Linked Data and Time - Modeling Researcher Life Lines by Events

Most datasets on the Linked Data Web impose a static view on the represented entities and relations between them, neglecting temporal aspects of the reality they represent. In this paper, we address the representation of resources in their spatial, temporal and thematic context. We review the controversial proposals for the representation of time-dependent relations on the Linked Data Web. We argue that representing and using such relations is made hard through the direct encoding of inadequate conceptualizations, rather than through inherent limitations of the representation language RDF. Using the example of researcher life lines extracted from curricula vitæ, we show how to model sequences of activities in terms of events. We build upon the event participation pattern from the DOLCE Ultralite+DnS Ontology and show how places and social roles that people play during their careers relate to events. Furthermore, we demonstrate how scientific achievements can be related to events in a career trajectory by means of temporal reasoning.