Editorial
Knowledge representation with ontologies: Present challenges—Future possibilities

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Abstract

Ontologies have become the knowledge representation medium of choice in recent years for a range of computer science specialities including the Semantic Web, Agents, and Bio-informatics. There has been a great deal of research and development in this area combined with hype and reaction. This special issue is concerned with the limitations of ontologies and how these can be addressed, together with a consideration of how we can circumvent or go beyond these constraints. The introduction places the discussion in context and presents the papers included in this issue.

Section snippets

Knowledge representation with ontologies

There is a long tradition in computer science and artificial intelligence which equates knowledge with facts. This view draws on a philosophical and scientific tradition going back at least as far as Aristotle and certainly passing through the renaissance and enlightenment efforts to systematise knowledge ranging from Giordano Bruno's Art of Memory to Linaeus's classification schema for plants and animals. The early efforts at machine translation were famously criticised for their lack of

Structure of this issue

These are deep questions, and the eight papers selected for this issue approach them from a variety of angles. The first two papers explore the problems of using ontologies in real-world situations, and attempt to use those experiences to draw lessons for the disciplines of ontology development and management. The next three suggest approaches to inform ontology development with input from other disciplines, modelling methods or types of information, to attempt to bridge perceived gaps between

Final thoughts and Acknowledgements

The editors have been concerned with ontologies for some years, as a result of their work as researchers on the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration Advanced Knowledge Technologies (AKT, Grant no. GR/N15764/01.)2 AKT, which has focused on providing tools and methods for managing knowledge across its whole lifecycle from acquisition to maintenance, has naturally focused on the Semantic Web as an important

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