Re: blank nodes question from Jeremy Carroll on 2003-07-28 (www-rdf-interest@w3.org from July 2003)

From: Jeremy Carroll <jjc@hplb.hpl.hp.com>
Date: Mon, 28 Jul 2003 10:45:49 +0100
To: Bob MacGregor <macgregor@ISI.EDU>
CC: Graham Klyne <GK@ninebynine.org>, "Peter P. Jones" <ppj@concept67.fsnet.co.uk>, www-rdf-interest@w3.org
Message-ID: <3F24F0CD.70303@hplb.hpl.hp.com>

Bob MacGregor wrote:

> I beg to differ.  Blank nodes are absolutely necessary.


I agree.

Thinking about knowledge representation, say we wish to represent a 
non-binary relationship. Then we use blank nodes to construct the more 
complex structures. If we had to name them, these names would be arbitrary 
and we would need some method of indicating that those names were arbitrary.

I think n-ary relationships might have been a different design choice.

Jeremy

Received on Monday, 28 July 2003 05:46:55 UTC