How an SME Might Assemble a KB from Components

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How an SME Might Assemblea KB from Components

• Bruce Porter (University of Texas)
• Peter Clark (Boeing)
• and Colleagues

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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

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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
• SMEs build knowledge bases by combining and
  customizing the components.

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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 viruss protein
  coat is degraded by the lysosomes acid.
  Finally, the viruss DNA is released into the
  cytoplasm near the cells replication machinery.

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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.

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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 Cells 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.
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SME A virus invades a cell.
System A virus invades a cell. OK.
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 well see later.

• This slide illustrates the systems
• acknowledgement of the SMEs
• input. The system underlines the
• terms that it understands.
• OK means that the SMEs input
• is sensible, in that
• the terms are in the systems lexicon
• the terms are used properly

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SME A virus invades a cell.
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 lysosomes and
DNA.
This illustrates the result of the SMEs
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.
Initially the virus is outside the
cell. Afterwards, its in the cells
cytoplasm. Structurally, it consists of a protein
coat surrounding a DNA protein.
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SME A virus invades a cell.
System A virus invades a cell. OK.
The virus first penetrates the cell membrane,
then it enters the cytoplasm of the cell, then it
takes control of the cell.
This illustrates the SMEs double-click on
invade, asking for more detail on that
event. The underlined terms can be further
expanded, as well see.
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SME A virus invades a cell.
System A virus invades a cell. OK.
The virus first penetrates the cell membrane,
then it enters the cytoplasm of the cell, then it
takes control of the cell.
This illustrates the SMEs double-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
acknowledges the new input by echoing its
interpretation of it, and the SME confirms the
details of endocytosis, then removes this detail
from the display.
The virus penetrates the cell membrane of the
cell.
SME This is by means of endocytosis.
The virus penetrates the cell membrane by means
of endocytosis. OK.
The cell creates a vesicle and draws the virus
into the vesicle.
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SME A virus invades a cell.
System A virus invades a cell. OK.
The virus first penetrates the cell membrane,
then it enters the cytoplasm of the cell, then it
takes control of the cell.
As on the previous slide, the SME asks for an
elaboration of enters, then supplements it with
additional information. (Because of space
constraints, Ill continue on the next slide,
and shrink the dialogue thats occurred so far.)
The virus enters the cytoplasm of the cell.
SME Its purpose is to deliver its DNA to the
cytoplasm of the cell.
The viruss purpose for entering the cytoplasm of
the cell is to deliver its DNA to the
cytoplasm of the cell. OK.
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SME A virus invades a cell.
System A virus invades a cell. OK.
The virus first penetrates the cell membrane,
then it enters the cytoplasm of the cell, then it
takes control of the cell.
The virus enters the cytoplasm of the cell.
SME Its purpose is to deliver its DNA to the
cytoplasm of the cell.
The viruss purpose for entering the cytoplasm of
the cell is to deliver its DNA to the
cytoplasm 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 DNA to the cytoplasm
of the cell, then it releases 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
vesicle And 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.
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SME A virus invades a cell.
System A virus invades a cell. OK.
The virus first penetrates the cell membrane,
then it enters the cytoplasm of the cell, then it
takes control of the cell.
The virus enters the cytoplasm of the cell.
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.
SME Its purpose is to deliver its DNA to the
cytoplasm of the cell.
The viruss purpose for entering the cytoplasm of
the cell is to deliver its DNA to the
cytoplasm of the cell. OK.
The virus first conveys its DNA to the cytoplasm
of the cell, then it releases 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 viruss
protein coat. Second, the viruss 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.
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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.

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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))) )))))
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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)))))))
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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 Spaces,
  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 ((ltgt (the inside of Self)))))))
(prevents ((every Dispersion with
(patient (,(the contains of Self)))
(destination (,(the Space
outside of Self))))))
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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 Spaces,
  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))))))
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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)))))))
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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 Spaces,
  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))))))))