Preserving Scientific Data on Our Physical Universe A New Strategy for Archiving the Nation's Scientific Information Resources (1995) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
Summary
Summary
Pages 1-9
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 1... ...
Many observations about the natural world are a record of events that will never be repeated exactly. Examples include observations of an atmospheric storm, a deep ocean current, a volcanic eruption, and the energy emitted by a supernova.
|
From page 2... ...
, identifies the major issues regarding efforts to archive and use data in the physical sciences, establishes retention criteria and appraisal guidelines for those data, reviews important technological advances and related opportunities, and proposes a new strategy to help ensure access to the data by future generations. THE CHALLENGE OF EFFECTIVE PRESERVATION AND USE OF SCIENTIFIC DATA The results of scientific research are disseminated in this country through a hybrid system that includes professional society and other not-for-profit publishers, the commercial sector, and the government.
|
From page 3... ...
Therefore, a coordinated effort involving NARA, other federal agencies, certain nonfederal entities, and the scientific community is needed to preserve the most valuable data and ensure that they will remain available in usable form indefinitely. The challenge is to develop data management and archiving procedures that can handle the rapid increases in the volumes of scientific data, and at the same time maintain older archived data in an easily accessible, usable form.
|
From page 4... ...
Recent technological advances have enabled new methods and strategies for data storage and retrieval and have created better ways of connecting users to data resources and to each other. Moreover, the evolving technologies are catalysts for revising organizational structures to manage distributed scientific data archives much more effectively.
|
From page 5... ...
lIigh-performance computer networks Low and declining cost of storage Advanced data management Changing requirements for information technology professionals High reliability of technology components Development and acceptance of standards Distributed functions; rapid delivery of large data volumes Inexpensive backup; continually declining cost; ease of migration Ability to rigorously and formally manage diverse data types Ability of personnel with lower technical skills to succeed in data management roles Availability of better components and connections; reduced procurement and operations costs Agreement on terms, interfaces, media, procedures Location of databases and archives where best managed; collaborative work; distributed organizations; distributed responsibility Deferral of archiving decisions; trust in distributed management due to safe storage backup More complex data structures (other than "flat files") handled in archives with great potential advantages Ability to entrust scientific data management in a distributed environment Reduced cost and effort in data migration; trusted connections for communication and collaboration Reduced effort to communicate and apply results of others; ability to concentrate on mission issues and not on technology support and data management support the creation of a highly distributed, federated management structure for our nation's scientific information resources.
|
From page 6... ...
Planning activities at the point of data origin must include long-term data management and The Proposed National Scientific Information Resource Federation The committee believes that the federal government should create a National Scientific Information Resource Federation-an evolutionary and collaborative network of scientific and technical data centers and archives to take on the challenge of providing effective access to and preservation of important data and related information. Such an initiative would begin to exploit fully our nation's significant investment in the physical (and other)
|
From page 7... ...
The interagency Global Change Data and Information System is an example of a prototype NSIR Federation, focused on data for a specific set of interdisciplinary science problems. The NSTR Federation would build on such efforts, providing for better coordination and interaction among them, and would help organize fledgling efforts to preserve and provide broad access to data in other disciplines.
|
From page 8... ...
Finally, the executive office must not attempt to micromanage the operations of the participants, nor should it have any direct control over their budgets and funding allocations. Recommendations Specifically for NARA Although NARA has a legislative mandate to preserve federal records, it cannot today, nor will it likely ever be able to, act as the custodian of most physical science data.
|
From page 9... ...
The creation of the committee s proposed NSTR Federation would help provide a collaborative mechanism and more sustained peer pressure to meet these objectives, and thus enhance the value of scientific and technical data and information resources to the nation.
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.