[HCLS] Bridging Ontology...An Automated Approach?

I'm thinking out loud here. Just let me know if I should stop...

Here's an idea:

Creating explicit connections between all similar and/or identical entries
in two schemas is an arduous task that is impractical to do manually.

To contrast, compare, and reconcile at the data level I must make these
explicit connections.

When I do so mentally, I make a tentative connection, test it for validity,
and then maintain the connection or throw it out based on the result. (This
is also what is done physiologically through mechanisms like Long Term
Potentiation in the brain.)

Automate connections between synonyms, antonyms, etcetera based on local
analysis of elements.

What do I mean by "local analysis of elements?" I'm making the following up
but we could make it more concrete by looking at the CoCoDat and NeuronDB
schemas.

Say DB1 has a term "segment." We look at the schema to see the "segment"
associated with "cell body."

Say DB2 has a term "initial segment." We see that "initial segment" is part
of "axon."

Is "segment" in DB1 equivalent to "initial segment" in DB2? We should be
able to automate an interrogation that may see "axon" in DB1. Or maybe it
finds "dendrite"...

This is rough but a potential approach to automating the formation of
connections?

Don

-----
Donald Doherty, Ph.D.
Brainstage Research, Inc.
www.brainstage.com
donald.doherty@brainstage.com
412-478-4552

Received on Monday, 21 August 2006 19:40:34 UTC