BACKGROUND

1. Field

This disclosure relates to the fields of analytics and of modeling and simulation and more particularly relates to a platform, with various technology components, for improved handling of alternative points of view of individuals involved in decision-making situations.

2. Description of the Related Art

Individuals in business situations and other situations frequently face decisions that depend on the analysis of facts. Big data platforms, analytic tools, and similar systems allow individuals to apply various analytic techniques to data sets (such as financial and operational data of an enterprise) to draw conclusions, support arguments, and the like. However, despite the fact that the structure or organization of data, of an enterprise, or of its activities can strongly influence understanding, such systems do not readily facilitate presentation of a variety of potential structures or organizations for these and other items, such as ones reflecting different points of view. Simulation systems exist, but these also typically fail to readily enable handling alternative points of view. A need exists for methods and systems for facilitating modeling, simulation and other analytic activities that facilitate the improved handling of alternative points of view.

SUMMARY

In embodiments a system for decision support may include a reference data set configured from a plurality of sources of data, the reference data set either configured through or occurring as a result of forced independence of content and structure present in the sources of data such that at least one constraint, such as a semantic constraint upon an item of content as a result of the structure present in a corresponding source of data of the sources of data is not present in the reference data set by being intentionally omitted during configuration of the reference data set. The at least one constraint may be a meaning of the item of content configured in a schema for the corresponding source of data. In embodiments, the at least one constraint may be a forced relationship of the item of content with another item of content in the plurality of sources of data. In embodiments, the structure present may be any of a relational database structure, a tabular structure, a formula, a hierarchy, and the like. In embodiments, the at least one constraint may be a semantic constraint that may be a definition of the item of content or may be defined in an ontology for a corresponding source of data in the plurality of sources of data. In embodiments, at least one item of content from at least one of the sources of data may be configured in the reference data set independent of at least one semantic constraint present in the at least one of the sources of data. In embodiments, the semantic constraint may be imposed upon the at least one item of content as a result of the structure the at least one of the sources of data. Further, in embodiments, at least one constraint upon an item of content due to the structure of a source of data of the sources of data comprising the item of content may be represented in the reference data set as an item of content. Also, at least one label of an item of content reflective of a structure of a source of data of the sources of data comprising the item of content may be configured in the reference data set as an item of content. Yet further, configuration of the reference data set may include isolating content and structure of the sources of data and including the isolated content and data descriptive of the structure as data elements in the reference data set. In embodiments, the system may further comprise an ontology for the reference data set that defines items of content in the reference data set including items of content that represent structure in the sources of data.

In embodiments, a system for decision support may include methods that may include a method of de-referencing. The method may include taking a source of data that includes data elements defined by a source of data ontology and that are related by a structure of the source of data; extracting the data elements from the source of data independent of their ontology-specific definitions or structure-specific relationship; and configuring the extracted data elements in a reference data set defined by a second ontology that is independent of the first ontology while ensuring data element-specific reference to the data elements in the source of data.

In embodiments, a system for decision support may include methods that may include a method of de-referencing. The method may include steps including determining at least one ontology-derived constraint on data elements in a source of data; determining at least one structure-derived constraint on data elements in the source of data; and reproducing a portion of the data elements found in the source of data in a reference data set while removing the ontology-derived and the structure-derived constraints. In embodiments, the at least one ontology-derived constraint comprises a meaning of the data elements. In embodiments, the at least one ontology-derived constraint comprises a context-specific connection among the data elements. In embodiments, the at least one structure-derived constraint comprises a relevance among the data elements. In embodiments, the system may further comprise including data representative of the at least one ontology-derived constraint as data elements in the reference data set. In embodiments, the system may further comprise including data representative of the at least one structure-derived constraint as data elements in the reference data set. In embodiments, the reference data set may be configured as a flat data file in which the data elements found in the source of the data and data elements that represent at least one of the ontology-derived constraint and the structure-derived constraint appear in the reference data set.

In yet other embodiments, de-referencing may include accessing a data source, the data source comprising content and structure organized according to a first ontology, wherein the first ontology conveys meaning to the content and wherein the structure facilitates detecting relationships among individual items of the content; copying a portion of the content into a de-referenced data set that uses a second ontology to organize the content, wherein a structure of the de-referenced data set is independent of the structure of the data source; and generating items of content in the de-referenced data set that represent the structure.

