Published

Dimension and Hierarchy

vr.wm-dat-014 · wm-dat-014-dimension-and-hierarchy

Describe a reusable analytical dimension and its versioned hierarchy bindings so consumers can select, group and interpret measures without inventing member identity or roll-up semantics.

World Models Information and virtual systems INF.DAT.DIM

Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Classifiers What it is Why it exists Distinguishing features What robots and AI may and may not do Moral aspects Owners Links to other meta-models Identity and identifiers Direct properties Recognition Capabilities and actions Hazards and failure modes Standards and interfaces Context of use Sources

Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled

6 bundles · 12 layers · 12 findings · 48 questions

Identity and analytical meaning Context for identity and analytical meaning.

Dimension identity context

Keep a stable dimension identifier separate from semantic concept, revision and any physical column. A dimension definition can exist before a dataset consumes it.

Dimension identity

Keep a stable dimension identifier separate from semantic concept, revision and any physical column. A dimension definition can exist before a dataset consumes it.

Which master identifier and namespace identify this analytical dimension? identity
What analytical distinction does the dimension express? definition
Which accountable role maintains its definition and approves revisions? ownership
Which representation is coded, typed or explicitly mixed under the adopting profile? classification

Grain and role bindings context

A usage binding names a dataset or semantic context, analytical role and expected grain. Reusing a date-like domain for separate roles does not make those roles interchangeable.

Grain and role bindings

A usage binding names a dataset or semantic context, analytical role and expected grain. Reusing a date-like domain for separate roles does not make those roles interchangeable.

Which consumer and role use this dimension revision? relationship
Which other dimensions jointly define the consumer observation key? composition
What prevents a join from multiplying observations through ambiguous member matches? constraint
How is a dimension with no current consumer distinguished from a broken binding? exception

Values and member references Context for values and member references.

Member identity and representation context

A code is qualified by its source scheme and revision. A member occurrence in a hierarchy also needs a hierarchy-scoped identity. Labels and notation are presentation and exchange values, not sufficient global keys.

Member identity and representation

Which source scheme, revision and member identifier resolve a coded value? identity
How are typed values normalized without losing their declared datatype? interoperability
Where did each label, notation and language tag originate? provenance
How are duplicate labels and reused codes distinguished before matching? quality

Missing and partial domain semantics context

Missing, unknown, not applicable, suppressed and aggregate-all values require explicit distinct policies when used. Partial domain extracts cannot prove global absence; a synthetic total is not silently inserted as a source member.

Missing and partial domain semantics

Which exceptional states are represented and how are they distinguished? exception
Does a blank or absent value fail the selected consumer key contract? constraint
Is the supplied member list complete for the claimed scope and revision? quality
How is a suppressed value prevented from being interpreted as zero or an ordinary member? access

Hierarchy views and topology Context for hierarchy views and topology.

Typed hierarchy edges context

Give each view and occurrence a stable identity. Declare edge direction, meaning, roots and parent multiplicity. A selected analytical profile may require an acyclic graph; this is stronger than bare SKOS semantics. A flat dimension needs no artificial parent.

Typed hierarchy edges

Which hierarchy view and occurrence identifiers define this arrangement? composition
What does each directed parent-child edge mean in this view? relationship
Are multiple parents, disconnected roots or no hierarchy permitted by the selected profile? constraint
What evidence detects cycles, dangling edges and unintended duplicate occurrences? validation

Levels, paths and ordering context

Formal levels are optional and differ from graph depth. Views may have skipped levels and uneven paths. Display ordering is not a numerical distance or an additive relationship.

Levels, paths and ordering

Formal levels are optional and differ from graph depth. Views may have skipped levels and uneven paths. Display ordering is not a numerical distance or an additive relationship.

Which levels are formal semantic categories and which depths are only derived? classification
How are skipped levels and leaves at unequal depths represented? composition
How does a consumer select a default or alternate hierarchy without changing member identity? process
Which ordering rules are presentation-only rather than analytical comparisons? constraint

Time and controlled change Context for time and controlled change.

