Instance relations organize data
structures. They are an
application of the relations
set forth in stage_3 of Water Trail
and implemented on device_2
of Ridge Route.
Co-ordinated activation of both a particular category and the instances relation will select the locations that belong to that category. Commands can select locations belonging to multiple categories in ways that correspond to "and" and "or" connectives of Boolean algebra.
The methods are practical. There is a
"tricky step" in the adjacent
diagram. The author finds it convincing;
but, even if you don't, you can still use
instance relations (including the trick)
to organize information in the examples:
1. representation of syntax
2. library research system
The simplified notation used for instances
can be generalized to notate other
relations. This generalized notation leads
to the introduction of generalized relations
discussed in connection with device_2.
Structures of locations representing experience resemble
phrase structures used in linguistic theory to
represent language. Structures of locations
and phrase structures can interpret each other.
The act is a structure of locations
that can be interpreted as
a sentence. An act is a series of states connected
through identifications that establish objects
in experience interpretable as linguistic
subjects and objects. For example,
in the adjacent image,
a location in the initial state of the
act is identified with a location in
the final state and given the name
"Abram."
An act can also include
an action
schemata interpretable as a verb
and may involve
a doer (subject),
product, target or recipient (direct object) or
vehicle (indirect object).
The structure notating the act can be
reduced to essentials (explicated).
Several sentences can be represented
by an assembly of locational structures.
Conversely, an assembly of locational
structures can be disassembled into
units shaped by phrase structures.
Repeated words, pronouns and synonyms
indicate points of attachment for
assembly or cues for disassembly.
The legal system's central element is the case, a decision of a court of appeal; cases are published in series of volumes organized according to the court jurisdiction and the date of issue of the decision.
In general, each decision is a bloc of text that decomposes into blocs of text:
A holding may include one or more citations
to holdings in prior cases.Legal publishers assign each holding to one or more classes; and the classes are organized in a digest with a hierarchical structure of topics.
Words and phrases, keywords, appear in the blocs of text. Some keywords, like "California Civil Code §1649" refer to statutes, rules of law enacted by the legislature. Statutes are organized into codes, compendia of statutes with their own hierarchical structures of topics.
Although a thesaurus is not commonly
used in legal research, one could easily be constructed
and added to the system.
It is possible to conduct research with this system
through mass action techniques more powerful than the item-by-item
methods conventionally used. The system could be
installed on a conventional mainframe-sized computer,
although beyond the reach of personal computers presently
available.
For example, a researcher could begin with a set of keywords (perhaps expanded with the thesaurus) and obtain all holdings that include 3 or more of the keywords. From the set of holdings so obtained, a new set could be constructed based on citation clusters. Digest classes obtained from the clusters could then be used to assemble a set of "leading cases" obtained through additional steps on the citation relations. Leading cases could be ranked according to the number of times each is cited in other cases derived from the digest classes. Possibly significant statutes could also be identified and ranked according to frequency of appearance.