De-referencing may, in embodiments, include accessing a data set organized to comply with a first ontology, wherein at least two elements in the data set are related through a third element that is defined in the first ontology, and generating a reference data model organized to comply with a second ontology, wherein each of the at least two elements and the third element are stored in the reference data model independent of relationships evident in the data set among the elements. In embodiments, the third element may be any of a label for the at least two elements and a data type. In embodiments, the at least two elements are distinct data values of different data types. In embodiments, generating a reference data model may include severing at least one of geometric and textual relationships between the at least two elements. In embodiments, generating a reference data model may include severing interconnections between the at least two elements, wherein the interconnections may be defined in the first ontology, may include linked lists, include tree structures, taxonomic structures and the like. In embodiments, generating a reference data model may include collapsing a taxonomic structure that relates the at least two elements. In embodiments, the taxonomic structure may be determined by the first ontology. In embodiments, a relationship between the at least two elements may be based on the first ontology. In embodiments, a relationship between the at least two elements in the reference data model may be based on the second ontology. Additionally, generating a reference data model may include executing mathematical operations that maintain a value of the at least two elements while removing structural configurations in the data set associated with the at least two elements.

In embodiments, a system for decision support may include a recombinant access and mediation system comprising a plurality of entity root certificates, each entity root certificate comprising data representative of capabilities, preferences, and activity history of a corresponding entity. The recombinant access and mediation system may further include an access facility that produces directed graphs of entity root certificates of at least two entities. The recombinant access and mediation system may further include a mediation facility that perform functions including collocating the directed graphs of the plurality of access capabilities; determining access capabilities that are common to the at least two entities based on intersections of the collocated directed graphs; and generating an aggregated association certificate that indicates the common access capabilities, wherein the aggregated association certificate defines entity access rights of the at least two entities.

In embodiments, a system for decision support may include an access security system comprised of a plurality of authenticated entity root certificates, each root certificate representing at least one of capabilities, preferences, and activity history for a corresponding entity and an access rights determination facility, that produces directed graphs of root certificate information for at least two entities requesting access mediation, aligns the directed graphs so that root certificate information that is common for the at least two entities is determined from intersections of the aligned graphs, and produces an aggregated association certificate of common root certificate information that defines access rights of an aggregation of the at least two entities.

In embodiments, a distributed ledger access security system may include a plurality of authenticated access certificates for a plurality of peer entities seeking access to a distributed ledger, each root certificate representing at least one of capabilities, preferences, and activity history for a corresponding entity and a distributed ledger access security facility. The distributed ledger access facility may convert content of the authenticated access certificates associated with one of the peer entities seeking access to the distributed ledger into individual graphs, aligns the individual peer entity graphs with corresponding graphs of an authenticated access certificate of the distributed ledger, and based on intersection of the peer entity graphs with the distributed ledger access graph determines rights of access by the one of the peer entities to the distributed ledger. In embodiments, access to the distributed ledger is an access to update a block chain present in the distributed ledger.

In embodiments, a method of authenticating a transaction in a block chain of transactions of digital resources, may include the steps comprising generating directed graphs of data representative of distributed ledger access attributes of participants in a transaction request associated with digital resources tracked in the distributed ledger, collocating the directed graphs of the participants, determining at least one point of intersection of the directed graphs, wherein points of intersection represent access attributes that the participants have in common, and based on the common access attributes, mediating validation of the request by producing a validation certificate of the transaction request. In embodiments, the validation certificate indicates at least one of that the transaction request is validated and the transaction request is not validated. In embodiments, the validation certificate indicates that points of intersection are insufficient to validate the transaction request. In embodiments, the participants in the transaction request include a first user, the digital resources and a second user. In embodiments, the access attributes include at least one of capabilities, preferences, and activity history of a participant. The access attributes may include a public key of the participant, a private key of the participant, a hash of a public key and a private key of the participant, and the like. In embodiments, the transaction is an access to update a block chain present in the distributed ledger.

