Rule: Is it a Primitive or a Composite?

by Donald Chapin

While writing a response to email discussion about some loose ends from the Business Rules Group meeting that followed the recent ZIFA (Zachman Institute for Framework Advancement) Conference, I started to apply some logic that flows from key points of agreement coming out of that meeting. As I started to argue that certain conclusions must be true because 'rules' are primitives, I was struck with the thought, "Oh, but what if rules are actually composites!"

These ideas of 'primitive' and 'composite' had been firmly fixed in my mind because they were a recurring theme throughout the ZIFA conference. John Zachman threw down the gauntlet in his keynote speech: "If your modeling is based on composites instead of primitives, you're NOT doing architecture!"

If you believe enterprise architecture is important, maybe critically important, then the question of what is and what isn't a primitive becomes pivotal. How can you make sure that you are on a bedrock of architecture if you can't be absolutely sure that the cornerstone of your models is primitives?

Since the Business Rules Group is developing standards to enable good enterprise architecture in areas that involve rules, the question of whether or not a rule is a primitive is a central one. Following on its heels is the question of what are the primitive concepts if 'rule' is a composite concept.

This brings us to the question, "What is the fundamental difference between a primitive thing and a composite thing?"

In the realm of tangible, physical things this is quite easy to answer. In fact I have tried it at dinner parties, and no one seems to have any problem deciding whether any physical object in the room is a primitive or a composite. It's either composed (made up of parts) or it is a single, homogeneous thing that has no parts. Admittedly, this can be determined only with respect to a specific context as all physical things are composed of atoms, and atoms are composed of … … (you see the problem).

The real challenge comes when you try to decide whether an intangible, non-physical thing is a primitive or a composite. Rather than take on that question directly (it's really another discussion), I decided to start with the dictionary definition of 'rule' and follow the trail of the 'definitions behind the definition' to see what the English language had to tell me about whether 'rule' is a primitive or a composite. I also decided that for now I would not worry about exactly what 'primitive' and 'composite' meant, but just go by the most obvious meaning as I heard it at the ZIFA conference.

So let's follow the trail I found. First I started with this definition of 'rule' from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary of Synonyms [MWDS] -- by the way, this is an excellent resource for discovering the essence of a word by seeing what is common and what is contrasting among its synonyms (www.m-w.com/book/thesaur/synonym.htm)^[1]:

Rule a principle laid down or accepted as governing conduct, action, or procedure

Let's examine this definition for nouns (in red), verbs (italics), and what is missing (in brackets):

Rule a principle laid down or accepted (by a group of people) as governing conduct, action, or procedure

The easiest first step behind the definition of 'rule' is to substitute the existing OBC ("Organizing Business Concepts") term, Community:

Rule a principle laid down or accepted (by a Community) as governing conduct, action, or procedure

Next let's find a more general single word that encompasses the meaning of these three words: conduct, action, procedure. To do this I used Princeton University's WordNet website (http://www.cogsci.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/webwn). A particularly useful feature of this resource for words and meanings is the ability to follow the trail from a word to more specific words, or to a more general word. The trail is as follows:

Conduct is a kind of Activity

Activity
is a kind of Act (something that people [or other agents] do or cause to happen).

Action is a kind of Act (something that people [or other agents] do or cause to happen).

Procedure is a kind of Activity

Activity
is a kind of Act (something that people [or other agents] do or cause to happen).

We can now simplify the wording of our definition of 'rule':

Rule a principle laid down or accepted (by a Community) as governing (an) Act(s)

Here's where the trail gets very interesting indeed, as we look at the definitions behind 'principle':

Principle a generalization accepted as true and basic that provides a basis for reasoning or a guide for conduct or procedure [MWDS]

Generalization a general statement or concept obtained by inference from specific cases [NODE -- New Oxford Dictionary of English www.ifinger.com/shop/productpresentation.asp?pID=3 ]

'Concept' is obviously an OBC term but its definition is still evolving. This one from the world of logic seems the most relevant:

Concept the idea of a thing which the mind conceives after knowing many instances of the category to which it belongs and which is devoid of all details except those that are typical or generic [MWDS]

Now all we have to do is to is make 'general statement' more precise.

Statement a definite or clear expression of something in speech or writing [NODE]

The key here is the 'something' that is being expressed, not any particular form of expression. The first phrase that comes to mind in the context of OBC regarding statement is 'statement of fact.' So we find ourselves at 'Fact' -- the next most central notion (after 'Concept') in "Organizing Business Concepts."

Also key is the idea of 'general' from general statement, or more precisely, 'generic':

Generic characteristic of, belonging or relating to, comprehending, or affecting all or the whole (a class or group of things; not specific [NODE]); and implying reference to every member of a genus or (often) of a clearly defined scientific or logical category, and the exclusion of all other individuals [MWDS]

Generic' is an excellent adjective to use to distinguish the 'generalization' from the 'specific cases from which it is inferred' (see definition of 'generalization' above). For the moment OBC contains one kind of 'general statement': the Generic Fact. An example of a Fact (specific) is: "Person [John Smith] buys Product [Dell Insperion Serial No 327598]." The corresponding Generic Fact is "Person buys Product."

We are now ready to put this all together to see whether 'rule' is a primitive or a composite. Given that Concepts, Generic Facts, and other 'not yet defined' things expressed in other kinds of 'general statements' are Generalizations; and that Conduct, Action, and Procedure are Acts,

RULE is the name of this generic interplay among Communities, Generalizations, and Acts:

Community lays down or accepts Generalization to govern Act

NOTE: This is not a fully structured definition of 'rule' but merely a formatting of the dictionary definitions behind the word 'rule.' It does, however, provide the opportunity to rethink 'rule' in terms of concepts already available in the English language.

The dictionary has shown us that almost certainly 'rule' is a composite concept that takes the form of a generic interplay among other concepts, which may or may not be primitive themselves (another discussion).

It has been fascinating to take this journey through the dictionary starting with 'rule' and find myself back at two fundamental OBC notions: Concept and Generic Fact.

The Business Rules Group has completed its '10,000 foot' trip though the nine Topics in "Organizing Business Concepts."^[2] As we work through the Topics again at the ground level, it will be intriguing to watch the final shape of the ideas emerge, and to see the clarity and simplicity, so essential to this standard, as they reveal themselves.

Readers are encouraged to share both their own thinking about the issues addressed by "Organizing Business Concepts," as well as feedback from this "BRG Dispatch" by contacting Donald Chapin (Donald_Chapin@msn.com).

Notes

[1] At my request iFinger is seeking to make the Merriam-Webster Dictionary of Synonyms available electronically. You can check the status of its availability at http://ejournal.ifinger.com/bin/customer.exe?a=20650+7076+290847

[2] "Organizing Business Concepts", Business Rules Journal, BRG Dispatches, April 2001

standard citation for this article:

Donald Chapin, "Rule: Is it a Primitive or a Composite?" Business Rules Journal, Vol. 3, No. 2, (February 2002), URL: http://www.BRCommunity.com/a2002/b099.html.