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Sparrow Language

Difference between version 32 and version 16:

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- !!! Sparrow Basics
+ !!! Sparrow
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- Sparrow, like description logics, represent ontologies using concepts, roles, and individuals.
+ Sparrow, like description logics, represent ontologies using concepts, roles, and individuals. We desribe each of these below.
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- In sparrow, concepts are defined using ''sentences.'' For instance, we can introduce a new concept called 'Vegetarian' into an ontology using the following sentence.
+ !! Concepts
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+ In sparrow, concepts are defined using ''sentences.'' For instance, we can introduce a new concept called 'Vegetarian' using the following sentence.
+
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- This sentence simply states that the term 'Vegetarian' is a concept. In the above sentence, the term 'concept' is a reserved word. Concepts definitions can be further elaborated using ''concept axioms.'' Consider the following sentence.
+ This sentence simply states that the 'Vegetarian' is a concept. Note that the term 'concept' is a reserved word in the sparrow language. A concept can be further elaborated using ''concept axioms,'' which are essentially more complex sentences of a restricted form. Consider the following example.
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- concept Animal kind_of Organism
+ concept Animal kind-of Organism
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- This sentence states that the concept 'Animal' is a sub-concept of the concept 'Organism'. In other words, every animal is an organism. The term 'kind_of' is a reserved word (sometimes referred to as "isa"). Both 'Animal' and 'Organism' are asserted as being concepts by this sentence. The sentence is equivalent to the following three sparrow sentences.
+ This sentence states that 'Animal' is a subconcept of 'Organism'. In other words, every animal is an organism. The term 'kind-of' is a reserved word (sometimes referred to as "is-a"). The sentence is considered an axiom because it is asserting a rule, or relationship, that is assumed to hold between 'Animal' and 'Organism'. Namely, that being an animal implies being an organism.
+
+ Both 'Animal' and 'Organism' are asserted as being concepts by this sentence. The sentence is equivalent to the following three sparrow sentences.
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- concept Animal kind_of Organism.
+ concept Animal kind-of Organism
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- concept Animal kind_of Organism
- concept Animal kind_of not Plant
+ concept Animal kind-of Organism
+ concept Animal kind-of not Plant
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- concept Animal kind_of Organism and not Plant
+ concept Animal kind-of Organism and not Plant
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- Here, the terms 'and' and 'not' are sparrow reserved words. The sentence states that an animal is an organism but not a plant.
+ Here the terms 'and' and 'not' are sparrow reserved words. The sentence states that an animal is an organism but not a plant. For convenience, 'and' can be replaced by the term 'but', for example:
+
+ {{{
+ concept Animal kind-of Organism but not Plant
+ }}}
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- CONCEPT animal KIND_OF organism AND NOT plant
+ CONCEPT animal KIND-OF organism BUT NOT plant
+ }}}
+
+ Another type of concept axiom that can be expressed in sparrow is equivalence among concepts. For example, consider the following sentence.
+
+ {{{
+ concept Human same-as Person
+ }}}
+
+ This sentence asserts that 'Human' and 'Person' denote the same concept.
+
+
+ !! Roles
+
+ A more complex example ...
+
+ {{{
+ concept Macromolecule same-as Molecule that contains at-least 100 Atom
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- !!! Complex Concept Definitions
+
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+ !! Individuals
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+
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- import yourOnt 'http://seek.ecoinformatic.org/ontology2#'
+ import yourOnt 'http://seek.ecoinformatics.org/ontology2#'
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+ !!! Sparrow Reserved Wordsf
+
+ ||reserved word||variant
+ | and | but, that

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