Science 2.0: New online tools may revolutionize research

[Excellent article on how Web 2.0 tools are transforming science. The 2 projects mentioned have been funded by CANARIE in the latest NEP program amongst a total of 11 similar projects . For more examples of how web 2.0 is revolutionizing science please see my Citizen Science Blog. Thanks to Richard Ackerman for some of the FriendFeed pointers. Some excerpts from CBC website– BSA]

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2009/01/08/f-tech-research.html

Citizen Science
http://citizen-science.blogspot.com/

CANARIE NEP program
http://www.canarie.ca/funding/nep/eoi.html

Described as an extension of the internet under the ocean, the Venus Coastal Observatory off Canada's west coast provides oceanographers with a continuous stream of undersea data once accessible only through costly marine expeditions. When its sister facility Neptune Canada launches next summer, the observatories' eight nodes will provide ocean scientists with an unprecedented wealth of information.
Sifting through all that data, however, can be quite a task. So the observatories, with the help of CANARIE Inc., operator of Canada's advanced research network, are developing a set of tools they call Oceans 2.0 to simplify access to the data and help researchers work with it in new ways. Some of their ideas look a lot like such popular consumer websites as Facebook, Flickr, Wikipedia and Digg.
And they're not alone. This set of online interaction technologies called Web 2.0 is finding its way into the scientific community.
Michael Nielsen, a Waterloo, Ont., physicist who is working on a book on the future of science, says online tools could change science to an extent that hasn't happened since the late 17th century, when scientists started publishing their research in scientific journals.
One way to manage the data boom will involve tagging data, much as users of websites like Flickr tag images or readers of blogs and web pages can "Digg" articles they approve. On Oceans 2.0, researchers might attach tags to images or video streams from undersea cameras, identifying sightings of little-known organisms or examples of rare phenomena.
The Canadian Space Science Data Portal (CSSDP), based at the University of Alberta, is also working on online collaboration tools. Robert Rankin, a University of Alberta physics professor and CSSDP principal investigator, foresees scientists attaching tags to specific data items containing occurrences of a particular process or phenomenon in which researchers are interested.
"You've essentially got a database that has been developed using this tagging process," he says.
If data tagging is analogous to Flickr or Digg, other initiatives look a bit like Facebook.
Pirenne envisions Oceans 2.0 including a Facebook-like social networking site where researchers could create profiles showing what sort of work they do and what expertise they have. When a scientist is working on a project and needs specific expertise — experience in data mining and statistical analysis of oceanographic data, for example — he or she could turn to this facility to find likely collaborators.
"It's a really exciting time," Lok says, "a really active time for Science 2.0."

it got lots of buzz on FriendFeed, there are multiple mentions of it

http://friendfeed.com/e/b2dc0a15-e076-4d2b-8771-d0e37733077e/Science-2-0-on-CBC/

http://friendfeed.com/e/7649d8b6-9f28-424e-9344-875bf2abfc25/Several-conference-attendees-are-quoted-in-this/

(The conference Eva's referring to is Science Online 2009.)

http://friendfeed.com/e/dcfc7f91-82e9-5aac-c7a4-b2cfea8f6b40/Science-2-0-New-online-tools-may-revolutionize/

http://friendfeed.com/e/333a5973-3aab-a3f7-0b84-993e20b94ce4/Science-2-0-New-online-tools-may-revolutionize/

http://friendfeed.com/e/c1824ca1-93d5-452a-b404-199b5d8e04d3/Nature-Network-in-the-news-Expression-Patterns/

http://friendfeed.com/e/9a2d1d68-fb76-c5a6-c43e-3909d7bebec4/Science-2-0-article-quotes-four-ScienceOnline-09/

http://friendfeed.com/e/556befb8-bfa0-4c3e-8c7a-63b94243bf5e/Science-2-0-article-quotes-four-ScienceOnline-09/

http://friendfeed.com/e/03dca000-9f33-849c-b40a-b22178339428/CBCnews-Article-on-Science2-0/

e-science, virtual organisations, data curation

[Thanks to Richard Ackerman for this pointer, and I agree with his assessment there are lots of interesting presentations here –BSA]

A lot of interesting presentations here

Proceedings from the ARL/CNI Fall Forum
October 16-17, 2008
Arlington, Virginia
http://www.arl.org/resources/pubs/fallforumproceedings/forum08proceedings.shtml

E-Science: Trends, Transformations & Responses
E-Science: Trends, Transformations & Responses
Chris Greer, Director, National Coordination Office (NCO) for the multiagency Federal Networking and Information Technology Research and Development (NITRD) Program
Audio [MP3 22 min.] | Slides [PPS 24.7 MB]
A Case Study in E-Science: Building Ecological Informatics Solutions for Multi-Decadal Research
William Michener, Research Professor (Biology) and Associate Director, Long-Term Ecological Research Network Office, University of New Mexico
Audio [MP3 26 min.] | Slides [PPS 8 MB]
Making a Quantum Leap to eResearch Support
Rick Luce, Vice Provost and Director of University Libraries, Emory University Libraries
Audio [MP3 19 min.] | Slides [PDF 2.5 MB]
Data Curation: Issues and Challenges
Transition or Transform? Repositioning the Library for the Petabyte Era
Liz Lyon, Director, UKOLN
Audio [MP3 23 min.] | Slides [PPS 10.3 MB]
Research and Data
Fran Berman, Director of the San Diego Supercomputer Center, UC San Diego, and Co-chair Blue Ribbon Task Force on Sustainable Digital Preservation and Access
Audio [MP3 44 min.] | Slides [PPS 5.5 MB]
Data Curation Issues and Challenges
Sayeed Choudhury, Associate Dean of University Libraries and Hodson Director of the Digital Research and Curation Center, Johns Hopkins University
Audio [MP3 20 min.] | Slides [PPS 424 KB]
Data Curation Panel
Pam Bjornson, Director-General, Canada Institute for Scientific and Technical Information
Audio [MP3 6 min.] | Slides [PPS 1.9 MB]
Supporting Virtual Organizations
The Coming Age of Virtual Organizations: The Early History and Future of Geographically Distributed Collaboration
Thomas A. Finholt, Director, Collaboratory for Research on Electronic Work (CREW) and Research Professor & Associate Dean for Research and Innovation, School of Information, University of Michigan
Audio [MP3 24 min.] | Slides [PPS 7.3 MB]
Cyberinfrastructure for Discovery, Learning, and Engagement:

The nanoHUB Experience
Mark Lundstrom, Don and Carol Scifres Distinguished Professor, Director, Network for Computational Nanotechnology, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Purdue University
Audio [MP3 22 min.] | Slides [PPS 3.5 MB]
Reactor Panel: Supporting the Virtual Organization: A Role for Libraries?
Medha Devare, Life Sciences and Bioinformatics Librarian, Mann Library, Cornell University
Audio [MP3 20 min.] | Slides [PPS 3.2 MB]
Reactor Panel: Supporting the Virtual Organization
D. Scott Brandt, Associate Dean for Research, Purdue University Library
Audio [MP3 7 min.] | Slides [PPS 4.3 MB]