Knowledge Gardening with CALO Jack Park SRI International, Menlo Park, California And Knowledge Media Institute, Open University, Milton Keynes, U.K . Topic Maps Research and Applications TMRA 2008 Leipzig, Germany 15-17 October, 2008

Image copyright Paul Bourke and Gayla Chandler, used with permission. http://local.wasp.uwa.edu.au/~pbourke/ Childhood’s End From: Document Centric To: Subject Centric Computing

Goals Move CALO discussion from Document-centric computing to Subject-centric computing Introduce social computing to CALO Show benefits of collective sensemaking with CALO Illustrate a Dashboard component for DocAssist

Move CALO discussion from Document-centric computing to Subject-centric computing

Introduce social computing to CALO

Show benefits of collective sensemaking with CALO

Illustrate a Dashboard component for DocAssist

Agenda Background Ideas and Concepts Knowledge Gardening Overview CALO’s Knowledge Gardening Tools Knowledge Gardening with CALO

Background Ideas and Concepts

Knowledge Gardening Overview

CALO’s Knowledge Gardening Tools

Knowledge Gardening with CALO

From Documents To Subjects CALO My Subjects

Subject-Centric Collaboration with CALO Groups of CALO Users share and evolve subjects they harvest CALO My Subjects CALO My Subjects CALO My Subjects CALO My Subjects CALO My Subjects Knowledge Garden Our Subjects

Background: Documents Are organized in a linear topology Are Unstructured Contain references to: Subjects Relationships Ideas Are harvested by Finding structure Finding subjects within that structure Federating with subjects found in other documents

Are organized in a linear topology

Are Unstructured

Contain references to:

Subjects

Relationships

Ideas

Are harvested by

Finding structure

Finding subjects within that structure

Federating with subjects found in other documents

Background: Subjects Are defined as anything you want to think or talk about Include concrete things People, places, events, goals, … Include abstract things Ideas, concepts that don’t have concrete examples e.g. “shoe-ness”—the notion of what it is to be a shoe Shoes are concrete and ephermeral “ shoe-ness” is just a term we invent when we need it

Are defined as anything you want to think or talk about

Include concrete things

People, places, events, goals, …

Include abstract things

Ideas, concepts that don’t have concrete examples

e.g. “shoe-ness”—the notion of what it is to be a shoe

Shoes are concrete and ephermeral

“ shoe-ness” is just a term we invent when we need it

Finding Structure Documents can be mapped From unstructured, linear text To structured representations: issue maps Teasing structure out of linear text After Jeff Conklin: http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v =pxS5wUljfjE

Documents can be mapped

From unstructured, linear text

To structured representations: issue maps

Example OpEd Document Food Crisis Related to Competing Uses of Crops

Issue Map of OpEd Made with Compendium

Key Node in the Issue Map And Entailed Subjects Subjects related to production of crops that feed beef Many subjects are found in every document, every story. A task for CALO is to facilitate capturing and representing those subjects and their relationships. A later task is reminding with the Dashboard.

Knowledge Gardening with CALO Image Courtesy Katy Borner Large-scale Discourse: Sharing and discussing subjects

Knowledge gardening is… Collaborative problem solving in rugged fitness landscapes Images: http://www.turbophoto.com/Free-Stock-Images/ Focusing on details and working together Understanding big pictures

Knowledge gardening is… Facilitating large-scale discourse Towards a cultivated ecosystem… ordered gardens wild borders ordered gardens wild borders Structured but emergent networks of claims and arguments Informally expressed claims and arguments, awaiting ‘proper linkage’ Source: Simon Buckingham Shum

Towards a cultivated ecosystem…

Knowledge Gardening is… People Collecting Organizing Discussing Cultivating Knowledge Federated Information resources Blogs Emails Stories Dialogs Tags Annotations … Tools Web portals Knowledge maps Processes Sensemaking Hypermedia Discourse Federation Image copyright Alan Jaras, used with permission http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanjaras /

People

Collecting

Organizing

Discussing

Cultivating

Knowledge

Federated Information resources

Blogs

Emails

Stories

Dialogs

Tags

Annotations

…

Tools

Web portals

Knowledge maps

Processes

Sensemaking

Hypermedia Discourse

Federation

Knowledge Gardening is based on Douglas Engelbart’s Dynamic Knowledge Repository (DKR) Software Infrastructure Memory, Collaboration DKR = People + Tools Learning Communities

Knowledge Gardening as Federated Human Knowledge Subject Domains Related to CALO Projects Learning Cultures Politics History Religion Simulation Wellness Nutrition Addictions Aging Cancer Knowledge Garden

Knowledge Gardening: Subject-centric Federation Federation: bringing heterogeneous information resources together Subject-centric organization: Co-locating representations of the same subject together in a knowledge map A map is not the territory it represents Provides well-organized collective memory

Federation:

bringing heterogeneous information resources together

Subject-centric organization:

Co-locating representations of the same subject together in a knowledge map

A map is not the territory it represents

Provides well-organized collective memory

Knowledge Maps as Collective Memory A Topic Map lies above information resources (documents) and weaves that information into a fabric made of subjects and their relationships that serves as a collective memory Source: Steve Pepper

Gardening with Tagomizer A User asserts a Tag on a Resource A tag is a reminder that associates the resource with CALO projects, or subjects, relationships, or other ideas mentioned in the resource “ Semantic Desktop”

Tagging and Annotating Bookmarking with Tagomizer facilitates Tagging and Annotating. An annotation is fully addressable, editable, and can be tagged or annotated.

