scholarly journals Decentralized but Globally Coordinated Biodiversity Data

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beckett W. Sterner ◽  
Edward E. Gilbert ◽  
Nico M. Franz
Keyword(s):  
Quality Data ◽  
Centralized Control ◽  
Biodiversity Data ◽  
Local Data ◽  
Societal Needs ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
The Social ◽  
Data Infrastructures ◽  
Global Coordination ◽  
Data Signal

Centralized biodiversity data aggregation is too often failing societal needs due to pervasive and systemic data quality deficiencies. We argue for a novel approach that embodies the spirit of the Web (“small pieces loosely joined”) through the decentralized coordination of data across scientific languages and communities. The upfront cost of decentralization can be offset by the long-term benefit of achieving sustained expert engagement, higher-quality data products, and ultimately more societal impact for biodiversity data. Our decentralized approach encourages the emergence and evolution of multiple self-identifying communities of practice that are regionally, taxonomically, or institutionally localized. Each community is empowered to control the social and informational design and versioning of their local data infrastructures and signals. With no single aggregator to exert centralized control over biodiversity data, decentralization generates loosely connected networks of mid-level aggregators. Global coordination is nevertheless feasible through automatable data sharing agreements that enable efficient propagation and translation of biodiversity data across communities. The decentralized model also poses novel integration challenges, among which the explicit and continuous articulation of conflicting systematic classifications and phylogenies remain the most challenging. We discuss the development of available solutions, challenges, and outline next steps: the global effort of coordination should focus on developing shared languages for data signal translation, as opposed to homogenizing the data signal itself.

scholarly journals To increase trust, change the social design behind aggregated biodiversity data

Database ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nico M Franz ◽  
Beckett W Sterner
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Original Data ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Systematic Research ◽  
Aggregation Process ◽  
Biodiversity Data ◽  
Social Design ◽  
The Social ◽  
Accountability Gap

Abstract Growing concerns about the quality of aggregated biodiversity data are lowering trust in large-scale data networks. Aggregators frequently respond to quality concerns by recommending that biologists work with original data providers to correct errors ‘at the source.’ We show that this strategy falls systematically short of a full diagnosis of the underlying causes of distrust. In particular, trust in an aggregator is not just a feature of the data signal quality provided by the sources to the aggregator, but also a consequence of the social design of the aggregation process and the resulting power balance between individual data contributors and aggregators. The latter have created an accountability gap by downplaying the authorship and significance of the taxonomic hierarchies—frequently called ‘backbones’—they generate, and which are in effect novel classification theories that operate at the core of data-structuring process. The Darwin Core standard for sharing occurrence records plays an under-appreciated role in maintaining the accountability gap, because this standard lacks the syntactic structure needed to preserve the taxonomic coherence of data packages submitted for aggregation, potentially leading to inferences that no individual source would support. Since high-quality data packages can mirror competing and conflicting classifications, i.e. unsettled systematic research, this plurality must be accommodated in the design of biodiversity data integration. Looking forward, a key directive is to develop new technical pathways and social incentives for experts to contribute directly to the validation of taxonomically coherent data packages as part of a greater, trustworthy aggregation process.

scholarly journals To increase trust, change the social design behind aggregated biodiversity data

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nico M. Franz ◽  
Beckett W. Sterner
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Original Data ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Systematic Research ◽  
Aggregation Process ◽  
Biodiversity Data ◽  
Social Design ◽  
The Social ◽  
Accountability Gap

