Domain Analysis and Description 1
Dines Bjørner · 2014
We present a new approach to domain analysis & 1 description. Adomain '2 is seen as a mapping from entities to qualities, that is, a mapping from manifest phenomena to usually non-manifest qualities. This idea is then concretised, considerably, in the form of analysing entities into 3 either endurant entities and perdurant entities. We shall then analyse endurant entities into either discrete entities, and, when so, into either atomic entities or composite entities, or into continuous entities. For discrete endurants we shall analyse qualities into unique identity, mereology and a set of attributes. We shall distinguish between external qualities 4 and internal qualities. External qualities are such which are observable: whether endurant or perdurant, whether discrete or continuous, whether atomic or composite. Internal qualities are (usually) not observable: unique identity, mereology and sets of attributes. The terms 5 endurant entities and perdurant entities are terms we prefer in the context of domains. In the context of computing one may think of endurant entities as data and perdurant entities as processes. 6 The study behind this paper represents an ambitious undertaking: Within the relatively short span of some 51 pages 3 it surveys a rather comprehensive set of techniques and tools for the description of non-trivial, non-toy-example domains. The reader must, please, be prepared, to cast aside previous conceptions of how domains may be specified; the present proposal starts all over, from basic principles. Perhaps a short monograph rather than a longish paper would be a better way to reach a reasonable audience, We shall see.