[XML-DEV Mailing List Archive Home] [By Thread] [By Date] [Recent Entries] [Reply To This Message] Re: Beyond Ontologies
Hi Folks, There is a great discussion of this occurring on xml-dev. From what I have read, a characteristic of complex systems is that small changes/differences are magnified. They even have a name for this characteristic - the Butterfly Effect Butterfly Effect - a butterfly stirring the air today in Peking can transform storm systems next month in New York. Beta vs VHS An example of the Butterfly Effect in the economy is shown with Beta versus VHS videotapes. A small difference in the initial user-base (in favor of VHS) resulted in an avalanche of people purchasing VHS machines (despite Beta being technically superior). Thus, a small difference was greatly magnified. Rummy World Mike Champion gave an excellent example of how new semantics can pop up literally overnight: > Here's an example: What/where is "Rummy World"? The > #2 hit on Google for that term already gets it right > (Iraq). I could probably construct a tortured line of > "reasoning" to explain how this would fit into an > ontology, but AFAIK Garry Trudeau > [http://www.ucomics.com/doonesbury/2003/09/23/] just > created it out of thin air because the idea that Sec. > Rumsfeld and friends have created a terrorist > playground in Iraq produced a mordantly funny image in > his mind. The introduction of this small Rummy World article on the Web was quickly taken up and amplified. The word Rummy World went from obscurity to a world-wide term virtually overnight. Again, small initial conditions were greatly magnified. Conclusions: the Web is a complex system. Semantics changes. Comments? /Roger
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