Formal Concept Analysis: Mathematical Foundations

This is the first textbook on formal concept analysis. It gives a systematic presentation of the mathematical foundations and their relations to applications in computer science, especially in data analysis and knowledge processing. Above all, it presents graphical methods for representing conceptual systems that have proved themselves in communicating knowledge. Theory and graphical representation are thus closely coupled together. The mathematical foundations are treated thoroughly and illuminated by means of numerous examples. Since computers are being used ever more widely for knowledge processing, formal methods for conceptual analysis are gaining in importance. This book makes the basic theory for such methods accessible in a compact form.