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Ontology may sound a bit
academic, but it's simply the science of what things exist, in what
sense, and how they relate to each other. It's highly relevant today as
it is a basic support element in AI (Artificial Intelligence) systems. Bullshit
may arise when concepts are not well defined and the links between them
are hidden. |
| I think it's best to say that a thing exists if it's something we
could talk about. So that includes not just things that exist physically,
but also concepts, ideas - what some people call "memes". |
| For people to be able to have sensible discourse on any topic, there
has to be some element of consensus that they are talking about the same
things. With physical things - those that one could see, hear, touch etc,
it's usually easier to get enough consensus. With concepts, however, it can be
much harder. |
| There are some things that sit awkwardly on the boundary between the
physical and the conceptual. Examples are Histories, Accounts, Comments
and Forecasts - which are conceptual, but are 'about' physical things. If
they are recorded on paper or electronic media then those media are
physical things although their subject matter is conceptual. |
| Ontology is about Meaning, and it does not necessarily relate directly to
Language. Different languages have different demarcation lines between
various types of things. For example, Estonians have different words for
different types of swamps, where other languages only have one word.
Ideally, an Ontology should be independent of Language. |
| Many people have recognized that more meaning resides in the
Relationships between things than in the things themselves. I have
followed up this point in my FROLIO ontology, where Relationships are
classified into 12 types - you can read about this by folowing
this link. |
| It's worth raising a point of concern about AI here. Accepting the
output of an AI system implies accepting the Ontology on whch it is
based. That Ontology has been developed by someone else - it could be a
big business organisation, the CIA or the
CCP. It may not fit your view
of the world; it's second hand, and may be tainted by 'group think'. Like
a future totally digital currency, it's Big Brother. |
| To read a fuller introduction to Ontology, follow
this link to a wide
screen page. |
