Descriptions and the Specialization of Concepts

Abstract

The OWL II System computes with expressions which describe an object from a particular viewpoint. These partial descriptions form a tree structure under the specialization operation, which preserves intensional properties. The descriptions are also related in terms of their extensions by characterization and exemplar links. Descriptions of individuals must always specify a context of the description. Eight ways in which one description can be a specialization of another are distinguished.