While constructing the food analogy to semantic diversity, it occurred to me that semantic diversity is the default case.
Despite language suppression, advocates of universal languages, Esperanto, LogLang, and those who would police existing languages, L’Académie française, semantic diversity remains the default case.
There is semantic diversity in the methods to overcome semantic diversity. Even within particular approaches to overcoming semantic diversity. You can observe diversity in ontologies at Swoogle.
I think semantic diversity continues in part because we as human beings are creative, even when addressing issues like semantic diversity. It is part of who we are to be these bubbling fountains of semantic diversity as it were.
Shouldn’t the first question to anyone hawking the latest search widget be: “Can it search effectively using my terms?” Simple enough question.
The first startup that can answer that question in the affirmative will go far.