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Willpower - Glossary of terms relating to thesauri Category: Mathematics and statistics > thesauri Date & country: 14/09/2007, UK Words: 76

array
(a) a set of sibling terms or (b) a subset of sibling terms grouped under a node label which specifies a characteristic of division

authority file
use authority list

authority list
use for authority file. controlled vocabulary, generally of proper names, for use in naming particular entities consistently Separate authority lists may be maintained for different types of entity; for example there may be separate lists for personal names, organization names and geographical names. The format of names used in an authority file should be documented and preferabl

British Tabulating Machine Company
merged into International Computers and Tabulators

browsing
finding information by examining lists or sequences of items, typically starting with general items and, on the basis of what has been found there, moving to more specific items

caption
statement of the subjects represented by a notation in a classification scheme A caption may have to be read in conjunction with its hierarchical context. It need not be as complete or as self-contained as a scope note or even a preferred term in a thesaurus.

chain index
an index to a classification scheme, in which entries are generated by successive left truncation of strings of terms representing compound concepts

citation order
order in which preferred-terms or notations are combined in a pre-coordinate indexing system or a classification scheme to form strings representing compound concepts The choice of citation order determines which concepts are the most important to be grouped together in a catalogue or list, and increases consistency in the construction of strings for similar subjects. Citation order is usually specified in terms of the facets to which concepts belong or the roles that they play in relation to other concepts in the string. A sequence that is often appropriate, especially for technical subjects, is:

classification
grouping together of similar or related things and the separation of dissimilar or unrelated things and the arrangement of the resulting groups in a logical and helpful sequence

classification scheme
schedule of concepts, arranged by classification A classification scheme may also include an index.

classified display
display of a thesaurus structure in which terms representing concepts are brought together because of the subjects to which they relate Such a display may contain sections of hierarchical display, but may also bring together related terms from different facets, such as the people, activities and objects relating to a subject. Classified displays may include node labels containing facet names as well as node labels specifying characteristics of division. An example of a classified display is shown under node label.

coined term
a new term created to express a concept for which no suitable term exists in the required language.

collection
the set of documents that may be accessed by a structured vocabulary, whether the items in it are collected in one place or distributed over a network

complex concept
concept that combines two or more simpler concepts. human resource management combines the idea of people with their usefulness as resources requiring management. Complex concepts are sometimes expressed in a single word, but are more often conveyed by a multi-word term.

concept
unit of thought. The semantic content of a concept can be re-expressed by a combination of other and different concepts, which may vary from one language or culture to another. Concepts exist in the mind as abstract entities which are independent of the terms used to label them.

concept scheme
set of concepts, optionally including statements about semantic relationships between those concepts. Thesauri, classification schemes, subject heading lists, taxonomies, terminologies, glossaries and other types of controlled vocabularies are all examples of concept schemes.

controlled vocabulary
prescribed list of terms or headings each one having an assigned meaning. Controlled vocabularies are designed for use in classifying or indexing documents and for searching them. They normally contain a unique preferred term for each concept or entity with links to that term from non-preferred terms. They may also show relationships between terms.

enumerative classification scheme
classification scheme in which all the concepts available for use are listed in the schedules. Compare with synthetic classification scheme.

equivalence relationship
relationship between two terms that both represent the same concept. When two or more such terms are in the same monolingualthesaurus, one of them is designated a preferred term and the other(s) non-preferred term(s); the relationship is known as intra-vocabulary equivalence. When both terms are preferred terms in different thesauri, the relationship is known as cross-vocabulary equivalence.

facet
grouping of concepts of the same inherent category Examples of categories that may be used for grouping concepts into facets are: activities, disciplines, people, materials, living organisms, objects, places and times. e.g. (1) animals, mice, daffodils and bacteria could all be members of a living organisms facet; (2) digging, writing and cooking could all be members of an activities facet; (3) Paris, the United Kingdom and the Alps could all be members of a places facet.

facet analysis
analysis of subject areas into constituent concepts grouped into facets

facet indicator
notational device that indicates the start of a new facet within a synthesized compound classmark. Examples of facet indicators are the 0 in the Dewey Decimal Classification, and parentheses and quotation symbols in the Universal Decimal Classification. In the past the term facet indicator has been used as synonymous with node label but that usage should be avoided, to avoid confusion.

