Inference Inferences are steps in logical reasoning, moving from premises to logical consequences; etymologically, the word '' infer'' means to "carry forward". Inference is theoretically traditionally divided into deduction and induction, a distinct ...

is a process of deriving logical conclusion from the basis of

empirical evidence Empirical evidence is evidence obtained through sense experience or experimental procedure. It is of central importance to the sciences and plays a role in various other fields, like epistemology and law. There is no general agreement on how the ...

and prior knowledge rather than on the basis of direct observation. Soil inference system (SINFERS) is the term proposed by McBratney et al. (2002) as a

knowledge base In computer science, a knowledge base (KB) is a set of sentences, each sentence given in a knowledge representation language, with interfaces to tell new sentences and to ask questions about what is known, where either of these interfaces migh ...

to infer soil properties and populate the digital soil databases. SINFERS takes measurements with a given level of certainty and infers data that is not known with minimal uncertainties by means of logically linked predictive functions. These predictive functions, in a non-spatial context are referred to as

pedotransfer function In soil science, pedotransfer functions (PTF) are predictive functions of certain soil properties using data from soil surveys. The term ''pedotransfer function'' was coined by Johan Bouma as ''translating data we have into what we need''. The mo ...

s. The basic assumption underlying SINFERS is that if one knows or is able to predict the basic fundamental properties of a soil, one should be able to infer all other physical and chemical properties using PTFs. Pedotransfer functions relate basic soil properties to other more difficult or expensive to measure soil properties by means of regression and various

data mining Data mining is the process of extracting and finding patterns in massive data sets involving methods at the intersection of machine learning, statistics, and database systems. Data mining is an interdisciplinary subfield of computer science and ...

tools. Crucial to the operation of SINFERS are reliable inputs, the ability to link basic soil information, and the quantification of

uncertainty Uncertainty or incertitude refers to situations involving imperfect or unknown information. It applies to predictions of future events, to physical measurements that are already made, or to the unknown, and is particularly relevant for decision ...

Current status

During 2007–2009, Grant Tranter of the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

, Australia in collaboration with Jason Morris of Morris Technical Solutions, US, completed a working prototype of SINFERS. This implementation of the SINFERS concept uses

Jess Jess is a unisex given name, often a short form (hypocorism) of Jessica, Jesse, Jessie, Jessy, Jesswin and a surname. It may refer to: Given name * Jess Atkinson (born 1961), American football player * Jess Cain (1926–2008), American radi ...

to pattern match object representations of subsets of soil properties in

working memory Working memory is a cognitive system with a limited capacity that can Memory, hold information temporarily. It is important for reasoning and the guidance of decision-making and behavior. Working memory is often used synonymously with short-term m ...

to the argument list of known pedotransfer functions. The SINFERS' knowledge base knows which PTF rules to apply and how to choose the most certain computed values. SINFERS computes new properties not only from an original input set, but also from all newly inferred properties. Some of the design aspects of this application were presented at the October Rules Fest 2009. Se
October Rules Fest 2009
In November 2009, the formal work on the project was suspended for more than two years. However, as of March 2012, the research has been resumed by Jason Morris, now at the University of Sydney. As of January 2013, the latest progress has been presented in Sydney (April 2012), and the general concepts were discussed in Italy (July 2012) and also in Tasmania (December 2012).4 Joint SSA and NZSSS Soil Science Conference Hobart, Tasmania 2–7 December 2012 Current project scope includes deployment as an interactive web application and exposure as a web service. Public release is scheduled for late 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soil Inference System Pedology

Current status

See also

References