How an SME Might Assemble a KB from Components Bruce Porter (University of Texas) Peter Clark (Boeing) and Colleagues

How an SME Might Assemblea KB from Components

Bruce Porter (University of Texas)

Peter Clark (Boeing)

and Colleagues

Desiderata for Rapid Knowledge Formation

1. Representations must be simple and clear

2. Input knowledge must be highly leveraged

3. Question-answering must be a constructive process

Building Representations from Reusable Components

• Knowledge engineers do the following:– build a component library containing high-level

and mid-level core concepts– develop methods for combining components

• SME’s build knowledge bases by combining and customizing the components.

Microbiology Example: How a virus invades a Cell

Some viruses invade a cell in the following way. First, the virus penetrates the cell membrane by endocytosis, which creates an intracellular vesicle containing the virus. Then, the vesicle fuses with a lysosome of the cell, thereby transferring the virus into the cytoplasm of the cell.

Once inside the lysosome, the virus’s protein coat is degraded by the lysosome’s acid. Finally, the virus’s DNA is released into the cytoplasm near the cell’s replication machinery.

How might an SME enter this knowledge?

• As a dialogue with a knowledgeable system, using a good Graphical User Interface

• With terse statements that are interpreted and expanded by the system.

Leveraging Input Knowledge• SME: “a virus invades a cell.”

• System: Therefore, from Enter: Initially, the virus is outside but near the cell.from Invade and the structure of Cell’s: The virus penetrates the cell membrane, then enters the cytoplasm of the cell.from Penetrate, a component of Invade: Once inside the cytoplasm, the virus is protected by the cell membrane.etc.

Which inferences are worthwhile? This is governed by subsequent input and questions from the SME.

SME: A virus invades a cell.

System: A virus invades a cell. OK.

This slide illustrates the system’sacknowledgement of the SME’s

input. The system underlines the terms that it “understands”.

“OK” means that the SME’s inputis sensible, in that:

• the terms are in the system’s lexicon• the terms are used properly

This is the first slide in a series showing a hypothetical dialogue

between an SME and a knowledgeable system.

Although this dialogue manager and interface have not been implemented,

the domain knowledge presented here has been fully encoded in KM

and the knowledge base is now able to answer a variety of test questions,

which we’ll see later.


Initially the virus is outside the cell.Afterwards, it’s in the cell’s cytoplasm.Structurally, it consists of a protein coat surrounding a DNA protein.…

System: A virus invades a cell.

The cell is invaded by the virus.Structurally, it consists of a cell membrane, which contains the cytoplasm, which contains lysosomesand DNA.…

This illustrates the resultof the SME’s double-click(“tell me more”) on the

terms virus and cell.

After reviewing the descriptions, the SME

elects to remove them from the display, to avoid clutter.

The virus first penetrates the cell membrane, then it enters thecytoplasm of the cell, then it takes control of the cell.



This illustrates the SME’sdouble-click on “invade”, asking for more detail on

that event.

The underlined terms can befurther expanded,

as we’ll see.




The virus penetrates thecell membrane of the cell.

This illustrates the SME’sdouble-click on “penetrate”

and the resulting display of detail.

Then, the SME supplements the description to say that the penetrate is “by means of”

Endocytosis.

Then, the system acknowledgesthe new input

by echoing its interpretation of it, and the SME confirms the details of endocytosis,

then removes this detail from the display.

SME: This is by means of endocytosis.

The virus penetrates thecell membrane by means of endocytosis. OK.

The cell creates a vesicle and draws the virus into the vesicle.




The virus enters the cytoplasm of the cell.

SME: It’s purpose is to deliver its DNA to the cytoplasm of the cell.

The virus’s purpose for entering the cytoplasmof the cell is to deliver its DNA to the cytoplasmof the cell. OK.

As on the previous slide, the SME asks for an elaborationof “enters”, then supplements it

with additional information.

(Because of space constraints,I’ll continue on the next slide, and shrink the dialogue that’s

occurred so far.)







The virus first conveys its DNAto the cytoplasm of the cell, then itreleases its DNA in the cytoplasm of the cell.

The virus conveys its DNA to the cytoplasm of the cell.

SME: This is by means of a fuse of the vesicleAnd a lysosome of the cell.

The convey is by means of a fuse of the vesicle created by the endocytosis and a lysosome of the cell. OK.

The SME continues to “drill down” on the convey event

in order to supplement it with “by means of” a fuse event.