faceted classification scheme
classification scheme in which subjects are analysed into their constituent facets. Schedules are compiled for each facet, and terms or notations from these may be combined according to prescribed rules to express a complex concept.

folksonomy
a collection of terms allocated to resources by users in order to categorise or index them in a way that the users consider useful. Terms in folksonomies, often called tags, are typically added in an uncontrolled manner, without any underlying structure or principles. They may be idiosyncratic, but may also use current terminology more quickly than it can be incorporated into a controlled and structured scheme.

glossary
a list of terms, together with definitions, specific to a given field of knowledge, usually presented in alphabetical order. Such terms are usually of a technical, abstruse or archaic nature. A glossary is often related to a specific document and appears as an appendix to it.

hierarchical display
display of a thesaurus structure based on broader/narrower concept relationships. In such a display narrower terms are commonly shown indented under the broader term which is their parent. Each hierarchy, starting from a 'top term' contains terms from only a single facet or subfacet, so node labels containing facet names do not occur within hierachies, though they may be shown at the top of each. A hierarchical display may contain node labels specifying characteristics of division. An example of a hierarchical display is shown under characteristic of division.

homograph
one of two or more words that have the same spelling, but different meanings. e.g. The term bank could refer to a financial institution or the side of a river.

identifier
A specific term that is not included in a controlled vocabulary, but which may be assigned to a document because it is considered useful for retrieval. Identifiers are often proper names, trade names, codes, jargon and specialised terms. They should be distinguished from controlled vocabulary terms by being recorded in a separate field of a catalogue record or by being flagged in some way. Some computer systems assign a unique number or code to each concept or term for purposes of managing the vocabulary, and it may be known as a 'concept identifier', 'term identifier' or simply 'term ID'. This type of identifier should not be confused with the usage defined here.

indexing
intellectual analysis of the subject matter of a document to identify the concepts represented in it, and allocation of the corresponding preferred terms to allow the information to be retrieved. The term 'subject indexing' is often used for this concept, but within a context that does not deal with other elements such as authors or dates, 'indexing' is sufficient.

information retrieval
all the techniques and processes used to provide for identifying items relevant to an information need, from a collection or network of documents. Selection and inclusion of items in the collection are included in this definition; likewise browsing and other forms of information seeking.

interoperability
ability of two or more systems or components to exchange information and to use the information that has been exchanged. Vocabularies can support interoperability by including relations to other semantic structures, by presenting data in standard formats and by using systems that support common computer protocols.

keyword
A word or phrase occurring in the natural language of a document that is considered significant for retrieval. In addition to the above preferred meaning this word is also used loosely with the following two other possible meanings, which are often confused. The use of 'keyword' with these meanings should be avoided.

loan term
term borrowed from another language that has become accepted in the borrowing language. e.g. glasnost, gourmets

many-to-one mapping
mapping where two or more terms, notations or concepts in one vocabulary are represented by a single term, notation or concept in another vocabulary

mapping (process)
the process of establishing relationships between the terms, notations or concepts of one vocabulary and those of another

metadata
data that describes characteristics of a document. Metadata is essentially a catalogue record, providing (a) access points by which records of documents can be sorted or retrieved and (b) descriptive information, by which the relevance of a document can be assessed without consulting it in full. Preferred terms or notations selected during the indexing process are commonly applied as metadata elements to describe the subject of a document.

microthesaurus
subset of a thesaurus, usually containing terms from a subject area narrower than the scope of the whole thesaurus. The UNESCO thesaurus is subdivided into seven microthesauri; the UK Archival Thesaurus, based on the UNESCO thesaurus, is also subdivided into microthesauri, which it calls 'fields of knowledge'.

monohierarchical structure
hierarchical arrangement of concepts, in a thesaurus or classification scheme, in which each concept can have only one broader concept. Compare with polyhierarchical structure. In a monohierarchical structure, each concept can occur at only one place in the hierarchy and other broader term relationships have to be shown as related term relationships. e.g. in a monohierarchical structure, the concept pianos cannot be listed as a narrower term of both keyboard instruments and stringed instruments; a choice has to be made of one of these concepts to determine its placing.

multi-word term
term consisting of more than one word. e.g. human resource management. Multi-word terms typically label complex concepts and are admissible in a thesaurus as preferred terms.

