Competency Questions to the NFDI4Memory Ontology (MemO)

1 Competency Questions to the NFDI4Memory Ontology (MemO) Questions from researchers‘ perspectives tailored to the use case of querying the 4Memory Data Space Index Competency questions that historians would want to gain answers for can be derived from domain specific user stories. They can be considered as knowledge graph queries in natural language, that reflect the requirements of user groups on the ontology. They can be used to define the scope of an ontology (scoping). The preliminary consideration here is that the NFDI4Memory ontology (MemO) is used to import information on research data sets into the Knowledge Graph of the 4Memory Data Space 1 , so that comprehensive findability and direct access to any existing digital record is possible. Content level queries (via SPARQL) are also possible, provided that data can be aggregated at a generalized or abstracted level. It is neither feasible nor useful to model the 4Memory ontology in such a way that it can be used by any historical research project to collect data. Basically, when working with ontologies, content and metadata levels are intertwined and it will be necessary to model scientific concepts or incorporate established models (e.g. disciplines, role modeling of contributors, (authority) data on persons), at least in some cases. The Competency Questions (CQ) were first compiled and systematized at the Bavarian State Library by Florian Grumbach, Arnost Stanzel, Hildegard Schäffler and Gregor Horstkemper at the Bavarian State Library. The collection was then discussed with domain and ontology design experts from the NFDI4Memory community during a workshop at the Bavarian State Library in Munich in January 2024 . The questions reflect the needs and expectations of the community. In a second step they were shortlisted in accordance to the usage framework “ontology-based knowledge graph as an index for the 4Memory Data Space” by Florian Grumbach, Marta Koscielniak, Sarah Ondraszek and Arnost Stanzel between September 2024 and April 2025. The focus was placed on information categories that define information resources (documents or data records/data sets) to ensure their discoverability and exploration across different data sources. The planning for the Data Space also includes that data sets identified in this way (if available) can be loaded into the Data Space for further processing. Domain-specific questions relating to modelling within research projects are excluded for the time being. The selection listed in this document represents the shortlist of questions that were considered relevant for the Data Space index. Key issues to keep in mind across concepts: – From the perspective of historical research, we must be able to distinguish precisely whether we are searching for information about resources or for information contained in resources (formal level vs. content level). – How can vast amounts of data in archives, libraries and museums that are indexed according to different classification schemes be linked and made searchable together? – To reflect existing alternative names for persons, institutions, places, periods (partly possible to solve by reconcilement against authority data). 1 Bach, Felix, Daniel Fähle, Sandra Göller, Timo Holste, Jan Schweikert und Sarah Rebecca Ondraszek: Blue Paper. Technische Spezifikationen für den NFDI4Memory Data Space, Version 1.0, 2025, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.16614629. 2 – Has there been any semantic change of terms over time? – How can different classifications be combined, e.g. for browsing? (e. g. RVK and DDC) – How to connect to semantic data generated by research and up to what level of granularity? How to interconnect between local conceptualizations? Document, Data and Textual criticism 1. Which data sets or documents created by person x are available? Which data sets or documents by a certain publisher? 2. What contribution did a particular person make to a data set? 3. When and where were the (documents or) data published? 4. As what type of object (table, text, etc.) does the data set manifest? 5. If available, what is the PID of the document or data set? (DOI, ISBN, ISSN, URN, ...) 6. Are the data part of a collection? 7. In which period of time was the data collection created? 8. When was the metadata record created? 9. Were the data verified in terms of quality? 10. What type of data curation was done? 11. Which tools were used to capture the data? 12. When were the data processed? 3 13. Where were data records previously published? 14. Are there different versions of a document / data set? 15. What kind of information infrastructure is used to store the data? 16. To which historical disciplines do the data belong? 17. To which historical events do the data belong? 18. What is the summary to the data? 19. What were the data extracted from? What was the basis / the source material for this data collection? 20. What method was used to generate and process the data (survey, archaeological excavation, etc.)? 21. Is the data collection based on a particular school of thought/historical ideology/values/philosophy of history (Marxism, postcolonial, gender history, etc.)? 22. Which data sets (or documents) reference a certain authority file, taxonomy, classification, reference model? 23. Is a document a transcript or a technical reproduction (e. g. a scan of a book or of an archival document)? 24. Is there any (e.g. historical-critical) edition of a document? 25. Can I focus my search on documents on a specific text carrier? (relevant for bibliology or medieval studies) 26. In which publications have the data already been analyzed or processed? 4 27. I want to query for data related to a certain research project or cluster, am I able to find it? 28. Have the data been semantically enriched? 29. Are the data the expression of a work as structured digital semantic information? 30. Are the data available in XML/JSON data formats? 31. Are the data long-term archived? 32. What copyrights exist for the data? 33. What utilization rights are associated with the data? 34. Are there any technical restrictions for accessing the data? 35. Will there be changes regarding access rights to the data in the future? 36. How long will the data be accessible? Are there any embargo times? 37. Do the data contain personally identifiable information? 38. Under what conditions can the data be reused? 39. Can I search or filter for (meta)data in a certain language? 40. What indexing/cataloging tools and standards were used to record data? 41. Is the used standard specific to a particular period or culture? 42. Which programming language(s) was/were used 5 Content level 43. Which (documents or) data records contain information on a specific person, corporate body, conference, (historical) event, named spatial entity, topic or work? 44. Which (documents or) data records contain information on specific fictional entities? 45. Which (documents or) data records contain information from a specific reporting period? 46. Which (documents or) data records contain information from a specific historicalgeographical reference frame? 47. How do I find information relating to named spatial entities in a geographic region at a given time? Formal / Content level 48. Can the KG be queried for persons whose names contain elements that are neither first names nor surnames or originate from other name cultures? (e. g. agnomen or Roman name consisting of praenomen, nomen gentile and cognomen) 49. Which standardized data records does a person or an entity have (GND, VIAF, Wikidata, ORCID)? 50. Is it possible to search for (documents or) data related to places with different names or transliterations: e. g. Kyiv (EN), Kyjiw (DE), Київ (UKR)? 51. Is it possible to limit the search to a geographical area? 52. Is it possible to limit the search to a period (either on formal or on content level)? 53. Is it possible to search for (documents or) data related to named spatial entities that no longer exist as such? 6 54. What data are related to an epoch (including its individual events)? 55. Can I group events, periods, named spatial entities and people into specific epochs and search for related resources? 56. Which data are related to persons involved in a particular event? 57. In terms of resources related to a particular period, are there competing epoch classifications for that period? 58. Which data are available for a given period according to a specific calendar system? 59. What data and information are available on specific historical periods and particular research focuses (e.g. 'industrialization', 'Rococo' or 'Enlightenment')? 60. To which sub-discipline, auxiliary science or field of research do the data belong or are they relevant?