AbstractGrowing concerns about the quality of aggregated biodiversity data are lowering trust in large-scale data networks. Aggregators frequently respond to quality concerns by recommending that biologists work with original data providers to correct errors “at the source”. We show that this strategy falls systematically short of a full diagnosis of the underlying causes of distrust. In particular, trust in an aggregator is not just a feature of the data signal quality provided by the sources to the aggregator, but also a consequence of the social design of the aggregation process and the resulting power balance between individual data contributors and aggregators. The latter have created an accountability gap by downplaying the authorship and significance of the taxonomic hierarchies - frequently called “backbones” - they generate, and which are in effect novel classification theories that operate at the core of data-structuring process. The Darwin Core standard for sharing occurrence records plays an under-appreciated role in maintaining the accountability gap, because this standard lacks the syntactic structure needed to preserve the taxonomic coherence of data packages submitted for aggregation, potentially leading to inferences that no individual source would support. Since high-quality data packages can mirror competing and conflicting classifications, i.e., unsettled systematic research, this plurality must be accommodated in the design of biodiversity data integration. Looking forward, a key directive is to develop new technical pathways and social incentives for experts to contribute directly to the validation of taxonomically coherent data packages as part of a greater, trustworthy aggregation process.

scholarly journals The Finnish Biodiversity Information Facility as a best-practice model for biodiversity data infrastructures

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leif Schulman ◽  
Kari Lahti ◽  
Esko Piirainen ◽  
Mikko Heikkinen ◽  
Olli Raitio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Spatial Data ◽  
National Level ◽  
Data Types ◽  
Biodiversity Data ◽  
Local Data ◽  
Global Biodiversity Information Facility ◽  
Data Life Cycle ◽  
Data Infrastructures ◽  
Biodiversity Information

AbstractBiodiversity informatics has advanced rapidly with the maturation of major biodiversity data infrastructures (BDDIs), such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility sharing unprecedented data volumes. Nevertheless, taxonomic, temporal and spatial data coverage remains unsatisfactory. With an increasing data need, the global BDDIs require continuous inflow from local data mobilisation, and national BDDIs are being developed around the world. The global BDDIs are specialised in certain data types or data life cycle stages which, despite possible merits, renders the BDDI landscape fragmented and complex. That this often is repeated at the national level creates counterproductive redundancy, complicates user services, and frustrates funders. Here, we present the Finnish Biodiversity Information Facility (FinBIF) as a model of an all-inclusive BDDI. It integrates relevant data types and phases of the data life cycle, manages them under one IT architecture, and distributes the data through one service portal under one brand. FinBIF has experienced diverse funder engagement and rapid user uptake. Therefore, we suggest the integrated and inclusive approach be adopted in national BDDI development.

Usurpers of Technology: Train Robbery and Theft in Egypt, 1876–1904

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Xiaoyue Li
Keyword(s):  
Negative Impact ◽  
Centralized Control ◽  
Informal Networks ◽  
Grassroots Activism ◽  
Late 19Th Century ◽  
State Regulations ◽  
Colonial State ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Wealth ◽  
Everyday Knowledge

Abstract This article examines banditry, embezzlement, and other insider crimes along Egyptian railway lines during a period when British officials exerted centralized control over the Egyptian railway and financial austerity had a negative impact on the rail sector. By exploring the motives and tactics of railway crimes, I posit that criminals, by making claims on and use of the technology outside the purview of state regulations, expressed their heterogeneous desires to redistribute social wealth, repurpose the technological promise of modern railways, and confound intentions of colonial governance. Using new archival materials, this article utilizes a bottom-up approach to examine grassroots activism, everyday knowledge, informal networks, and the social mores and norms that criminals harnessed to discern infrastructural vulnerabilities and elude surveillance from the colonial state. Ultimately, I contend that criminal acts uncovered social crises otherwise hidden under the shadow of the exterior prosperity and stability of late 19th-century Egypt.

scholarly journals Is Psychological Value a Missing Building Block in Societal Sustainability?

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 4550 ◽  
Author(s):  
João Carvalho ◽  
Célio Sousa
Keyword(s):  
Value Creation ◽  
Ecological Value ◽  
Bottom Line ◽  
Organizational Survival ◽  
Psychological Dimension ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Product ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Shed Light

Value creation is a constitutive and defining aspect in organizational ventures. This is unsurprising, as it is required for organizational survival and sustainability. Approaches based on the creation of economic, social and ecological value draw attention to the multiple and multiplicative nature of value creation. While academia still acknowledges the conceptual value of such approaches, a framework that add a psychological dimension to the established Elkington’s triple-bottom line model seems particularly refreshing and inspiring. Relying on the concepts of psychological value and sustainability, this paper presents the outcomes of an exploratory empirical study involving managers and users/customers of four organizations in the social sector in Portugal. This study discusses how managers and users/customers of these organizations make sense of and value psychological value. The outcomes of the interviews with both managers and users/customers shed light into the unexplored, hazy and neglected analytical links that may exist between psychological value and broader perspectives on sustainability. We conclude that this novel approach enhances our understanding about the impact that a social product can have in societal sustainability.

