| Introduction | | | | visualised. |
| Scientific insights can be enabled by providing an | | | | There has been an explosion of taxonomic |
| interactive visual taxonomy management system. To | | | | phylogenetic information in biosciences. Interacting |
| achieve this it is important to structure, manage, and | | | | with this information is problematic and could be aided |
| enable understanding of complex scientific information | | | | by visualisation. This research will assist with |
| to enable scientists to collaborate using a systems | | | | collaboration for interdisciplinary solving of complex |
| approach. The main subject will be editing and display | | | | scientific problems where a systematic approach is |
| of taxonomies/phylogenetic knowledge, this could | | | | required. There is an opportunity for assisting |
| make possible new insights. | | | | scientists cross boundaries to enable systems biology |
| Creation, editing, and customisation of biology | | | | approaches and for public engagement, with the aid |
| taxonomies | | | | of visualisation. This is necessary to enable systems |
| The primary aim for this research is to establish a | | | | biologists to interact with earth systems scientists to |
| method to represent complex taxonomies in a way | | | | undertake environmental systems analysis. Then it is |
| that is interactive, accessible and understandable by a | | | | also necessary to concentrate on enabling solutions |
| wide range of people. Seeing information in a new | | | | to problems that cannot be solved by scientists |
| context can mean discovery of new truths. This will | | | | without the need for programming, thus making it |
| be enabled by use and further development of a | | | | possible for scientists to create their own software |
| Semantic Web infrastructure, and building on end-user | | | | to solve these problems. The interactivity that this |
| programming research to enable the necessary | | | | can provide is important as the end-user |
| interactivity. An objective is to enable communication | | | | programming techniques will improve facilities for |
| between disciplines to allow a systems approach. A | | | | uploading and managing information for amateurs as |
| further objective is to enable biologists to use and | | | | well as professionals. This interactivity is also |
| customize automated translations from biological data | | | | important because of the quantity of information |
| that is often held in flat file structures that are | | | | that needs to be made widely available and managed. |
| difficult to parse. These can be connected into | | | | To achieve this an online systematic representation |
| Semantic Web structures, to enable biologists to use | | | | of scientific information that gives a holistic view of |
| freely available open standard technologies for search | | | | related knowledge should be provided. This will reuse |
| and structuring of information. This could save large | | | | information and ideas provided by other researchers. |
| amounts of time, so freeing researchers to | | | | So it is necessary to investigate systems that |
| concentrate on the scientific problem they want to | | | | organise and visualise information. This is discussed in |
| examine. Better visualisation of information can aid | | | | my Ezine article 'Web Taxonomy Creation'. |
| scientists to improve their models. Semantic Web and | | | | Conclusion |
| Web 2.0 techniques will enable provision of | | | | Semantic Web technology allows us to encourage |
| visualisation and interactivity resources that allow | | | | and improve non-programmer involvement in |
| scientists to create and edit visualisations. This allows | | | | visualisation of the problem domain. Beneficiaries are |
| emergence of knowledge for the benefit of | | | | scientists who are enabled to collaborate in a |
| scientists and public understanding. This will make it | | | | systematic way with others on large problems, and |
| easier for science researchers to collaborate and | | | | who will have better tools for conveying their findings |
| explain their research to others, enabling new insights | | | | to other scientists and the public. |
| and progress. Visualisation will also provide a way of | | | | The benefits are - |
| conveying this interdisciplinary science to the public. | | | | - Assistance with collaboration by interdisciplinary |
| The main strands to this research are - | | | | scientists. |
| - Provision of a system for managing, editing, and | | | | - Enabling scientists to model their problems without |
| viewing explicit taxonomies. | | | | having to spend large amounts of time learning |
| - Enabling scientists to create and customise | | | | compute science in order to search and parse |
| software for their research problems more easily. | | | | information. |
| - Use of the taxonomy system for complex scientific | | | | - Increased collaborative interdisciplinary involvement |
| problems. | | | | in taxonomy development to enable faster updating |
| - Provision of a web based taxonomy system to be | | | | of information, creation and use of tools, and better |
| available to the public, and explanation and promotion | | | | communication to other scientists and the public. |
| of this system to enable public understanding of | | | | - Availability of taxonomy information and interactive |
| science. | | | | visualisation using browser based software, so |
| Semantic Web representation can be used even | | | | enabling development of models for new scientific |
| when the scientific information structure has not | | | | insights and public understanding. |
| been finalised and when this structure is subject to | | | | - Opening up opportunities to those currently outside |
| frequent change. Dynamic systems enable new | | | | formal education, and promotion of science, this can |
| information and connections to come to light, these | | | | make science less remote from the public. |
| can then be incorporated in the system rather than | | | | This project will bridge the gap between computer |
| having to redefine the system around new | | | | literate non-programmer scientists and software |
| knowledge. Semantic Web techniques enable | | | | creation, so making new applications possible such as |
| standardisation of visualisation, parsing and searching. | | | | collaborative taxonomy development amongst |
| Thus, new insights can be obtained from information | | | | researchers and other people formerly not linked. |
| already known and from connectivity that has been | | | | |