INFS4206
andINFS7206
Advanced Topics
inDatabase
Semester 2 2006
Students will learn about topics becoming important inadvanced database-oriented information systems development. Topics will varyfrom year to year depending on the knowledge and enthusiasms of the lecturingstaff. There will generally be two staff members assigned, so there willgenerally be two related but different topics.
In 2006, Bob Colomb and Guido Governatori will be teachingINFS4206
Brief descriptions(details at left): 1 Metamodeling - 2. DescriptionLogics
News
|
14 Sep 06 |
Marking:
The course has two parts. Each part is assessed with a group assignment worth
25 marks and one-half of the final examination, each worth 25 marks, total
100. However, in a part should a student score better on the final
examination than the assignment, the final examination mark will be doubled
and the assignment disregarded. So if a student scores 18 on an assignment
and 17 on the final exam in that part, their total mark will be 35/50. Should
they score 22 on the final exam, their total mark will be 44/50. |
|
6 Sep 06 |
The Lecture
Notes for the first lecture on Description Logics are now available. |
|
30 Aug 06 |
Elaboration
of q2: What I want you to do ultimately is to construct a MOF model of the
nominated aspect of OWL-S. One of the steps is to identify the key concepts.
So question 2 helps you by breaking out a preliminary step. You may refer to
sections rather than pages if you wish. The point is to enable you to refer
back to the specification when you need more detail on one of the key
concepts. |
|
30 Aug 06 |
Elaboration of q1: There are several languages in which
the specifications of a system can be expressed: we looked at BNF, MOF, RDFS
and natural language. There are others. You are going to make a specification
expressed in MOF. The question is: in what language is the specification in
the OWL-S document expressed? |
|
24 Aug 06 |
"In point 3 there is a reference to page 29. Differing renderings of the spec have different pagination. The example is in section 5.5, following the sentence "Here is our complete example tableau, with all data flows ..." |
|
24 Aug 06 |
Some figures in the OWL-S spec are missing. The original source is here. Note that you may use any resources you can find for the assignment, including Google. |
|
24 July 06 |
Printed lecture notes will be available from the Bookstore POD centre from 25 July |
|
20 July 06 |
Metamodeling section now current. Description Logics section under construction. |
|
19 July 06 |
The lectures of metamodeling are current. The assignment is under construction |
Metamodeling (Bob)
Information systems are designed and built using advanced andcomplex models such as UML and the tools used to model business processmanagement. The design itself is a large data structure organised according tothe models used. Information systems are good at keeping track of large complexdata structures, so design tools are generally supported by databases calledrepositories. The schemas for repositories are organized from the structures ofthe models. These structures are called metamodels, since they are models ofmodeling methods, and are modeled using metamodeling tools such as the ObjectManagement Group’s Meta-Object Facility, or MOF. In this model you will learnhow modeling tools are designed, how the metamodels can be used to designmappings from one metamodel to another, and how generic applications can bedesigned using Model-Driven Architecture.
Formal
Modellingwith Description Logic (Guido)
Conceptual modelling is an
essentialpart of the design of modern information systems, and it is often done
with graphicallanguages (Entity-Relationship model, UML). These languages are
important forthe design of an information systems but do not provide facilities
to reasoningand verify properties of the models. The course presents an
approach toconceptual data modeling based on the use of Description Logics
(DLs), whichare logics specifically designed to represent classes and
relationships amongclasses. Standard formalisms used for conceptual data
modeling can be equippedwith a formal semantics; accordingly formalization in
terms of DLs providesadded value and support to the designer by allowing her to
detect relevantformal properties of the design.
Materials for this course are presently being developed.More details will be posted as they become available.
For enquiries, please contact Bob Colomb for metamodelling and Guido Governatori for DescriptionLogic.