CmpE 583- WEB SEMANTICS: THEORY AND PRACTICE

TERMINOLOGY

• Tim Berners-Lee, James Hendler and Ora Lassila: The Semantic Web, Scientific American, May, 2001. PS, local copy.

• Terminology, Parties, History.
• Discussion period.

TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

• "The Semantic Web is an extension of the current web in which information is given well-defined meaning, better enabling computers and people to work in cooperation." -- Tim Berners-Lee, James Hendler, Ora Lassila, The Semantic Web, Scientific American, May 2001.
• Semantic Web: WWW Consortium Semantic Web pages: "The Semantic Web provides a common framework that allows data to be shared and reused across application, enterprise, and community boundaries. It is a collaborative effort led by W3C with participation from a large number of researchers and industrial partners. It is based on the Resource Description Framework (RDF), which integrates a variety of applications using XML for syntax and URIs for naming."
• Semantic Web: Webster's Online Dictionary!
• Web Semantics: Webster's Online Dictionary!
• RDF- Resource Description Framework:
  • "The Resource Description Framework (RDF) integrates a variety of applications ... using XML as an interchange syntax. The RDF specifications provide a lightweight ontology system to support the exchange of knowledge on the Web" from W3C RDF Site.
  • "RDF and OWL are Semantic Web recommendations that provide a framework for asset management, enterprise integration and the sharing and reuse of data on the Web. [...] Testimonials from enterprise-scale implementers and independent developers illustrate current uses of these standards on the Web today." from RDF Core Working Group.
• XML- Extensible Markup Language: "Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a simple, very flexible text format derived from SGML (ISO 8879). Originally designed to meet the challenges of large-scale electronic publishing, XML is also playing an increasingly important role in the exchange of a wide variety of data on the Web and elsewhere."
• SGML- Standard Generalized Markup Language is an information processing (text and office systems) standard by ISO (ISO 8879:1986).
  • Overview of SGML Resources in W3C.
  • Cover Pages SGML site.
• URI- Uniform Resource Identifier: "Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs, aka URLs) are short strings that identify resources in the web: documents, images, downloadable files, services, electronic mailboxes, and other resources. They make resources available under a variety of naming schemes and access methods such as HTTP, FTP, and Internet mail addressable in the same simple way."
• Ontology: Webster's Online Dictionary.
  • By Tom Gruber: What is an ontology?
• OWL- Web Ontology Language: uses URI for naming and the framework provided by RDF to enhance ontology languages.W3C has announced full Recommendations recently; aims to replace earlier ad hoc efforts(?).
• DCMI- Dublin Core Metadata Initiative.

• W3C- World Wide Web Consortium:
  Prime organization for standards development and activity on semantic Web.
  • W3C At A Glance.
• DARPA- Defence Advanced Reseach Project Agency (US Government).
  • DAML- DARPA Agent Markup Language:
    The goal of the DAML effort is to develop a language and tools to facilitate the concept of the Semantic Web.
  • DAML+OIL ontology language.
  • DAML for Services (DAML-S), an upper ontology for semantic description of Web Services.
• GGF- Global Grid Forum:

  • The Global Grid Forum (GGF) is a community-initiated forum of thousands of individuals from industry and research leading the global standardization effort for grid computing.  GGF's primary objectives are to promote and support the development, deployment, and implementation of Grid technologies and applications via the creation and documentation of "best practices" - technical specifications, user experiences, and implementation guidelines.

  • A general slide presentation provides a quick overview of GGF. Has since become OGF.

  • nOGF- Open Grid Forum: the merger of the Global Grid Forum (GGF) and the Enterprise Grid Alliance (EGA).

• Semantic Web Services Initiative (SWSI):
  The Semantic Web Services Initiative (SWSI) is an ad hoc initiative of academic and industrial researchers, striving to create infrastructure that combines Semantic Web and Web Services technologies, to coordinate ongoing research initiatives in the Semantic Web Services area; and to promote the results of SWSI work to academia and industry.

• Semantic Web Science Association (SWSA).

• SemanticWeb.org is a community portal:

  • Currently operated by three research groups:

    (i) The Onto-Agents and Scalable Knowledge Composition (SKC) Research Group at Stanford University;

    (ii) The Ontobroker-Group at the University of Karlsruhe, and

    (iii) The Protégé Research Group at Stanford University.

  • Markup Languages and Ontologies

• GOEDISE.org- Grid Enabled Optimization and Design Search for Engineering:
  • GEODISE Links for the Semantic Web
• Elsevier Journal of Web Semantics: Good content.

HISTORY

• The Semantic Web Activity is a successor to the W3C Metadata Activity.
• Dan Brickly: Semantic Web History: Nodes and Arcs 1989-1999 The WWW Proposal and RDF, 1999-11-12.
• The state of the W3C Semantic Web Activity and its surroundings as of Feb 2001 (inaccessable?).
• Tim Berners-Lee: The World Wide Web - Past Present and Future,  Commemorative Lecture 2002 Japan Prize,2002-04.
• Eric Miller: Semantic Web, Phase 2: Developments and Deployment, presented at WWW2004 W3C Track on the Semantic Web, 2004-05-20.

Updated Sept. 27, 2007.