1 Five Steps to Interoperability (in the domain of scientific ontology) Barry Smith

2 STEP ONE Free yourself from the idea that ontologies are about concepts (the meanings of words) Get used to the idea that ontologies are about types (kinds, universals) in reality Find ways to use reality to take care of interoperability (when scientists disagree they let reality tell them how to resolve their disagreement – they look at instances)

3 siamese mammal cat organism substance types animal instances frog

4 STEP TWO Distinguish clearly between types (universals, kinds), the kinds of things represented in ontologies and textbooks and the instances (tokens, individuals), represented in clinical records or lab notes Recognize that an ontology consists of names for types and of representations of relations between types defined in terms of underlying relations between instances

5 STEP THREE Recognize correspondingly that there are three kinds of relations : is_a, part_of,... [used in ontologies] : this explosion instance_of the class explosion [which link ontologies to the real world below] : Marys heart part_of Mary [which link together the particulars in the real world below]

6 STEP FOUR Use a coherent upper level taxonomy distinguishing continuants (cells, molecules, organisms...) occurrents (events, processes) dependent entities (qualities, functions...) independent entities (their bearers)

7 STEP FIVE Coordinate, coordinate, coordinate