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N3 (Notation 3)

N3 is a simple, readable, and extensible text format for writing down knowledge and data on the Web, built on top of RDF, and designed to be a more convenient syntax for humans.

data.n3
Since 2000
2000
First Released
4/5
GEO Score

Origin & Background

Creator
Tim Berners-Lee and Dan Connolly
Year Introduced
2000
Alternate Names
Purpose
To provide a simple, human-readable syntax for RDF, making it easier to author and exchange semantic web data.
Official Specification
View Specification

Key Benefits & Advantages

Benefits Overview

  • Human-readable syntax for RDF data
  • Extensible with custom prefixes and rules
  • Facilitates data integration and knowledge representation

Technical Advantages

Concise syntax for RDF triples
Supports logic rules and inference
Can embed other formats like RDF/XML and JSON
Easier to write and read than RDF/XML
Widely used in semantic web applications and linked data
Enables AI to understand relationships and facts
Supports data integration from various sources
Useful for knowledge graphs and semantic data models

SEO / GEO / LLMO Relevance

N3, being an RDF syntax, allows AI to understand explicit relationships and facts, enhancing semantic search and knowledge graph integration.

Explicitly defines relationships and facts for AI
Improves semantic search capabilities
Facilitates knowledge graph construction
Enables AI to understand complex data structures

Implementation Guide

Syntax Example

data.n3
Reference
@prefix geordy: <http://geordy.ai/ns#> .
@prefix schema: <http://schema.org/> .
@prefix ex: <http://example.org/> .

ex:GeordyAI
  a geordy:AIPlatform ;
  schema:name "Geordy AI Platform" ;
  schema:url "https://geordy.ai" ;
  geordy:optimizesFor ex:GenerativeSearch ;
  geordy:supportsAI ex:ChatGPT, ex:Claude .

ex:GenerativeSearch
  a geordy:SearchParadigm ;
  schema:name "Generative Search" .

ex:ChatGPT
  a schema:SoftwareApplication ;
  schema:name "ChatGPT" .

ex:Claude
  a schema:SoftwareApplication ;
  schema:name "Claude" .

Troubleshooting & Best Practices

Comparison to Alternative Formats

Alternative Formats
When to Use N3 (Notation 3)

Use N3 when you need a human-readable syntax for RDF data, especially when defining custom vocabularies or logic rules. Turtle is often preferred for its stricter syntax, while JSON-LD is good for web integration.

Advantages

  • +Human-readable
  • +Supports logic rules
  • +Concise syntax
  • +Extensible

Limitations

  • −Less strict syntax than Turtle
  • −Not as widely used as JSON-LD or Turtle for web data

Popular Use Cases

Knowledge Representation

Storing and exchanging knowledge graph data

Example:
Semantic web applications, expert systems

Data Integration

Combining data from multiple RDF sources

Example:
Linked data initiatives, data aggregation platforms

Rule-Based Systems

Defining logical rules for inference and reasoning

Example:
AI reasoning engines, semantic rule engines

Real-World Adoption Examples

Linked Open Data Cloud

Many datasets in the LOD Cloud use RDF and related syntaxes like N3

DBpedia

Uses RDF for knowledge representation, often serialized in N3

Developer Toolkit

Validators

N3.js Validator

Official Documentation

Notation 3 Design Issues

Resources & Citations

Notation 3 Design Issues
Notation 3 Wikipedia

Frequently Asked Questions

Automated Generation

Start Using N3 (Notation 3) with Geordy

Geordy automatically generates and maintains N3 (Notation 3) files for your website, ensuring optimal AI visibility without manual work.