It is widely recognized that temporal aspects of database schemas are prevalent, but difficult to capture using the ER model. The database research community's response has been to develop temporally enhanced ER models. However, these models have not been subjected to systematic evaluation. In contrast, the evaluation of modeling methodologies for information systems development is a very active area of research in the information systems engineering community. Based on a framework from information systems engineering, this paper evaluates the ontological expressiveness of three different temporal enhancements to the ER model. The three temporal ER model extensions are well-documented, and together the models represent a substantial range of the design space for temporal ER extensions.
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