Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

From Geo-to Eco-ontologies

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Geographic Information Science (GIScience 2002)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNCS,volume 2478))

Included in the following conference series:

Abstract

Ecology is a subject of great debate today among scientists, governments, and the general public. Issues such as global warming and biodiversity require a mutual agreement among different groups of people. Many times these groups are separated by language, political interests, and culture. Environmental Information Systems need to integrate data from different Geographic Information Systems. This may cause problems resulting from the semantic heterogeneity of the source communities. Before this kind of integration can happen among different groups, the concepts that people have about the real world must be explicitly formalized; such an explicit formalization of our mental models is called an ontology. In this paper we discuss two options for structuring such ontologies. First we discuss the use of hierarchies and roles in the structure of geographic ontologies. Second, we discuss some of the fundamental characteristics of ecological ontologies and draw attention to several formal differences between ecological and geographic ontologies. We conclude by identifying some of the important questions that arise in light of our conception of eco-ontologies.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  1. F. Radermacher, W.-F. Riekert, B. Page, and L. Hilty, Trends in Environmental Information Processing, in Applications and Impacts, Information Processingrs94, Volume 2, Proceedings of the IFIP 13th World Computer Congress, R. Raubold and K. Brunnstein, Eds. Hamburg, Germany, 1994, pp. 597–604.

    Google Scholar 

  2. A. Voisard, Open GIS as a Tool for Environmental Information Management, The 9th International Symposium on Computer Science for Environment Protection, Berlin, Germany, 1995.

    Google Scholar 

  3. A. Sheth, Changing Focus on Interoperability in Information Systems: from System, Syntax, structure to Semantics, in Interoperating Geographic Information Systems, M. Good-child, M. Egenhofer, R. Fegeas, and C. Kottman, Eds. Norwell, MA: Kluwer Academic, 1999, pp. 5–29.

    Google Scholar 

  4. M. Worboys and S. Deen, Semantic Heterogeneity in Geographic Databases, SIGMOD RECORD, vol. 20, pp. 30–34, 1991.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. W. Kuhn, Defining Semantics for Spatial Data Transfer, Sixth International Symposium on Spatial Data Handling, Edinburgh, Scotland, 1994.

    Google Scholar 

  6. V. Kashyap and A. Sheth, Semantic Heterogeneity in Global Information System: The Role of Metadata, Context and Ontologies, in Cooperative Information Systems: Current Trends and Directions, M. Papzoglou and G. Schlageter, Eds. London: Academic Press, 1996, pp. 139–178.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Y. Bishr, Semantic Aspects of Interoperable GIS. Ph.D. Thesis, The Netherlands: Wageningen Agricultural University, 1997.

    Google Scholar 

  8. M. Gahegan, Characterizing the Semantic Content of Geographic Data, Models, and Systems, in Interoperating Geographic Information Systems, M. Goodchild, M. Egenhofer, R. Fegeas, and C. Kottman, Eds. Norwell, MA: Kluwer Academic, 1999, pp. 71–84.

    Google Scholar 

  9. F. Harvey, Designing for Interoperability: Overcoming Semantic Differences, in Interoperating Geographic Information Systems, M. Goodchild, M. Egenhofer, R. Fegeas, and C. Kottman, Eds. Norwell, MA: Kluwer Academic, 1999, pp. 85–98.

    Google Scholar 

  10. G. Câmara, R. Souza, U. Freitas, and A. Monteiro, Interoperability in Practice: Problems in Semantic Conversion from Current Technology to OpenGIS, in Interoperating Geographic Information Systems—Second International Conference, INTEROP’99, vol. 1580, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, A. Vckovski, K. Brassel, and H.-J. Schek, Eds. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1999, pp. 129–138.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  11. A. Rodríguez, Assessing Semantic Similarity Among Spatial Entity Classes, Ph.D. thesis, Department of Spatial Information Science and Engineering. Orono, ME: University of Maine, 2000.

    Google Scholar 

  12. G. Wiederhold and J. Jannink, Composing Diverse Ontologies, Stanford University 1998.

    Google Scholar 

  13. Chandrasekaran, J. R. Josephson, and V. R. Benjamins, What Are Ontologies? Why Do We Need Them?, IEEE Intelligent Systems, vol. 14, pp. 20–26, 1999.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. O. Günther and A. Voisard, Metadata in Geographic and Environmental Data Management, in Multimedia Data Management: Using Metadata to Integrate and Apply Digital Media, W. Klas and A. Sheth, Eds. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1998, pp. 57–87.