In embodiments, a system for decision support may include a system of topical capabilities mediation that may include a Reference Data Model comprising a set of capabilities of an entity associated with a topic for which the entity requests use of at least one capability of the set of capabilities in association with a node in a hierarchy of nodes; an Assertion Model with an associated Apportionment sub-Model which jointly comprise a set of capability requirements for using a capability at each node in the hierarchy of nodes; and an Outcome Model which embodies a projection of the capability requirements upon the set of capabilities of the entity for use thereof in association with a target node in the hierarchy of nodes. In embodiments, the Outcome Model further comprises a sequence of projections of capability requirements of each higher node in the hierarch of nodes along a path in the hierarchy from a top node to the target node. In embodiments, each node in the hierarchy of nodes is a jurisdiction in a hierarchy of jurisdictions. In embodiments, the jurisdictions are legal jurisdictions of a country.

In embodiments, a system for decision support may include a method of topical mediation within a hierarchy of nodes. The method may include a step of identifying a path through a hierarchy from a first node to a target node in the hierarchy based upon a request for conducting topic-specific activities in association with the target node. The method may include a step of projecting an Assertion Model comprising a hierarchical set of requirements for conducting topic-specific activity under requirements for the first node upon elements of a Reference Data Model representing topic-specific capabilities of an entity thereby producing a first Outcome Model representing first node allowed topic-specific capabilities of the entity. The method may include a step of projecting the Assertion Model for conducting the topic-specific activity under requirements for the target node upon elements of the first Outcome Model thereby producing a second Outcome Model representing target node allowed topic-specific capabilities of the entity.

In embodiments, a system of Topical Capability Mediation (TCM) may include a Reference Data Model comprising a set of capabilities of an entity associated with a topic for which the entity requests use of at least one capability of the set of capabilities in a first jurisdiction. The system of Topical Capability Mediation (TCM) may also include an Assertion Model with an associated Apportionment sub-Model which jointly comprise a hierarchical set of jurisdictional requirements associated with the topic, the set comprising topic use requirements for a plurality of jurisdictions. The system of Topical Capability Mediation (TCM) may include a first Outcome Model which embodies a projection of jurisdictional requirements for a top-level jurisdiction in the hierarchical set jurisdictional requirements upon the set of capabilities of the entity for use thereof in the jurisdiction. The system of Topical Capability Mediation (TCM) may include a plurality of secondary Outcome Models, each embodying a projection of jurisdictional requirements for a lower level jurisdiction in the hierarchical set of jurisdictional requirements upon a set of capabilities of the entity embodied in an Outcome Model for a next higher level jurisdiction in the hierarchical set of jurisdictional requirements.

In embodiments, a system of topical mediation may include a Reference Data Model comprising a set of capabilities of an entity associated with a topic for which the entity requests use of at least one capability of the set of capabilities in a jurisdiction. The system of Topical Capability Mediation (TCM) may include an Assertion Model with an associated Apportionment sub-Model which jointly comprise a set of topic-specific requirements for use of the at least one capability in a plurality of jurisdictions arranged in a hierarchy, wherein the topic-specific requirements for the jurisdiction is disposed at a sub-level of the hierarchy; The system of Topical Capability Mediation (TCM) may also include a first Outcome Model which embodies a projection of jurisdictional requirements for at least one jurisdiction at a level in the hierarchy above the jurisdiction upon the set of capabilities of the entity for use thereof in the at least one jurisdiction and all jurisdictions at sub-levels below the at least one jurisdiction. The system of Topical Capability Mediation (TCM) may also include a second Outcome Model which embodies a projection of jurisdictional requirements for the jurisdiction at the sub-level of the hierarchy upon the set of capabilities of the entity embodied in the first Outcome Model.

In embodiments, a method of Topical Capability Mediation (TCM) within a hierarchy of nodes may include performing various steps including: identifying a path through a hierarchy from a first node to a target node in the hierarchy based upon a request for conducting topic-specific activities in association with the target node; projecting an Assertion Model comprising a hierarchical set of requirements for conducting topic-specific activity under requirements for the first node upon elements of a Reference Data Model representing topic-specific capabilities of an entity thereby producing a first Outcome Model representing first node allowed topic-specific capabilities of the entity; and projecting the Assertion Model for conducting the topic-specific activity under requirements for the target node upon elements of the first Outcome Model thereby producing a second Outcome Model representing target node allowed topic-specific capabilities of the entity. In embodiments, the nodes in the hierarchy comprise jurisdictions and topic-specific activity comprises conducting topic-specific business in a jurisdiction.