Effective and recorded revisions context

Maintain revision identity and separate effective applicability from recorded time. A corrected historical assignment need not take effect when it was ingested. Period-valued analytical members remain calendar-qualified values, not fabricated instants.

Effective and recorded revisions

What effective interval and boundary convention qualify this member assignment? temporal
When was the assertion recorded and from which source revision? provenance
How are overlapping effective assignments resolved for an as-of request? constraint
Which calendar, granularity and offset rules distinguish time members from audit instants? interoperability

Revision and migration evidence context

Changing a label, reparenting a member, splitting a code and replacing a meaning have different compatibility consequences. Supersession preserves a reference trail but does not imply semantic equivalence or indefinite payload retention.

Revision and migration evidence

Which state and approval evidence allow this revision to be used? lifecycle
What semantic change caused the new revision? event
Which consumers need explicit migration after splits, merges or reparenting? interoperability
What retention rule permits retirement or payload removal while preserving necessary reference continuity? retention

Analytical use and exchange Context for analytical use and exchange.

Aggregation eligibility contract context

A hierarchy supplies navigation and grouping context, not proof that child measures sum to a parent. Record eligibility only against a pinned metric contract and explicit coverage, overlap, allocation and temporal conditions. Unknown eligibility blocks automatic roll-up.

Aggregation eligibility contract

Which metric contract and operator permit aggregation along this particular hierarchy? measurement
What evidence shows complete disjoint coverage or an approved treatment of overlapping members? constraint
Which non-additive or time-sensitive measure cases forbid a simple sum? exception
How is repeated ancestry handled so an observation is not counted through multiple paths? validation

Crosswalks and projection limits context

Crosswalks identify source and target schemes, revisions, direction and relationship strength. A similar label is not identity, and mapping equivalence does not establish aggregate preservation. Every exchange projection names its standard version and known losses.

Crosswalks and projection limits

Which source and target revisions and mapping relation define this crosswalk? interoperability
What evidence supports each match rather than label similarity alone? quality
Which one-to-many or unmapped members require explicit loss or allocation decisions? exception
Which target specification version and profile must a projection satisfy? requirement

Assurance and accountable use Context for assurance and accountable use.

Evidence and validation scope context

A check result is bound to a dimension revision, profile, evidence snapshot and evaluator reference. Passing structural checks does not prove factual correctness, representative coverage, aggregation safety or privacy. Local functions below are proposed operations, not implementations.

Evidence and validation scope

Which pinned shapes or equivalent rules validate this exact revision? validation
Which fixtures expose multi-parent overlap, cycles, ragged paths and code reuse? evidence
Who produced the report and which source snapshots were examined? provenance
Which failures, warnings and untested cases prevent operational approval? quality

Authority, access and disclosure context

Proposed local governance rules assign accountable roles and policy bindings. Member labels, mapping paths and small-group structure can be sensitive. Derived visible views must not reveal restricted members or imply complete coverage after filtering. The cited vocabularies do not grant authority or supply a disclosure-control algorithm.

Authority, access and disclosure

Which role and policy authorize definition, hierarchy or mapping changes? authority
Which namespace and revision checks prevent an untrusted import from replacing an approved view? security
Which member attributes or relationships need restricted visibility for the stated purpose? privacy
How are filtered paths and hidden totals reported without leaking restricted members? access

Classifiers Filled

Family: World Models
Category: Information and virtual systems
Entry kind: entity
Navigation path: NAV.INF.DAT.DIM
Domain: INF.DAT.DIM
Industry: Cross-industry
Tags: dimensionhierarchyinf.dat.dim

What it is Filled

One governed analytical dimension definition is the root. It carries a value-domain binding, contextual roles and zero or more hierarchy-view bindings. Hierarchy views have their own identities and revisions; externally maintained codes remain references. This is a proposed format-neutral metadata contract, not an executable analytics engine.

