Advanced Topics in Database Research, Vol. 1

Framework for the Rapid Development of Modeling Environments

A Review of Experiments on Natural Language Interfaces

This chapter provides a review, using both qualitative and quantitative approaches, of experimental studies on natural language interfaces. As data utilization is an important aspect of information systems, numerous experimental studies have been conducted on user performance involving database-related tasks with various database models and/or languages. We propose a two-dimensional conceptual ...

On The Representation Of Temporal Dynamics

Research in temporal database management has suggested that the EntityRelationship model must be extended to compensate for its lack of constructs for representing the world’s dynamic nature. This claimed deficiency arises from the mistaken idea that Entity-Relationship diagrams represent only a snapshot of reality. Practitioners have long used Entity-Relationship diagrams without temporal exte...

A Case Study of the Use of the Viable System Model in the Organization of Software Development

This chapter considers the usefulness of the Viable System Model (VSM) in the study of organizational adaptation. The VSM is a rigorous organizational model that was developed from the study of cybernetics and has been given considerable ttention by management science research. The chapter presents a longitudinal case study that focuses upon a software development team. The VSM was useful in di...

Enforcing Cardinality Constraints in the ER Model with Integrity Methods

Copyright © 2002, Idea Group Publishing. Entity-Relationship (ER) schemas include cardinality constraints that restrict the dependencies among entities within a relationship type. The cardinality constraints have direct impact on application transactions, since insertions or deletions of entities or relationships might affect related entities. Application transactions can be strengthened to pre...