The recent emphasis on concepts dealing with knowledge management brings an interesting paradox to bear. Networked system federations reinforce growing globalization and nonlinear relationships. Given this, there's a mandate to move away from static architectural constructs toward a nondeterministic, multidisciplinary approach to systems design. The operational concept of a "living ontology" can bridge the gap between literate, nondeterministic human beings and literal, seemingly deterministic, machines.