Then the SME removes from the display

all the details below the green line.







The virus first conveys its DNAto the cytoplasm of the cell, then itreleases its DNA in the cytoplasm of the cell.

The virus releases its DNA in the cytoplasm of the cell.

SME: this occurs in two steps. First, the acid in the lysosome degrades the virus’s protein coat. Second, the virus’s DNA exits the lysosome into the cytoplasm of the cell.

The release occurs in two steps. First, the acid contained in the lysosome of the cell degrades the protein coat surrounding the virus. Second, the DNA part of the virus exits the lysosome of the cell into the cytoplasm of the cell. OK.

Now the SME “drills down” on the release event

in order to supplement it with a description of the two steps that comprise it.

That concludes the entry of knowledge required for our

current scenario.

Question Answering Capabilities

We are currently working on generating answers to some of the

test questions posed by Bob Schrag.

A sample of the results will go here.

Snippets of the Component LibraryUsed in the Scenario

• Move = event that changes the location of a TangibleThing• Convey = Move of a Container and its contents

(every Convey has (patient ((a Container))) the Defining property (causes ((forall (the contains of (the patient of Self)) (a Move with (patient ((It))) (source ((the source of Self))) (destination ((the destination of Self))) (concurrent-with ((Self))) )))))

Snippets of the Component Library Move = event that changes the location of a TangibleThing Convey = Move of a Container and its contents Release = Undo of a Hold

• Deliver = Convey then Release

(every Deliver has (agent ((a Container))) (patient ((a TangibleThing))) (subevents ((a Convey with (agent ((the agent of Self))) (patient ((the patient of Self))) (nextEvent ((the Release subevents of Self)))) (a Release with (agent ((the agent of Self))) (patient ((the patient of Self)))))))

Snippets of the Component Library Move = event that changes the location of a TangibleThing Convey = Move of a Container and its contents Release = Undo of a Hold Deliver = Convey then Release

• Container = Barrier that separates two Space’s, inside and outside

(every Container has (contains ((must-be-a TangibleThing))) (portal ((must-be-a Portal))) (inside ((a Space with (surroundedBy ((Self)))))) (outside ((a Space with (intersects ((<> (the inside of Self))))))) (prevents (‘(every Dispersion with (patient (#,(the contains of Self))) (destination (#,(the Space outside of Self)))))) …

Snippets of the Component Library Move = event that changes the location of a TangibleThing Convey = Move of a Container and its contents Release = Undo of a Hold Deliver = Convey then Release Container = Barrier that separates two Space’s, inside and outside

• Enter = Move into a Container through a Portal

(Enter has (superclasses (Move))(every Enter has (beneficiary ((a Container))) (source ((the outside of (the beneficiary of Self))) (destination ((the inside of (the beneficiary of Self))) (through ((:oneof (the portal of (the beneficiary of Self))))))

Snippets of the Component Library • InTake = action by a Container that causes an Enter• Penetrate = the Create of a Portal in a Barrier• Invade = Penetrate then Enter then TakeControl

(every Invade has (agent ((a TangibleThing with (goal ((a ToBe with (role (agent)) (roleIn (the TakeControl subevents of Self)))))))) (patient ((a Container))) (subevents ((a Penetrate with (agent ((the agent of Self))) (patient ((the patient of Self)))) (a Enter with (patient ((the agent of Self))) (beneficiary ((the patient of Self)))) (a TakeControl with (agent ((the agent of Self))) (patient ((the patient of Self)))))))

Snippets of the Component Library Move = event that changes the location of a TangibleThing Convey = Move of a Container and its contents Container = Barrier that separates two Space’s, inside and outside Enter = Move into a Container through a Portal InTake = action by a Container that causes an Enter

• Endocytosis = InTake by a Cell of an outside Particle

(Endocytosis has (superclasses (InTake)))(every Endocytosis has (agent ((a Cell))) (patient ((a TangibleThing))) (beneficiary ((the Vesicle creates of (the Invaginate subevents of Self)))) (subevents ((a Invaginate with ; Create of a Container in a Container (creates ((a Vesicle with (containedBy (the agent of Self))))) (a PinchOff with ; Close of a Vesicle (patient ((the Vesicle creates of (the Invaginate subevents of Self))))))))

Documents

How an SME Might Assemble a KB from Components Bruce Porter (University of Texas) Peter Clark (Boeing) and Colleagues