Ontologies as bridges between data sources and user queries: the KNOWMAK project experience

Understanding knowledge co-creation in key emerging areas of European research is a critical issue for policy makers in order to analyse impact and make strategic decisions. However, current methods for characterising and visualising the field have limitations concerning the changing nature of research, the differences in language and topic structure between policies and scientific topics, and the coverage of a broad range of scientific and political issues that have different characteristics. In this work, we discuss the novel use of ontologies and semantic technologies as a way to bridge the linguistic and conceptual gap between policy questions and data sources. Our experience suggests that a proper interlinking between intellectual tasks and the use of advanced techniques for language processing is key for the success of this endeavour.