In scope

Dimension identity, semantic concept, representation and analytical grain bindings.
Member references, local exceptional-value policy, labels and hierarchy occurrences.
Named hierarchy views, edge meaning, optional levels, roots, topology and contextual selection.
Effective revisions, provenance, consumer mappings and declared aggregation eligibility.
Local governance, change evidence, validation requirements and access policy for these metadata records.

Out of scope

Dataset rows, observations, materialized cubes and query execution.
Metric formulas, units, numerical aggregation algorithms and certification of statistical validity.
Ownership of external business entities, taxonomies, code lists, geographical boundaries or calendars.
Physical dimensions, vector-space dimensions and the platform owner-package service named Dimension.
Runtime authorization, disclosure-control engines, pipeline execution and global audit-trail operations.

Why it exists Filled

Describe a reusable analytical dimension and its versioned hierarchy bindings so consumers can select, group and interpret measures without inventing member identity or roll-up semantics.

Distinguishing features Derived, awaiting review

Unlike WM-DAT-001 Dataset: Registry parent is a catalog organization lead. A dimension can be reused across datasets, so do not infer exclusive containment or dataset lifecycle inheritance. Store only pinned consumer references.
Unlike WM-DAT-013 Metric Definition: This model records whether a hierarchy is eligible under a referenced measure aggregation contract; formulas and computation belong to the metric master.
Unlike WM-DAT-015 Semantic Model: Role-specific dimension bindings are local metadata; semantic joins, query planning and model-wide evaluation remain external.
Unlike WM-DAT-004 Data Schema / Data Contract: Concrete record schemas and physical keys are external bindings; candidate answer fields here are not a complete instance schema.
Unlike WM-DAT-006 Data Lineage and WM-DAT-007 Data Quality Evaluation: Carry derivation and validation-report references; do not own pipeline lineage execution or a global quality evaluator.
Unlike External concept and code schemes: Hierarchy occurrence identity differs from referenced code identity. Local aliases and revision pins do not transfer maintenance authority over source codes.

Note: Derived from boundary notes against neighbouring models.

What robots and AI may and may not do Derived, awaiting review

Must not

Use guarded revision proposals, provenance and affected-consumer review; never overwrite source code masters or change past facts by implicit rebinding.
Deny mutation unless an accountable policy authorizes the role; restrict sensitive metadata reads by purpose and scope.

May

Resolve a dimension binding: Proposed local operation, not implemented. Resolve qualified identifiers and the requested revision without substituting the latest revision or matching labels alone.
Propose a hierarchy revision: Proposed local operation, not implemented. Prepare a candidate view from authorized member references and explicit topology rules.
Assess local metadata against a profile: Proposed local operation, not implemented. Request or bind a check report for a fixed metadata snapshot; no implemented validator or conformance certification is claimed.
Record roll-up eligibility: Proposed local operation, not implemented. Evaluate whether supplied evidence supports a declared eligibility decision under a referenced metric contract; never calculate aggregates.
Propose a versioned crosswalk: Proposed local operation, not implemented. Record supported mappings and unresolved differences without collapsing identities.
Propose retirement of a revision: Proposed local operation, not implemented. Assess consumer references and retention policy before marking a local revision superseded or proposing payload disposition.

Note: Derived from functions, policies, CRUD and access rules; prohibitions were not authored for agents as such.

Moral aspects Derived, awaiting review

Domain-specific aggregation operators, allocation formulas, fiscal calendars, geographic boundary histories and privacy controls require qualified profiles.
Local authority, licensing, privacy and retention decisions require the adopting governance profile.

Note: Sentences mentioning harm, privacy, consent or similar, collected from the specification.

Owners Filled

Steward

Name an accountable dimension steward role and adopting governance package.