    Google Scholar 

  15. M. Gruninger and J. Lee, Ontology Applications and Design, Communications of the ACM, vol. 45, pp. 39–41, 2002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. S. Winter, Ontology: Buzzword or Paradigm Shift in GI Science?, International Journal of Geographical Information Science, vol. 15, pp. 587–590, 2001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. B. Smith and D. Mark, Geographical Categories: An Ontological Investigation, International Journal of Geographical Information Science, vol. 15, pp. 591–612, 2001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. B. Smith and D. Mark, Ontology and Geographic Kinds, International Symposium on Spatial Data Handling, Vancouver, BC, Canada, 1998.

    Google Scholar 

  19. B. Smith, An Introduction to Ontology, in The Ontology of Fields, B. Smith, D. Peuquet, and B. Brogaard, Eds. Santa Barbara, CA: National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis, 1998, pp. 10–14.

    Google Scholar 

  20. B. Smith and D. Mark, Ontology with Human Subjects Testing: An Empirical Investigation of Geographic Categories, The American Journal of Economics and Sociology, vol58, pp. 245–272, 1999.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. D. Mark, Toward a Theoretical Framework for Geographic Entity Types, in Spatial Information Theory, vol. 716, Lectures Notes in Computer Science, A. Frank and I. Campari, Ed. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1993, pp. 270–283.

    Google Scholar 

  22. A. Frank, Spatial Ontology, in Spatial and Temporal Reasoning, O. Stock, Ed. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic, 1997, pp. 135–153.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  23. A. Frank, Tiers of Ontology and Consistency Constraints in Geographical Information Systems, International Journal of Geographical Information Science, vol. 15, pp. 667–678, 2001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. F. Fonseca and M. Egenhofer, Ontology-Driven Geographic Information Systems, 7th ACM Symposium on Advances in Geographic Information Systems, C. Bauzer-Medeiros, Ed. Kansas City, MO, 1999.

    Google Scholar 

  25. T. Bittner and S. Winter, On Ontology in Image Analysis in Integrated Spatial Databases, in Integrated Spatial Databases: Digital Images and GIS—Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 1737, P. Agouris and A. Stefanidis, Eds. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1999, pp. 168–191.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  26. G. Câmara, A. Monteiro, J. Paiva, and R. Souza, Action-Driven Ontologies of the Geographical Space: Beyond the Field-Object Debate, GIScience 2000—First International Conference on Geographic Information Science, Savannah, GA, 2000.

    Google Scholar 

  27. A. Rodríguez, M. Egenhofer, and R. Rugg, Assessing Semantic Similarity Among Geo-spatial Feature Class Definitions, in Interoperating Geographic Information Systems—Second International Conference, INTEROP’99, vol. 1580, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, A. Vckovski, K. Brassel, and H.-J. Schek, Eds. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1999, pp. 167–202.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  28. A. Frank, Socio-Economic Units: Their Life and Motion, in Life and Motion of Socio-Economic Units, A. Frank, J. Raper, and J.-P. Cheylan, Eds. London: Taylor & Francis, 2001.

    Google Scholar 

  29. B. Smith, Objects and Their Environments: From Aristotle to Ecological Ontology, in Life and Motion of Socio-Economic Units, A. Frank, J. Raper, and J.-P. Cheylan, Eds. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis, 2001, pp. 79–97.

    Google Scholar 

  30. B. Smith and A. Varzi, The Niche, Noûs, vol. 33, pp. 214–238, 1999.

    MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  31. B. Smith and A. Varzi, The Formal Structure of Ecological Contexts, Modeling and Using Context—Second International and Interdisciplinary Conference, 1999.

    Google Scholar 

  32. F. Fonseca, Ontology-Driven Geographic Information Systems, Ph.D. thesis, Department of Spatial Information Science and Engineering. Orono, ME: University of Maine, 2001.

    Google Scholar 

  33. N. Guarino, Formal Ontology and Information Systems, in Formal Ontology in Information Systems, N. Guarino, Ed. Amsterdam, Netherlands: IOS Press, 1998, pp. 3–15.