Gardening By Connecting A User asserts a relationship between ideas expressed at two different resources Semantic Desktop concept “ is exemplified by ” OpenIris.org

Connecting with Cohere

Gardening through Dialogue Users Ask and Answer Questions, and Discuss the Answers Compendium Screenshot

Dialogue with DebateGraph

DocAssist: CALO’s Knowledge Gardening Tools Assist in Document Preparation Serves to assist in mapping subjects and relationships back to documents for distribution or use in events Three (present) components Tagomizer PowerPoint Harvester Dashboard (in preparation)

Assist in Document Preparation

Serves to assist in mapping subjects and relationships back to documents for distribution or use in events

Three (present) components

Tagomizer

PowerPoint Harvester

Dashboard (in preparation)

CALO’s DocAssist First project Tagomizer Support Social Tagging Learning in the wild Contributes to Subject Map Second project PowerPoint Harvester Harvest PowerPoint presentations Cluster them Select and organize slides for a new presentation Third project Dashboard Supports document preparation with Well-organized subject-related information resources Copy and paste Reminding Works with Tagomizer Subject Map Issue maps PowerPoint Harvester CALO PrePak …

First project

Tagomizer

Support Social Tagging

Learning in the wild

Contributes to Subject Map

Second project

PowerPoint Harvester

Harvest PowerPoint presentations

Cluster them

Select and organize slides for a new presentation

Third project

Dashboard

Supports document preparation with

Well-organized subject-related information resources

Copy and paste

Reminding

Works with

Tagomizer

Subject Map

Issue maps

PowerPoint Harvester

CALO PrePak

…

DocAssist PowerPoint Harvester Find and recombine subjects from PowerPoint slides

DocAssist Dashboard Provides Mashup of selected information resources Copy and Paste resources into document Reminding of key concepts Rapid access to related resources

Provides

Mashup of selected information resources

Copy and Paste resources into document

Reminding of key concepts

Rapid access to related resources

Knowledge Gardening With CALO Stages of Basic Research Behaviors Forage  Filter  Analyze  Synthesize At each stage Capture results Dialogue where appropriate Behaviors part of a larger Sensemaking Strategy

Stages of Basic Research Behaviors

Forage  Filter  Analyze  Synthesize

At each stage

Capture results

Dialogue where appropriate

Behaviors part of a larger Sensemaking Strategy

Forage Stage Information seeking Goal directed Thematic vagabonding Processes Search Tagging Leave trails, scents, markers Tagging principles Direct association with projects Direct association with subjects and ideas found in resources Annotating Represent ideas found in resources Link ideas with coherence relations

Information seeking

Goal directed

Thematic vagabonding

Processes

Search

Tagging

Leave trails, scents, markers

Tagging principles

Direct association with projects

Direct association with subjects and ideas found in resources

Annotating

Represent ideas found in resources

Link ideas with coherence relations

Filter Stage Tagging approach Tag retrieved resources according to opinions of value/contribution to a project/goal Dialogue approach Ask and answer questions related to value/contribution of a resource to a project/goal Annotation approach Use coherence relations to assert relationships of resources to project/goal

Tagging approach

Tag retrieved resources according to opinions of value/contribution to a project/goal

Dialogue approach

Ask and answer questions related to value/contribution of a resource to a project/goal

Annotation approach

Use coherence relations to assert relationships of resources to project/goal

Analysis Stage Create documents Reports, slides, etc Reveal new/discovered subjects Reveal new/discovered relationships Publish documents Dialogue details of the documents

Create documents

Reports, slides, etc

Reveal new/discovered subjects

Reveal new/discovered relationships

Publish documents

Dialogue details of the documents

Synthesis Stage Tie results to the larger picture Find and declare meanings of results Find and declare values of results

Tie results to the larger picture

Find and declare meanings of results

Find and declare values of results

Sensemaking Strategy From starting goals Iterate on these elements uncovered through research behaviors : Actors Relations States Rules/laws Ask questions Seek answers Gowin’s Vee Diagram * * Novak, J. D., and D. B. Gowin (1984). Learning How to Learn. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

From starting goals

Iterate on these elements uncovered through research behaviors :

Actors

Relations

States

Rules/laws

Ask questions

Seek answers

Contributions of this work Provide a candidate on-line collaboratory for CALO users Provides a topic map that maintains the subject-centric federation of CALO users’ resources Adds value to Tagomizer Turns it into the full topic map it was designed to be Supports the new DocAssist Dashboard Provides a new framework for further learning research Transfer learning through federation LITW through emerging discoveries based on collective sensemaking

Provide a candidate on-line collaboratory for CALO users

Provides a topic map that maintains the subject-centric federation of CALO users’ resources

Adds value to Tagomizer

Turns it into the full topic map it was designed to be

Supports the new DocAssist Dashboard

Provides a new framework for further learning research

Transfer learning through federation

LITW through emerging discoveries based on collective sensemaking

Questions? Thank You! [email_address]