The Discourse Graph data model is simple enough to be described by word of mouth. However, translating this human-readable blueprint into a schema that can be parsed my machines requires conforming to standardized data exchange structures. We have to define the rules used to represent Discourse Graph data so that computers can interpret, validate, and display the data correctly.
Defining these rules can also aid in the computer-intermediated exchange of Discourse Graph data between people, and facilitate the creation of multi-author graphs.
Data Interchange Formats
RDF (Resource Description Framework) is a framework for modeling and describing relationships between resources on the Web. RDF uses triples (subject-predicate-object) to represent statements about resources and their interconnections.
JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data) is a serialization format for RDF that uses JSON syntax to express RDF triples. JSON-LD supports the integration of linked data concepts in JSON documents. JSON-LD can be used to represent data that conforms to ontologies defined using RDF and its more expressive extensions RDFS and OWL.
The schema page contains examples demonstrating how we can use schemas to invite machines into the discourse graph conversation. We can see how RDF is used to express relationships between resources, and how the schema layer in RDFS is used to introduce classes and properties. These formalized data representations can be expressed in JSON-LD on the web.
