Workshop 3 Call for Participation

16th International Conference on Conceptual Modeling (ER'97)

Los Angeles, California, USA

3 - 6 November 1997

Conceptual modeling, by its very name, involves constructing representations of human knowledge. One of the primary uses of such representations is to verify analysts' understanding of users' knowledge of an application domain before proceeding with database design and implementation. Much of the research in conceptual modeling deals with developing formalisms (often graphical) to represent knowledge. However, conceptual modeling research has paid surprisingly little attention to developing representation formalisms based on the structure of knowledge. This workshop will focus on using the "science of knowledge", or cognition, to understand existing conceptual modeling techniques, to guide the design of new techniques, and to provide criteria for evaluating techniques and methods.

Cognition is the branch of cognitive psychology that seeks to understand thought processes and the structure of knowledge. Such processes and structures, in turn, can inform the conceptual modeling techniques that are used to develop representations. The purpose of the workshop is to advance the state-of-the-art in applying research on human cognition to problems and issues in conceptual modeling.

The workshop will explore the applicability of a broad range of cognition research to conceptual modeling. Relevant areas of interest include, but are not restricted to:

	categorization
	abstraction mechanisms
	learning
	perception and visual attention
	reasoning
	incorporating cognitive relationships in semantic models
	models/constructs to improve user/analyst communication

Researchers interested in participating in the workshop may submit either a full paper (maximum 5,000 words) describing completed research, or a 1-3 page position statement describing their interest in the workshop theme. Submissions should be sent as e-mail attachments (PostScript files, Word documents, or WordPerfect documents), or three printed copies, to Parsons.

Submissions should include email and postal addresses of contact authors, and must be received by July 31, 1997.

Potential participants are encouraged to email either of the workshop organizers to discuss the suitability of specific research projects to the workshop theme.

Workshop participants must register for the ER'97 conference and pay an additional $50 workshop fee.

Sponsored By The ER Institute UCLA In Cooperation With ACM/ SIGMOD More Information http://osm7.cs.byu.edu/ER97/