Introduction to ROSS: A New Representational Scheme

Abstract: ROSS ("Representation, Ontology, Structure, Star") is introduced as a new method for knowledge representation that emphasizes representational constructs for physical structure. The ROSS representational scheme includes a language called "Star" for the specification of ontology classes. The ROSS method also includes a formal scheme called the "instance model". Instance models are used in the area of natural language meaning representation to represent situations. This paper provides both the rationale and the philosophical background for the ROSS method.