COMP5960M Week 8: Applications of Semantic Technologies
1. IBM Watson used semantic techologies as part of its operation
• This is a video of the game of Jeopardy played by Watson
IBM’s Watson Supercomputer Destroys Humans in Jeopardy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFR3lOm_xhE
• This video gives a basic idea of some of the scientific challenges IBM Watson: The Science Behind an Answer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DywO4zksfXw
• This paper (included on Minerva) gives a more detailed overview D. A. Ferrucci, Introduction to “This is Watson”,
IBM Journal of Research and Development, vol. 56, no. 3-4, pp. 1:1-1:15, May-June 2012.
2. This lecture describes research, in which Leeds was involved, in which semantic technologies were used in an engineering context
V. Dimitrova, PADTUN – Using Semantic Technologies in Tunnel Diagnosis and Maintenance Domain http://videolectures.net/eswc2015_dimitrova_tunnel_diagnosis/
3. When studying the above resources look out for and ask yourself:
• Which aspects of semantic technologies are being used? Is it a formal
ontology as in OWL with axioms, or is it more like triples making up a
Knowledge Graph?
• How do the semantic aspects fit into the overall architecture? Are they a
small part of a much larger system, or the major part of what is described? How do the semantic technologies interact with other things? Does this need for interaction affect
• Why are they using semantic technologies at all? What do semantic techologies provide that other technologies do not for the particular application?
4. Topical issue: what is the impact of COVID-19 on semantic technologies? You can find examples such as these:
• From schema.org https://schema.org/docs/search_results.html?q=covid ask yourself what the purpose of these changes is and how they might be used. Could they really have any practical impact?
• How has SNOMED changed in response? www.snomed.org/news-and-events/articles/march-2020-interim-snomedct-release-COVID-19
• What other examples can you find of semantics in relation to COVID-19?