Customisable query resolution in biology and medicine

  • Authors:

  • Peter Ansell;James Hogan;Paul Roe

  • Affiliations:

  • Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland;Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland;Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland

  • Venue:
  • HIKM '10 Proceedings of the Fourth Australasian Workshop on Health Informatics and Knowledge Management - Volume 108
  • Year:
  • 2010

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Abstract

Scientists and healthcare workers regularly use data from a number of sources as part of their research and professional work. The current mechanisms for providing combined access to multiple datasources are either closed or not easily extensible, with some requiring users to locally load and query each data-source independently. In this work we introduce a new model for transparent querying across multiple datasources which relies on the single unifying format of RDF to merge information before returning it to users. The use of normalised, resolvable URI's, combined with the SPARQL RDF query language, enables common queries to be executed across multiple public and private datasources, including those not initially designed or represented using RDF. In order to accommodate a range of users, the implemented system has been set up to enable customisation of queries and datasources based on RDF formatted configuration files. This breadth of data and configurability allows scientists and healthcare workers to more efficiently find and communicate semantic references, supporting research, professional practice and dissemination of knowledge across communities and disciplines.