On the generic information capacity of relational schemas with a single binary relation

TL;DR

This paper characterizes when one relational schema with a single binary relation can be transformed into another, measuring their information capacity through the concept of generic dominance, with implications for graph database design.

Contribution

It provides a complete characterization of generic dominance among schemas with a single binary relation, advancing understanding of schema information capacity.

Findings

Complete characterization of generic dominance for 20 binary relation schemas

Analysis of the ternary case without inclusion dependencies

Discussion on the impact of object identifiers on schema notions

Abstract

We consider database schemas consisting of a single binary relation, with key constraints and inclusion dependencies. Over this space of 20 schemas, we completely characterize when one schema is generically dominated by another schema. Generic dominance, a classical notion for measuring information capacity, expresses that every instance of a schema can be uniquely represented in the dominating schema, through application of a deterministic, generic data transformation. Our investigation is motivated both by current interest in schema design for graph databases, as well as by intrinsic scientific interest. We also consider the ternary case, but without inclusion dependencies, and discuss how the notions change in the presence of object identifiers.