    Google Scholar 

  34. T. Gruber, The Role of Common Ontology in Achieving Sharable, Reusable Knowledge Bases, Principles of Knowledge Representation and Reasoning, Cambridge, MA, 1991.

    Google Scholar 

  35. J. Nunes, Geographic Space as a Set of Concrete Geographical Entities, in Cognitive and Linguistic Aspects of Geographic Space, A. Frank and D. Mark, Eds. Norwell, MA: Kluwer Academic, 1991, pp. 9–33.

    Google Scholar 

  36. W. Kuhn, Metaphors Create Theories for Users, in Spatial Information Theory, vol. 716, Lectures Notes in Computer Science, A. Frank and I. Campari, Eds. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1993, pp. 366–376.

    Google Scholar 

  37. W. Kuhn, Are Displays Maps or Views?, AUTO-CARTO 10, Tenth International Symposium on Computer-Assisted Cartography, Baltimore, MD, 1991.

    Google Scholar 

  38. P. Simons, Parts: An Essay in Ontology. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1987.

    Google Scholar 

  39. B. Smith, On Drawing Lines on a Map, in Spatial Information Theory—A Theoretical Basis for GIS, International Conference COSIT’ 95, vol. 988, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, A. Frank and W. Kuhn, Eds. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1995, pp. 475–484.

    Google Scholar 

  40. G. Miller, R. Beckwith, C. Fellbaum, D. Gross, and K. Miller, Introduction to WordNet: An On-Line Lexical Database, International Journal of Lexicography, vol. 3, pp. 235–244, 1990.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. J. Gibson, The Ecological Approach to Visual Perception. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1979.

    Google Scholar 

  42. S. Khoshafian and R. Abnous, Object Orientation: Concepts, Languages, Databases, User Interfaces. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1990.

    MATH  Google Scholar 

  43. A. Car and A. Frank, General Principles of Hierarchical Spatial Reasoning—The Case of Wayfinding, Sixth International Symposium on Spatial Data Handling, Edinburgh, Scotland, 1994.

    Google Scholar 

  44. R. W. Langacker, Foundations of Cognitive Grammar, vol. 1. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1987.

    Google Scholar 

  45. B. Meyer, Object-Oriented Software Construction. New York: Prentice Hall, 1988.

    Google Scholar 

  46. E. Tempero and R. Biddle, Simulating Multiple Inheritance in Java, Victoria University of Wellington, School of Mathematical and Computing Sciences, Wellington, New Zealand CS-TR-98/1, May 1998.

    Google Scholar 

  47. N. Guarino, Concepts, Attributes and Arbitrary Relations, Data and Knowledge Engineering, vol. 8, pp. 249–261, 1992.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  48. I. Kant, The Critique of Judgment. Amherst, N.Y: Prometheus Books, 2000.

    Google Scholar 

  49. G. Spencer-Brown, Laws of Form. New York, NY: The Julian Press, 1972.

    Google Scholar 

  50. L. Kauffman and F. Varela, Form Dynamics, Journal of Social and Biological Structures, vol. 3, pp. 171–206, 1980.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Information Sciences and Technology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA

    Frederico Fonseca

  2. Psychology Department, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA

    James Martin

  3. Departamento de Ingeniería Informática y Ciencias de la Computación, Universidad de Concepción, Chile

    M. Andrea Rodríguez

Authors
  1. Frederico Fonseca
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. James Martin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. M. Andrea Rodríguez
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Spatial Information Science and Engineering, National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis, Orono, ME, 04469-5711, USA

    Max J. Egenhofer

  2. Department of Computer Science, University of Maine, Orono, ME, 04469-5711, USA

    Max J. Egenhofer

  3. National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis Department of Geography, University at Buffalo, 105 Wilkeson Quad., Box 610023, Buffalo, NY, 14261-0023, USA

    David M. Mark

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2002 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this paper

Cite this paper

Fonseca, F., Martin, J., Rodríguez, M.A. (2002). From Geo-to Eco-ontologies. In: Egenhofer, M.J., Mark, D.M. (eds) Geographic Information Science. GIScience 2002. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 2478. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-45799-2_7

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-45799-2_7

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-44253-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-45799-2

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation