On Representational Issues About Combinations of Classical Theories with Nonmonotonic Rules

Abstract

In the context of current efforts around Semantic-Web languages, the combination of classical theories in classical first-order logic (and in particular of ontologies in various description logics) with rule languages rooted in logic programming is receiving considerable attention. Existing approaches such as SWRL, dl-programs, and DL + log, differ significantly in the way ontologies interact with (nonmonotonic) rules bases. In this paper, we identify fundamental representational issues which need to be addressed by such combinations and formulate a number of formal principles which help to characterize and classify existing and possible future approaches to the combination of rules and classical theories. We use the formal principles to explicate the underlying assumptions of current approaches. Finally, we propose a number of settings, based on our analysis of the representational issues and the fundamental principles underlying current approaches.