multilingual thesaurus
thesaurus using more than one language, in which each concept is represented by a preferred term in each of the languages, and there is a single structure of hierarchical and associative relationships between concepts which is independent of language.

notation
symbol or group of symbols representing a simple or compound concept. Notation may be used to sort and/or locate concepts in a pre-determined systematic order, and optionally to display how concepts have been structured and grouped. A notation can provide the link between alphabetical and systematic lists in a thesaurus and between the alphabetical index and the classified sequence of a classification scheme.

notation system
set of symbols, with rules for combining them to create notations for concepts. This set may be any selection of numerals, upper and lower case alphabetic characters, and punctuation symbols. The larger the set of symbols on which the notation is based, the greater the number of concepts that can be represented by distinct notations of the same length.

one-to-many mapping
mapping where a single term, notation or concept in one vocabulary is represented by two or more terms, notations or concepts in another vocabulary

one-to-one mapping
mapping where a single term, notation or concept in one vocabulary is represented by a single term, notations or concepts in another vocabulary. The representations in the two vocabularies may or may not be identical.

ontology
specification of the concepts of a domain and their relationships, structured to allow computer processing and reasoning. As the nature of the relationships can be specified as part of the ontology, many more types of relationship are possible than in a thesaurus.

orphan term
a preferred term that has no hierarchical relationships

paradigmatic relationship
use for a priori relationship; semantic relationship. relationship between concepts which is inherent in the concepts themselves. Such relationships are shown in a structured vocabulary, independently of any indexed document.

parametric searching
searching for concepts with specific values of characteristics of division. e.g. searching for wines for which the colour is red and the alcohol content is from 5% to 10%. This type of search is for concepts that occur within one or more arrays of a single facet, e.g. narrower terms of wine in a 'materials' facet grouped under the node labels (wine by colour) and (wine by alcohol content). In some systems it is possible to search for a range of values rather than just for specific values.

polyhierachical structure
hierarchical arrangement of concepts, in a thesaurus or classification scheme, in which each concept can have more than one broader concept. Compare with monohierarchical structure. In a polyhierarchical structure, a single concept can occur at more than one place in the hierarchy. Its attributes and relationships, and specifically its scope note and its narrower and related terms, are the same wherever it occurs.

post-coordinate indexing
system of indexing in which the subject of a document is analysed into its constituent concepts by an indexer but the preferred terms so allocated are not combined until they are selected by a user at the search stage. e.g. when using post-coordinate indexing, a manual on bicycle repair might be assigned the three separate preferred terms

pre-coordinate indexing
system of indexing in which the preferred terms allocated to a particular document are syntactically combined in one or more sequences representing the only combinations available for retrieval purposes

precision
measure of retrieval performance defined by R/T, where R is the number of relevant items retrieved and T is the total number of items retrieved

quasi-synonym
one of two or more terms whose meanings are generally regarded as different in ordinary usage but which may be treated as labels for the same concept, for the purposes of a given controlled vocabulary. e.g. diseases, disorders; earthquakes, earth tremors

recall
measure of retrieval performance defined by R/N, where R is the number of relevant items retrieved and N is the total number of relevant items in the collection

schedule
terms, notations, cross-references and scope notes set out to exhibit the content and structure of a structured vocabulary

scope note
note which defines or clarifies the meaning of a concept as it is used in the structured vocabulary. A preferred term used to label a concept may have several meanings in normal usage. A scope note may restrict the concept to only one of these meanings, and may refer to other concepts that are included or excluded from the scope of the concept being defined.

search thesaurus
vocabulary intended to assist searching even though it has not been used to index the documents being searched. Search thesauri are designed to facilitate choice of terms and/or expansion of search expressions to include terms for broader, narrower or related concepts, as well as synonyms. Optionally, a normal thesaurus may be used as a search thesaurus.

semantic network
actual or virtual graphical representation of concepts and the relationships between them. A semantic network is a way of representing an ontology. The vertices of the network represent concepts and the edges represent semantic relationships between them. The vertices are sometimes called 'nodes', which are not to be confused with the node labels of a thesaurus or a faceted classification.

semantic relationship
one of two or more terms with the same immediate broader term. e.g. In the following, biology, chemistry, geology and physics are sibling terms. So are nuclear physics and quantum physics.

