Edit Conflict Resolution in WikiBOK: A Wiki-Based BOK Formulation-Aid System for New Disciplines

Abstract

A body of knowledge (BOK) of an academic field is an indispensable aid not only to people's understanding of the entirety of a targeted academic field, but also to designing a perfect curriculum of that field for educational purposes. However, in contrast to a BOK for a mature discipline such as computer science, the formulation of a BOK for a new discipline, such as social informatics, life science, and sustainability science, is difficult because academics in such a new discipline cannot present it in its entirety par advance. Therefore, a bottom-up and open collaborative approach based on collective intelligence seems promising, and contrasts strongly with the traditional style in which a BOK is formulated: by the authorities in the field in a top-down manner. WikiBOK is a wiki-based body of knowledge (BOK) formulation-aid system for new disciplines. It is developed based on BOK+, which is a novel BOK formulation principle for new disciplines that enables us to construct a BOK in a bottom-up manner. As its name indicates, WikiBOK uses Semantic Media Wiki (SMW) to facilitate its fundamental functions. A rich graphical user interface is provided using open source graph visualization software. The main objective of this paper is to illustrate how edit conflicts are resolved in WikiBOK. Needless to say, edit conflicts are unavoidable when WikiBOKers collaborate to formulate a BOK-tree. A WikiBOK edit conflict resolution principle is shown, and the WikiBOK Edit Conflict Resolver is implemented based on this principle. Social Informatics BOK (SIBOK) is under construction using WikiBOK.