Proposal for a Hypertext Model with a Semantic Approach for Knowledge Representation in the Thematic Domain of Agricultural Intensification

Abstract

This master's research proposes the use of hypertext as an instrument for representing knowledge about the thematic area of Agricultural Intensification, the theoretical and conceptual content of which is presented in the book by Ester Boserup (1965). In the application environment of this research, which is Embrapa Informática Agropecuária, within a partnership established between EMBRAPA and UFMG, there is the problem of sharing a common understanding of concepts for collaborative work between members of the agricultural domain. The aim is to propose a model for converting the content of the book from linear text into hypertext with a semantic approach, in which the relationships expressed in the links are directed towards facilitating the learning of the semantic content contained in the document. The literature review on hypertexts, the central theme of the research, was based on works in the areas of Computer Science, Linguistics, Education, with an emphasis on Library and Information Science. In order to support the study, the theoretical-conceptual foundations of the field of Information and Knowledge Organization were used, discussing Knowledge Organization Systems as instruments of representation that have different levels of semantic structuring. The Theory of Faceted Classification, Concept Theory and the principles of Linguistics and Terminology are analyzed, showing the contributions of each theory to conceptual modeling, especially in the structuring of concepts in a hypertextual system. In the context of modeling, Maculan's (2015) proposal for refining the semantic relationships between concepts was used in the construction and application of the hypertextual model. Also considered is the approach of the Meaningful Learning Theory, which explicitly offers guidelines to facilitate learning. In the context of tools that are conducive to the learning process, the conceptual map is characterized as a component of hypertext navigation and the hypertext, its historical context, its main characteristics and elements are described. The theoretical-methodological foundations address concepts related to hypertext structuring, verifying the existence of methodologies for converting text into hypertext, either automatically or manually (intellectually). It was based on the assumption that the studies that cover methodologies for this conversion process do not make explicit, in a single model, all the procedures that are necessary for the conceptual organization of hypertexts in a consistent way. As a result, the conversion model proposed by this research fills this gap, producing consistent criteria for working on the conceptual and semantic aspects of the domain, as well as providing the reader with a structure of semantically connected concepts, based on the explanation (refinement) of the relationships established between them. In addition, tools are suggested for visualizing information, which also helped in the modelling stage and proved to be conducive to learning. The conclusion is that, as information is presented in an organized way that is similar to the reader's cognitive structure, it is possible for more significant knowledge acquisition processes to take place than when information is only made available in a linear format.