds.) Ontologies and Semantic Technologies for the Intelligence Community. Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence and Applications. IOS Press Amsterdam, 2010;:13-36.

9. Two proposals for re-arrangement (1) • “reparative”: Ceusters W. An Information Artifact Ontology Perspective on Data Collections and Associated Representational Artifacts. Medical Informatics Europe Conference (MIE 2012), Pisa, Italy, August 26-29, 2012. (accepted for publication)

10. Purpose of the ‘reparative’ version

11. Definitions (reparative) (1)

12. Definitions (reparative) (2)

13. Definitions (reparative) (3)

14. Two proposals for re-arrangement (2) • Expansive: • Information Content Entity • Descriptive Information Content Entity • Representative Information Content Entity • Designative Information Content Entity • Deceptive Information Content Entity • Directive Information Content Entity • Hypothesis Information Content Entity • Fiction Information Content Entity

15. Basis for both proposals: is_about • is_about = def. An entity s is about an entity e if, and only if, • s is a mental quality and s intends e , • or there exists some mental quality m such that s is conformant to m , • or s is the product of some process (e.g. in a bank’s computer) for producing SDCs deliberately designed (e.g. by the programmers of the bank’s computers) to be such that there could be some mental quality (e.g. of the brain of the bank’s auditor) which is conformant to s • and s is such that there could be some mental quality m which is conformant to s and intends e .

16. Intends • Intends is a primitive relation between a mental quality and an entity towards which it is directed. 'Entity' here includes both particulars and universals. ‘ • A mental quality is a quality which specifically depends on an anatomical structure in the cognitive system of an organism. • An intending mental quality is a mental quality which intends some entity. • [this is not a definition, since ‘intends’ is not really providing any new information, it means ‘represents’ in the way in which ideas, words, represent entities] • the intends relation is taken as being always veridical in the sense that only what exists can be intended; i.e. that we cannot intend, e.g., a unicorn. But we can have a phenomenologically indistinguishable experience that fails to intend.

17. Tracking evolution of representations and what they are about

18. is_conformant_to • is_conformant_to = def. A specifically dependent continuant (SDC), s, is conformant to a mental quality m if, and only if, there is some generically dependent continuant (GDC) g such that s concretizes g and m concretizes g

19. Definitions (expansive approach) (1) • Descriptive Information Content Entity =def. An information content entity that is concretized by some SDC which is of the type that can be treated as representative  (note: ‘can be treated as’ can be defined in terms of mental qualities and associated beliefs in their aboutness). • Representative Information Content Entity =def. A descriptive information content entity that is concretized by some SDC that is produced by a reliable process for producing SDCs which are about what they are intended to be about. (note: the assumption is that we can elucidate the last phrase in terms of conformance; note that Representative ICEs are not necessarily about anything, e.g. because of errors) • Designative Information Content Entity =def. A representative information content entity that is concretized by an SDC which picks out an entity uniquely and which is such that all conformant SDCs pick out this entity uniquely.

20. Definitions (expansive approach) (2) • Deceptive Information Content Entity =def. A descriptive information content entity that … • Directive Information Content Entity =def. A descriptive information content entity that is concretized by some specifically dependent continuant that indicates to their bearer how to realize them in a process.  • Directive Information Content Entity =def. A GDC if concretized by an appropriately qualified agent, will yield in that agent a concretizing SDC (and associated mental quality?) which obligates (or something weaker, promotes, encourages …) the agent to act in accordance with what is specified in the GDC • Hypothesis Information Content Entity =def. An information content entity that … • Fiction Information Content Entity =def. An information content entity that …

21. Outstanding core issues • BFO is about particulars; how to work now with RUs for universals and configurations • A good theory about mental qualities • How far to expand the hierarchy • …