Bill, if you weren't writing "post discovery" there is some very
interesting work by C. Alexander whose background is city planning
on the application of the idea of "A Pattern Language" which he
developed for that purpose to software development.
[Quote of part of Bill's msg LO4212 inserted by your host...]
> What I see as needed, and there may now be available enough
> computing power and information in the Internet, is the ability
> to search out connections between the patterns of process or
> thought or content from one frame of reference to another.
> I as a researcher would like to be researching a concept in
> my discipline and while working on a terminal have an agent
> point out that a similar formula or pettern of logic is applicable
> in some other discipline.
>
> For instance, there are some concepts in the discipline of City Planning
> that are applicable to Information Systems planning. In would be
> nice to not have to wait for the the computer systems person with an
> interest in city planning to recognize the synergy.
-- Michael McMaster Michael@kbddean.demon.co.uk