1. A method for acquiring facts to populate a knowledge representation system (KRS), the method comprising the steps of: defining and organizing the KRS as an ontology; creating at least one template, the template accepting a predetermined type of fact, wherein the template formats the predetermined type of fact to be consistent with the organization of the ontology; acquiring at least one structured fact from a predetermined knowledge source by selecting and completing the template with information found in the predetermined knowledge source; and inserting the at least one structured fact into the KRS to create a knowledge base.