agrovoc as knowledge organization model applied to brazilian agricultural intensification processes
TRANSCRIPT
AGROVOC
as Knowledge Organization Model
Applied to Brazilian Agricultural Intensification Processes
Ivo Pierozzi Jr.
Leandro Henrique M. OliveiraGladis Maria de B. Almeida
Caterina Caracciolo
Gudrun Johannsen
Embrapa: Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation
» Embrapa supports Brazilian agribusiness through knowledge and technology generation
and trasfer
» It regularly deals with multidimensional issues, involving agriculture, environment, society
and politicy:
» Embrapa addresses these problems with multi / trans disciplinary approaches
» Proposed solutions (technologies, products and services) are then developed into
projects involving wide RD&I networks;
» RD&I networks face problems hampering creation and sharing of knowledge, due to:
» geographic dispersion of people in a large country;
» information production and distribution in multi media formats;
» knowledge nature (different specialties; languages and even schools of thought);
» Embrapa see KOS as possible support to RD&I networks to facilitate the construction,
application, dissemination and appropriation of scientific discourse.
Goal
» Build a model of information and knowledge organization for the domain of agricultural
intensification in Brazil. Specifically in the regions of production of soybean and
sugar cane.
What is agricultural intensification (AI)?
» First conceptualization dates back to 1965, by Boserup:
“any practice that increases agricultural production in given (same) area unit
at some cost in labor or capital inputs”
» BOSERUP, E. The Conditions of Agricultural Growth: The Economics of Agrarian Change under Population
Pressure. London, G. Allen and Unwin, 1965; Chicago: Aldine, 1965. 124 pp.
» AI may represent a reduction of fallow period and consequent multi harvests; intensified
use of machinery, chemical pesticides, irrigation, fertilization; use of draft animals;
genetically modified plant or animal varieties and so on.
» After Boserup, the term has been used to mean “agricultural expansion”, “intensive
agriculture”, “modernization”; “technification”.
» Different views have developed, sometimes conflicting often confusing
» Need to make explicit the various dimensions involved in AI and conciliate the complexity
involved by an intrinsic interdisciplinary notion.
Boserup’s agricultural intensification as a graphic
(Thesis: Population determines agricultural methods)
Use case: AI of soybean and sugar cane in Brazil
Intensification is already in ?place
(A) Production density of soybean in 2000 and 2007 - Mato Grosso
(B) Production density of sugar cane in 2000 and 2007 - Sao Paulo
(C) Legend (D) Areas of production in a map of Brazil
(A)
(B) (C)
(D)
Use case: AI of soybean and sugar cane in Brazil
Empirical observations suggested that intensification was going
on in the regions of Mato Grosso and Sao Paulo
Intagro project was meant to verify this hypothesis
A KOS was built to support the organization of data and
material from the project
Underlying idea was that a KOS could promote better
understanding of the process that was occurring in the region
We used AGROVOC as a starting point
Results
A categorization system with 600 concepts (“entries”) in EN and PT/BR
Around 50% of terms were not present in AGROVOC
Sometimes neither in English nor in Portuguese
In other cases, only English was present
The PT form available was judged according to use in Portugal or Brazil
Hierarchy distinguishes 4 main conceptual levels:
“environment”,
“agronomy”
“territoriality”
“socioeconomy”
Also, subhierarchiese for 3 complementary points of view on AI:
“methodologies”
“geographic locations”
“institutions”
KOS is not published yet, but available as graph visualization
http://cnptia.embrapa.br/~leandro/intagro/
A fragment of the resulting KOS and comparison with
AGROVOC content
1PT/BR form not yet present in
AGROVOC;
2Alternative ways to PT/BR term
translation;
o, +, #, * represent different
hierarchical levels in the
categorization system.
Idiomatic variations between PT/PT and PT/BR
PT/PT: Portuguese from Portugal; PT/BR: Portuguese from Brazil; *: term not registered in AGROVOC.
Conclusions and future work
The KOS for AI proved to be useful, because we used it to
organize the disciplines needed to understand AI:
agroenvironment and socieconomy
The project will continue by taking into considerations them one
more closely.
Given the lack of material in protuguese, AGROVOC was a helpful
resource , both from a terminological and organizational point of
view
We provided feedback to AGROVOC concerning the
specificity of Brazialian language (compared to Protuguese)
We suggest that more work is needed for expanding
AGROVOC to better cover the concepts and terminologies
used in Brazil, incluiding regional variations of PT/BR
Muito obrigado! Grazie molte! Dank!
Ivo Pierozzi Jr. [email protected]
Leandro Henrique Mendonça de Oliveira [email protected]
Embrapa Informática Agropecuária, Campinas, SP, Brazil
Gladis Maria de Barcellos Almeida [email protected]
Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos, SP, Brazil
Caterina Caracciolo [email protected]
Gudrun Johannsen [email protected]
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, Italy