source vocabulary
language or vocabulary which serves as a starting point when seeking a corresponding term in another language or vocabulary

specificity
capability of a structured vocabulary to express a subject in depth and in detail. Specificity has an important influence on retrieval performance, as it determines the accuracy with which concepts may be pinpointed, and consequently the facility to exclude unwanted documents.

string
sequence of preferred terms representing a compound concept in a pre-coordinate indexing system

structured vocabulary
set of terms, headings or concept codes and their inter-relationships which may be used to support information retrieval. A structured vocabulary may also be used for other purposes. In the context of information retrieval, the vocabulary should be accompanied by rules for how to apply the terms.

subfacet
a subdivision of a facet, based on inherent categories. Subfacets, like facets, should be defined so that they are mutually exclusive. For example, an 'agents' facet might be subdivided into 'individuals' and 'organisations' subfacets; an 'activities' facet might be subdivided into transitive 'actions' and intransitive 'processes' subfacets. Some writers use the term 'subfacet' as synonymous with array, or with the slightly broader meaning of the whole subtree of concepts grouped under a node label showing a characteristic of division, rather than just the first level array of sibling terms. I suggest that it should not be used with these meanings, as the intuitive meaning is 'a subdivision of a facet' and we already have the terms 'array' and 'subtree' for the other meanings.

subject heading list
controlled vocabulary comprising single terms available for subject indexing, plus rules for combining the single terms in strings. The principles for constructing subject heading lists differ from the principles of thesaurus construction. Subject heading lists may have provision for the construction of pre-coordinated indexing strings including headings and one or more levels of subheading.

subject heading scheme
controlled vocabulary comprising single terms available for subject indexing, plus rules for combining the single terms in strings. The principles for constructing subject heading lists differ from the principles of thesaurus construction. Subject heading lists may have provision for the construction of pre-coordinated indexing strings including headings and one or more levels of subheading.

synonym
one of two or more terms whose meanings are considered to be the same in a wide range of contexts. Abbreviations and their full forms may be treated as synonyms. e.g. HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; guarantees, warranties

synonym ring
group of terms that are considered equivalent for the purposes of retrieval. Synonym rings are particularly useful in search thesauri, used for searching unindexed material, where a search for any one of the terms in the ring can retrieve occurrences of any of the terms in the ring.

syntactic relationship
relationship between concepts that exists only because they occur together in a document being indexed. Such relationships are not generally valid in contexts other than the document being indexed, and therefore they do not form part of the structure of a thesaurus.

synthetic classification scheme
classification scheme in which users can synthesize terms or notation for complex concepts from lists of simpler concepts

target vocabulary
language or vocabulary in which a term is sought corresponding to an existing term in a source language or vocabulary. When working with two vocabularies, the target vocabulary for one concept may be the source vocabulary for another concept.

taxonomy
monohierarchical classification of concepts, as used, for example, in the classification of biological organisms. The above definition is a personal opinion; the definition proposed in BS8723-3 is 'structured vocabulary using classificatory principles as well as thesaural features, designed as a navigation tool for use with electronic media'. The term is used loosely to mean various types of classification schemes, subject heading lists or thesauri, particularly when applied to the indexing of Internet resources. In my opinion this use should be avoided because of its vagueness and uncertainty; when a non-specific meaning is intended, concept scheme or controlled vocabulary should be used instead.

term
word or phrase used to label a concept. Terms in a thesaurus can be either preferred terms or non-preferred terms.

thesaurus
controlled vocabulary in which concepts are represented by preferred terms, formally organized so that paradigmatic relationships between the concepts are made explicit, and the preferred terms are accompanied by lead-in entries for synonyms or quasi-synonyms. The purpose of a thesaurus is to guide both the indexer and the searcher to select the same preferred term or combination of preferred terms to represent a given subject.

topic map
concept scheme conforming to the specification given in the international standard ISO/IEC 13250 : Topic maps ISO/IEC 13250 gives the following three definitions for 'topic map':a) A set of information resources regarded by a topic map application as a bounded object set whose hub document is a topic map document conforming to the SGML architecture defined by this International Standard. b) Any topic map document conforming to the SGML architecture defined by this International Standard, or the document element (topicmap) of such a document. c) The document element type (topicmap) of the topic map document architecture.

vocabulary control
restriction of choice of indexing terms to those in a specified list. This restriction increases the likelihood of indexers and searchers choosing the same term to label a concept.