Semantics of person-person relationships

the dream of a semantic web
(and equally, the dream of a vingean singularity)

will require a formalised understanding of human relationships

which is what this vocabulary strives to be



because it's sorted alphabetically
we can't begin to critique it
without re-sorting it into (six) clusters:



1. kinship:
ancestorOf/descendantOf
grandchildOf/grandparentOf
parentOf/childOf
siblingOf

any two living things are in a kinship relation
it's just a question of distance, and direction
so this is really a vector
say +1 for parent, +2 for grandparent, -1 for child, etc
leaving 0 for no direct lineal relationship
and adding more parameters to capture
sibling cousin aunt uncle niece nephew etc etc etc

2. cohousing:
livesWith
neighborOf

again this is a measure of distance
between where any two animals sleep

same bed, same room, same floor, same house
same street, same neighborhood, same town, same county
same state, same country, same continent

3. degree of acquaintance:
knowsOf
knowsByReputation
hasMet
knowsInPassing
acquaintanceOf
lostContactWith

this one is almost more trouble than it's worth

you might try numerical values for:
howOftenSeen
howOftenSpokenWith
howOftenEmailed
howOftenChatted
howOftenDoneStuffTogether
howOftenDoneSexTogether

but these are really graphs over time

and you'd also really need:
knowsName
knowsEmail
knowsPhoneNumber
knowsAddress
knowsMaritalStatus...?

4. professional:
colleagueOf
collaboratesWith
employerOf/employedBy
mentorOf/apprenticeTo
worksWith

how many dimensions does 'professional distance' need?

you can do similar jobs for dissimilar companies

you can work with people outside of any company

you can aspire to a profession
apply to a company, but be rejected or fired or quit...

5. relationship valence:
ambivalentOf
wouldLikeToKnow
friendOf
closeFriendOf
antagonistOf
enemyOf

if we make this independent of degree of acquaintance
then 'wouldLikeToKnow' can have the same value as 'likes'
but with the acquantance-level still zero

but you also need longterm vs shortterm valences:
i love you dearly
but
i can't be around you until i get some things worked out

6. sex/marriage:
engagedTo
lifePartnerOf
spouseOf

this one is next-most-important
after kinship

and (in humans) involves a stereotypical melodrama of romance
detailed in my Solace

additional numeric relationship needed:
considersPotentialLifePartner

additional unary (non-relationship) parameter:
desiresLifePartnership

(zero desire, or even negative desire, is possible)