Lurin Valley, Peru: Early Intermediate Period Settlement Development

1972 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 467-477 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy K. Earle
Keyword(s):  
Population Growth ◽  
Social Development ◽  
Social Stratification ◽  
Population Expansion ◽  
Centralized Control ◽  
Intermediate Period ◽  
The Social ◽  
Highly Dispersed ◽  
Early Intermediate Period ◽  
Direct Dominance

AbstractThe relationships between the social development in the upper Lurin valley and an expanding Early Intermediate period Lima state are examined. Internally, population growth and irrigation complexity progress together in the Lurin. Warfare, although not directly caused by population expansion, may function to regulate population. With irrigation and population expansion, a local social stratification originates but political control remains highly dispersed. A centralized control is only initiated by the external introduction of direct dominance by the Lima state.

scholarly journals Testing the validity of regional detail in global analyses of Sea surface temperature – the case of Chinese coastal waters

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Li ◽  
Hans von Storch ◽  
Qingyyuan Wang ◽  
Qingliang Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Quality Data ◽  
Careful Examination ◽  
Local Data ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Chinese Coast ◽  
Local Quality ◽  
Break Points

Abstract. We have designed a method for testing the quality of multidecadal analyses of SST in regional seas by using a set of high-quality local SST observations. In recognizing that local data may reflect local effects, we focus on dominant EOFs of the local data and of the localized data of the analyses. We examine patterns, and the variability as well as the trends of the principal components. This method is applied to examine four different SST analyses, namely HadISST1, ERSST, COBE SST, and NOAA OISST. They are assessed using a newly constructed high-quality data set of SST at 26 coastal stations along the Chinese coast in 1960–2015 which underwent careful examination with respect to quality, and a number of corrections of inhomogeneities. The four gridded analyses perform by and large well, in particular since 1980. However, for the pre-satellite time period, before 1980, the analyses differ among each other and show some inconsistencies with the local data, such as artificial break points, periods of bias and differences in trends. We conclude that gridded SST-analyses need improvement in the pre-satellite time (prior to 1980s), by re-examining in detail archives of local quality-controlled SST data in many data-sparse regions of the world.

scholarly journals The relational responding task (RRT): a novel approach to measuring social meaning of language variation

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (s1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Rosseel ◽  
Dirk Speelman ◽  
Dirk Geeraerts
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Language Attitudes ◽  
Social Meaning ◽  
Implicit Attitude ◽  
Implicit Measure ◽  
Relational Responding ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
The Social ◽  
Attitude Measures ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractRecently, sociolinguistic attitude research has adopted a number of new implicit attitude measures developed in social psychology. Especially the Implicit Association Test (IAT) has proven a successful new addition to the sociolinguist’s toolbox. Despite its relative success, the IAT has a number of limitations, such as the fact that it measures the association between two concepts (e.g. ‘I’ and ‘skinny’) without controlling for the relationship between those two concepts (e.g. ‘I am skinny’ vs. ‘I want to be skinny’). The Relational Responding Task (RRT), a novel implicit attitude measure recently developed by social psychologists, makes up for exactly that limitation by presenting participants with full propositions expressing beliefs rather than loose concepts. In this paper, we present a study that explores the RRT as a novel implicit measure of language attitudes. We employ the method to investigate the social meaning of two varieties of Dutch: Standard Belgian Dutch and colloquial Belgian Dutch. In total 391 native speakers of Belgian Dutch took part in the study. A training effect in the data aside, our results show that the latter variety is associated with dynamism, while the former is perceived as prestigious.

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