Roles

Dimension steward: Maintain semantic scope, namespaces and revision proposals.
Hierarchy curator: Maintain authorized view edges and temporal assignment evidence.
Accountable reviewer: Approve compatibility, mapping and roll-up eligibility evidence.
Consumer integrator: Pin consumer roles and report projection loss or ambiguous joins.
Access custodian: Bind access, disclosure and retention policies; review sensitive views.

Links to other meta-models Filled

references

WM-DAT-001 - Candidate consumer dataset binding, not containment or inherited lifecycle.
WM-DAT-013 - Candidate metric contract for aggregation eligibility; formulas and computed measures stay external.
WM-DAT-015 - Candidate semantic context and role binding; query execution and joins stay external.
WM-DAT-004 - Candidate concrete instance-schema binding and projection contract.
WM-DAT-006 - Candidate provenance master binding; record derivation references only.
WM-DAT-007 - Candidate external validation report/evaluator binding, not evaluator ownership.

aligned

SKOS - Optional concept and mapping projection; analytical acyclicity requires additional rules.
SDMX 3.0 Information Model - Optional version-pinned hierarchy and representation mapping; 3.1 mapping remains held.

neighbor

WM-DAT-001 Dataset - Registry parent is a catalog organization lead. A dimension can be reused across datasets, so do not infer exclusive containment or dataset lifecycle inheritance. Store only pinned consumer references.
WM-DAT-013 Metric Definition - This model records whether a hierarchy is eligible under a referenced measure aggregation contract; formulas and computation belong to the metric master.
WM-DAT-015 Semantic Model - Role-specific dimension bindings are local metadata; semantic joins, query planning and model-wide evaluation remain external.
WM-DAT-004 Data Schema / Data Contract - Concrete record schemas and physical keys are external bindings; candidate answer fields here are not a complete instance schema.
WM-DAT-006 Data Lineage and WM-DAT-007 Data Quality Evaluation - Carry derivation and validation-report references; do not own pipeline lineage execution or a global quality evaluator.
External concept and code schemes - Hierarchy occurrence identity differs from referenced code identity. Local aliases and revision pins do not transfer maintenance authority over source codes.

parent

WM-DAT-001

What else AI and robots need to interact with it Incomplete

Sources Filled

The RDF Data Cube Vocabulary - W3C
SKOS Simple Knowledge Organization System Reference - W3C
SDMX Standards Section 2: Information Model - SDMX
PROV-O: The PROV Ontology - W3C
Shapes Constraint Language (SHACL) - W3C
RFC 3339: Date and Time on the Internet: Timestamps - IETF
RFC 6902: JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) Patch - IETF
SDMX Technical Specifications - SDMX

Open questions

Run the prepared direct-HTTP checker outside the sandbox and complete claim-level, version, errata and licensing review, including the target SDMX version.
Implement and test nested profiles with flat, multi-root, multi-parent, cyclic, ragged, incomplete, overlapping-time and sensitive filtered-view cases; verify metric-specific roll-up and mapping loss without importing metric execution into this model.
Pin consumer and neighbor revisions and obtain independent external review before any canonical or publishable-draft promotion.
Independent external review is absent under the owner waiver.
Direct HTTP checks are not attempted because the owner reports sandbox blocking; no response statuses or body hashes were measured.
Full version and errata review is incomplete; SDMX 3.1 Information Model retrieval failed, and 3.0 conceptual claims must not be promoted to 3.1 conformance.
Nested instance schemas, exchange round trips and adversarial fixtures are designed but not implemented.
Domain-specific aggregation operators, allocation formulas, fiscal calendars, geographic boundary histories and privacy controls require qualified profiles.
Neighbor references are proposed bindings with no guaranteed deployed runtime or pinned neighbor version.

Machine files

Card as JSON Specification AGENTS.md Source Card backlog vercy.card/1

Provenance

world-models research · reviewable-draft

Built from: models/wm-dat-014-dimension-and-hierarchy/spec.yaml