In this paper, we present Semionics, a contribution to the field of Computational Semiotics, and propose its use in order to build and simulate models of organizations. Computational Semiotics refers to a research area where semiotic techniques are used in order to synthesize semiotic processes in computers and computer-based applications. Semionics is the main technology developed by our resea...

In this paper, we discuss the value of semiotics to inquire tangible user interfaces (TUI) in humancomputer interaction (HCI). Drawing on Peirce’s three types of representation – icon, index, and symbol (Peirce, Houser, & Kloesel, 1998) – we analyze signification processes in the design of tangible UIs. As a case study, we draw on several prototypical interfaces and analyze their semiotic struc...

The aim of this paper is to introduce the theoretical foundations of an approach for intelligent systems development. Derived from semiotics, a classic discipline in human sciences, the theory developed provides a mathematical framework for the concept of knowledge and for knowledge processing. As a result, a new perspective to study and to develop intelligent systems emerges. A taxonomy of ele...

Semiotic engineering Semiotics is a discipline devoted to studying signs and signification, which includes processes of representation, interpretation, sense making, and – for a number of semioticians – communication. Its object of investigation is thus strongly connected with that of various subareas of Computer Science such as: Artificial Intelligence, Human-Computer Interaction, and even The...

The integration of knowledge extracted from different models described by domain experts or from models generated by machine learning algorithms is strongly conditioned by the lack of an appropriated framework to specify and integrate structures, learning processes, data transformations and data models or data rules. In this work we extended algebraic specification methods to be used in this ty...

This paper introduces a Semiotic Appoach to Hypertext Theory. Having been applied to Informatics only in recent years, Semiotics promises a broader understanding of Hypertext as a structure of signs. The rapid visualization of the World Wide Web seems to justify this approach. Using the methodology of applied Semiotics and Graph Theory, the author analyses the challenges and restrictions of Hyp...

This talk presents implications from Experimental Semiotics for dialogue systems. Experimental Semiotics investigates human communication by forcing participants to create new communication systems, or adapt existing systems in new ways to achieve joint goals. The key results in this field show the importance of interaction, indirect representation, iconicity, and systematicity in the represent...

Ontology Charting (OC) is an Organisational Semiotics (OS) technique for the representation of requirements for information systems and organisations, based on semiotic theories and studies, incorporating technical and social aspects. The application of semiotics to the design of Information Systems (IS) competes with other methods and this paper presents a comparative analysis of these methods...

The Tatami project is building a system to support software engineering over the internet, exploiting recent advances in web technology, interface design, and specification. Our effort to improve the usability of such systems led us into algebraic semiotics, while our effort to develop better formal methods for distributed concurrent systems led us into hidden algebra. We discuss the Tatami sys...

It is already agreed that requirements have a critical impact on the quality and users satisfaction of the resulting software. In this work, web information systems are reviewed from the perspective of organizational semiotics as being part of an organization, which comprises work practices, rules and views of the same system by different stakeholders. This paper presents a case study, where ar...