Re: Topic :> Dynamics Of Ontologies

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Topic :> Dynamics Of Ontologies 12

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Visible Inquiry (concl.)

The deliberately controlled orbit of a well-formed inquiry proceeds
through the phases of abductive, deductive, and inductive reasoning.
If one examines the larger context more closely, one finds that the
preliminary activity of observation is constructed along lines that
are very analogous to a complete loop of inquiry, with the possible
exception that it may be an uncontrolled action that is given to us
by one of two sources, by nature's evolution of a sensory reflex or
by nurture's inuration to automatic habits of information gathering.

When the theoretical model and the descriptive data are at variance,
there are a number of very different ways that this can happen, and
thus there are a number of very different options for resolving the
discrepancies.  In the application setting with which our paper was
chiefly concerned, it is often the case that many of the underlying
assumptions and tacit knowledge have not been clearly identified as
part of the theory.  It frequently helps to improve the theory when
these unnoticed bits of hidden belief and implicit knowledge can be
brought to light.

Figure 2.5 indicates the function of a process called "clarification"
that revises the initial theory in a way that hopefully moves toward
an ideal theory of the phenomenon in question, a theory whose models
would match more or less exactly the descriptive data that is given.

o-----------------------------------------------------------o
|                                                           |
|                           Phenomenon                      |
|                                o                          |
|                                 >                         |
|                                  >                        |
|                                   >                       |
|                               Observation                 |
|                                     >                     |
|                                      >                    |
|                                       >                   |
|                                        >    Descriptive   |
|                            Induction    >   Data          |
|       Initial Model  3<----------------->1  =             |
|                     ^                 < ^   Ideal         |
|                    ^               <   ^    Model         |
|                   ^             <     ^                   |
|                  ^           <       ^                    |
|      Deduction  ^     Abduction     ^  Deduction          |
|                ^       <           ^                      |
|               ^     <             ^                       |
|              ^   <               ^                        |
|             ^ <                 ^                         |
|   Initial  2<----------------->4  Ideal                   |
|   Theory       Clarification      Theory                  |
|                                                           |
o-----------------------------------------------------------o
Figure 2.5.  Dynamics of Inquiry -- Clarification

These steps are repeated and refined to bring the current model
closer and closer to the actual phenomenon, as described in the
current accumulation of descriptive data, and thus to bring the
current theory closer and closer to the ideal theory.

Jon Awbrey

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