A Semantic Web Based Search Engine with X3D Visualisation of Queries and Results

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A Semantic Web Based Search Engine with X3D Visualisation of Queries and Results University of Plymouth PEARL https://pearl.plymouth.ac.uk 04 University of Plymouth Research Theses 01 Research Theses Main Collection 2013 A Semantic Web Based Search Engine with X3D Visualisation of Queries and Results Gkoutzis, Konstantinos http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/1595 University of Plymouth All content in PEARL is protected by copyright law. Author manuscripts are made available in accordance with publisher policies. Please cite only the published version using the details provided on the item record or document. In the absence of an open licence (e.g. Creative Commons), permissions for further reuse of content should be sought from the publisher or author. A Semantic Web Based Search Engine with X3D Visualisation of Queries and Results by Konstantinos Gkoutzis A thesis submitted to Plymouth University in partial fulfilment for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Computing and Mathematics Faculty of Science and Technology Plymouth University September 2012 Dedication To my parents Ioannis and Maria, and my fiancée Evie :) Thank you. Copyright Statement This copy of the thesis has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it is understood to recognise that its copyright rests solely with its author and that no quotation from the thesis and no information derived from it may be published without the author's prior consent. Abstract A Semantic Web Based Search Engine with X3D Visualisation of Queries and Results by Konstantinos Gkoutzis Abstract The Semantic Web project has introduced new techniques for managing information. Data can now be organised more efficiently and in such a way that computers can take advantage of the relationships that characterise the given input to present more relevant output. Semantic Web based search engines can quickly educe exactly what is needed to be found and retrieve it while avoiding information overload. Up until now, search engines have interacted with their users by asking them to look for words and phrases. We propose the creation of a new generation Semantic Web search engine that will offer a visual interface for queries and results. To create such an engine, information input must be viewed not merely as keywords, but as specific concepts and objects which are all part of the same universal system. To make the manipulation of the interconnected visual objects simpler and more natural, 3D graphics are utilised, based on the X3D Web standard, allowing users to semantically synthesise their queries faster and in a more logical way, both for them and the computer. Konstantinos Gkoutzis ix Acknowledgements Acknowledgements I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks, from the bottom of my heart, to: My father, Ioannis, and my mother, Maria, for helping me and supporting me, in so many ways, throughout my life. Without them I would not be the man I am today. My fiancée, Evie, for all her help, patience and support all these years that I have been implementing my thesis. Her presence and impact in my life has given me the strength and courage to go on. My aunts, Aggeliki and Eleni, and my sisters, Vivian and Stella, for providing all their help and support; each one in their own, unique, way. My friend, and future brother-in-law, Anthony, for his invaluable help whenever I needed additional support. My friend, and future best man, Thodori, for his patience and understanding during the long implementation of this thesis. My second supervisor, Mr Brian Mushens, and my extremely helpful R&I administrators, Carole and Lucy, for always being there for me to answer my questions and help me overcome all problems. And finally, but more importantly, my exceptional Director of Studies, Professor Vladimir Geroimenko, who has helped me, supported me and made me feel at home even from the first day we met. Thank you for all your valuable comments, suggestions, guidance, patience and understanding over all these years. I hope this thesis will manage to demonstrate all the hard work I have done and make you proud of the results. Konstantinos Gkoutzis xi Acknowledgements Declaration At no time during the registration for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy has the author been registered for any other University award without prior agreement of the Graduate Committee. This study was 100% self-funded. Relevant scientific seminars and conferences were attended and work was presented and published. o Scientific Publications: 1 o Relevant Presentations, Conferences and Seminars Attended: 5 Word count of the thesis: 34,670 Konstantinos Gkoutzis Signed: ____________________ Date: ____________________ xii Konstantinos Gkoutzis Table of Contents Table of Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................... ix Acknowledgements .................................................................................................... xi Declaration ................................................................................................................ xii Table of Contents ......................................................................................................xiii Table of Figures ...................................................................................................... xviii Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Philosophical Overview ...................................................................................... 1 1.1.1 From Data to Wisdom ................................................................................. 1 1.1.2 From Computing to Creativity ...................................................................... 3 1.2 Problem Overview ............................................................................................. 4 1.3 Objectives and Contributions ............................................................................. 5 1.4 Thesis Structure ................................................................................................. 7 1.5 Summary ........................................................................................................... 8 Chapter 2: Background & Related Work ..................................................................... 9 2.1 Historical Breakthroughs .................................................................................... 9 2.1.1 Moving Away from Paper ............................................................................ 9 2.1.2 The Creation of “The Web” ........................................................................ 10 2.1.3 From “The Web” to “The Semantic Web” .................................................. 13 2.1.4 From “Search Engines” to “Semantic Web Search Engines” .................... 16 2.1.5 Blogs, Social Networking and the “Web 2.0” Trend ................................... 21 2.1.6 3D Environments and Virtual Worlds ......................................................... 23 2.2 Technologies and Techniques ......................................................................... 26 Konstantinos Gkoutzis xiii Table of Contents 2.3 Summary ......................................................................................................... 28 Chapter 3: Motivation & Problem Statement ............................................................. 29 3.1 Thesis Motivation ............................................................................................ 29 3.2 The Future Web: Social, Semantic and 3D ..................................................... 31 3.2.1 Creating an Information Driven Community .............................................. 33 3.2.2 Making Data Management User Friendly ................................................. 34 3.2.3 Social Semantics Drawbacks ................................................................... 36 3.3 The Bigger Picture: Metakosmos .................................................................... 37 3.3.1 Social Knowledge Management ............................................................... 37 3.3.2 Synthesising, Integrating and Sharing ...................................................... 39 3.3.3 Adding a 3D User Interface ...................................................................... 40 3.4 Summary ......................................................................................................... 41 Chapter 4: Analysis & Definition ............................................................................... 42 4.1 Prologue .......................................................................................................... 42 4.2 The Universal System ..................................................................................... 43 4.3 The Reputation Levels .................................................................................... 44 4.4 The Universal Ontology ................................................................................... 47 4.5 The Specifics of the Search Mechanism ......................................................... 48 4.6 Project Sustainability ....................................................................................... 51 4.6.1 Economic Factors ..................................................................................... 51 4.6.2 Legal Factors ............................................................................................ 52 4.7 A Summary of New Ideas ...............................................................................
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