Large language models process large amounts of information but usually lack an explicit mechanism for maintaining compact and evolving conceptual representations. We introduce Mental Model Management (3M), a framework in which knowledge is represented as mental models consisting of compact chunks. Rather than accumulating text passages, 3M continuously integrates new information into an existing conceptual representation. A set of operators extracts knowledge, retrieves relevant models, adds and updates chunks, reorganizes representations, detects inconsistencies, and derives new knowledge. We describe the main 3M operators and illustrate each operation using Evolution Strategies as a running example.
Ontologies are useful structures to organize and maintain information that can be understood both by humans and systems. However, since their manual crafting is a laborious task, many specific domains lack reference ontologies. The outstanding ability for understanding natural language demonstrated by the Large Language Models (LLMs) has motivated their application to aid on a variety of fields, including on ontology development. This work presents the experimentation with a technique that uses LLMs in the role of domain experts to build conceptual hierarchies for a given initial concept. Twenty ontologies automatically constructed for the domain of the Brazilian maritime territory (a.k.a the Blue Amazon) using GPT-3.5 and GPT-4 were then evaluated by human experts. The models were able to construct overall coherent conceptualizations of the domain, but none of the outputs was completely satisfactory as a representation of the context without refinement.