1. 17.04.2007 | Folie 1 Ecoterm IV Ecoterm IV – Vienna 17 – 18 April 2007 1 Ecoterm IV - Vienna EcoInformatics Initiative

2. 17.04.2007 | Folie 2 Ecoterm IV Semantic Integration of Environmental Data Herbert Schentz START

3. 17.04.2007 | Folie 3 Ecoterm IV Overview Integrating Environmental Data Why We Need Semantics Helpful Technologies Ontologies in Networks Final Considertions

4. 17.04.2007 | Folie 4 Ecoterm IV Ecologists need data of various parts of nature ?

5. 17.04.2007 | Folie 5 Ecoterm IV Data are often stored in different databases at different sites

6. 17.04.2007 | Folie 6 Ecoterm IV Lots of questions are not even posed because getting data is too difficult ?

7. 17.04.2007 | Folie 7 Ecoterm IV Overview Integrating Environmental Data Why We Need Semantics Helpful Technologies Ontologies in Networks Final Considertions

8. 17.04.2007 | Folie 8 Ecoterm IV When you want to integrate the data many questions arise How was measuring (observation) done ? Which unit ? Which vegetation layer?, soil layer?, species ? How were the measurement sites selected ? When was the measurement done ? How often was the measurement repeated ? Who did the measurement ? Which important measurement was done in parallel ? Within which project was it done ? Special circumstances of measurement ?....... the meaning of data and metadata !

9. 17.04.2007 | Folie 9 Ecoterm IV attached Information ? It would be fine if the data would have attached something similar to the bar-code of products which allows to identify a lot of qualities of the product just by reading it

10. 17.04.2007 | Folie 10 Ecoterm IV The power of the barcode is the meaning connected to it

11. 17.04.2007 | Folie 11 Ecoterm IV Meaning is a sample of terms with relations between them producer product name price main deliverer product declarations transport stock

12. 17.04.2007 | Folie 12 Ecoterm IV Meaning is a sample of terms with relations between them unit value Measurement site limit of detection.... vegetation layer species parameter measured on has value measured for measured in lies in in with limit of dedection in

13. 17.04.2007 | Folie 13 Ecoterm IV We need a connection from the data to a description of their meaning ontology People who share a common description of the meaning of the data (common ontology) and have a common protocol for the interconnection can instantly correctly share their data.

14. 17.04.2007 | Folie 14 Ecoterm IV Interfaces, Thesauri, Metadata, Ontologies Thesauri More relations and rules Metadata Knowledge Representation Interfaces + semantic interoperability Ontologies Machine readability

15. 17.04.2007 | Folie 15 Ecoterm IV Overview Integrating environmental Data Why we need Semantics Helpful Technologies Ontologies in Networks Final Considertions

16. 17.04.2007 | Folie 16 Ecoterm IV Technologies of the Semantic Web The technologies of the semantic web can help us: They are designed to build structures that express meaning share those structures connect resources distributed all over the web be extended The basic construct is the RDF (Resource Description Framework) - triple

17. 17.04.2007 | Folie 17 Ecoterm IV RDF – the tripples Catmouse mamal is a hunts tailleghead has child bears

18. 17.04.2007 | Folie 18 Ecoterm IV Another set of RDF tripples Soil measurement result when siteparametermethod where what how layer On what timestampvalue

19. 17.04.2007 | Folie 19 Ecoterm IV RDFS / OWL the classes of tripples Soil measurement result when siteparametermethod where what how layer On what timestampvalue Definition S120A_Mg_2000 result when S120AMgAAS where what how Layer B On what 2000-06-040.003 = Class = OWL / RDFS Special Thing = instance = RDF

20. 17.04.2007 | Folie 20 Ecoterm IV Features of RDFS / OWL (1) Classes can be inhertited animal mammal rodent mouse isA Which means that mouse can always be treated as a rodent as a mammal as an animal Wherever rodent is allowed, mouse is allowed too (Polymorphism)

21. 17.04.2007 | Folie 21 Ecoterm IV Features of RDF / RDFS / OWL (2) All Entities (Classes, Relations, Instances can be distributed over several namespaces) WWW ontology on vegetation regions ontology on birds ontology on birdwatching sites ALTERRA (NL) GBIF Umweltbundesamt (A)

22. 17.04.2007 | Folie 22 Ecoterm IV Features of OWL (3) Relations can have restrictions (cardinalities,...) catmouse hunt some mammalhead has all 1

23. 17.04.2007 | Folie 23 Ecoterm IV RDF / RDFS and OWL are W3C recomandations RDF / RDFS / OWL They are constructed to be especially effective within the web (distributed ontologies) Lots of Communities are adopting them as standards Several tools exist for working with them: Editors Mapping tools rdbs – ontologies Mapping tools ontologies – GISs Transformation Tools XSDs  Ontologies ……

24. 17.04.2007 | Folie 24 Ecoterm IV Overview Integrating Environmental Data Why We Need Semantics Helpful Technologies Ontologies in Networks Final Considertions

25. 17.04.2007 | Folie 25 Ecoterm IV What else do we need ? ontologies Data that can be linked to ontologies mappings query engines search engines (geo) graphical displays......

26. 17.04.2007 | Folie 26 Ecoterm IV integrating environmental applications I ontology With semantically defined interfaces of webservices „SAWSDL“ Massflow Calculation Allowed Substances „Heavy Metals“ Allowed Plants „Vascular Plants“ & „Mosses“ Allowed Soil „Rentsina“ Allowed gographical Region „Alpine Region“ Ouput „Distribution“ after time t in „days“

27. 17.04.2007 | Folie 27 Ecoterm IV What do we need to build ontologies Thesauri Metadata Structures Collaboration efforts Knowledge Existing ongologies Tools for collaborative developement of ontologies

28. 17.04.2007 | Folie 28 Ecoterm IV Overview Integrating Environmental Data Why We Need Semantics Helpful Technologies Ontologies in Networks Final Considertions

29. 17.04.2007 | Folie 29 Ecoterm IV The socio- political component „.... This is more a social task than a technical task“, Midori Harris said at a conference on Ontologies in Edinburgh. We all knocked our heads. – so did I- and We went home to work on our technical solutions.

30. 17.04.2007 | Folie 30 Ecoterm IV Vicious circle

31. 17.04.2007 | Folie 31 Ecoterm IV Positive spirale Semantic Interoperability Based on Ontologies

32. 17.04.2007 | Folie 32 Ecoterm IV Ecoterm IV – Vienna 17 – 18 April 2007 32 Ecoterm IV - Vienna EcoInformatics Initiative Thank you for your attention I wish us a fruitfull conference herbert.schentz@umweltbundesamt.at http://www.umweltbundesamt.at