Using Sakai to Support eScience

Sakai Conference June 12-14, 2007

Sayeed ChoudhuryTim DiLauro, Jim Martino, Elliot Metsger, Mark Patton and David Reynolds

Sheridan Libraries

Bob HanischSpace Telescope Institute

Alex Szalay and Ethan VishniacPhysics and Astronomy

Johns Hopkins University

A pilot project aimed at preserving, curating, and enabling access to digital data and associated electronic journals content.

The Virtual Observatory

• The Virtual Observatory enables new science by greatly enhancing access to data and computing resources. The VO makes it easy to locate, retrieve, and analyze data from archives and catalogs worldwide.

• The VO is about data discovery, access, and integration.

• The VO is NOT a huge centralized data repository.• The VO provides standard protocols for obtaining

data from distributed collections.• The VO is national (US NVO) and international

(IVOA).

The data preservation problem

• Research communities publish peer-reviewed journal papers that describe highly processed data.

• Long-term preservation and curation systems for digital journal content, including the digital data presented only graphically, are not currently in place.

• The research cannot be verified and the results cannot be easily compared to other data in order to broaden impact.

• Public funds invested in scientific research do not have maximum return on investment. Essential legacy datasets may be lost.

Approach

• Integrate digital data management into the publication process (data capture, review, metadata tagging and validation, storage).

• Exploit emerging information technology standards for managing distributed data collections, including digital journals.

• Provide multiple access methods to digital data to maximize visibility and re-use.

• Exploit information management and curation experience in the university libraries and build on long-term institutional commitments to preservation.

Data Storage Appliance• Metadata database• Digital data objects• Ancillary information

Data Storage Appliance• Metadata database• Digital data objects• Ancillary information

Data Storage Appliance• Metadata database• Digital data objects• Ancillary information

replication services VOSpace

Publication & Editorial Process• Data capture• Metadata capture & validation• Links• Identifiers

Data Access• VO portals• Journal portals• Other after-market distributors• Registry• Logging

Library• Curation• Preservation

Components

A prototype project

• Tasks– metadata definition*– content management tool evaluation/selection

(Fedora)*– physical storage and replication*– publication process revisions and testing– policy development– business model development

*Shared technology development/deployment with National Virtual Observatory

Scientific Data and Sakai

Scientific Data and Sakai

E-Publishing System

Scientific Data and Sakai

E-Publishing System

Repository

Scientific Data and Sakai

E-Publishing System

Collaboration Learning

Repository

Discovery through search, RSS, wikis…

Scientific Data and Sakai

E-Publishing System

Collaboration Learning

Repository

Discovery through search, RSS, wikis…

Acknowledgements

Contributors

• Michael Kurtz, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics• Kevin Marvel, Bob Milkey, American Astronomical Society• Ray Plante, NCSA, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign• Andrew Lawrence

Funding

• Institute of Museum and Library Services• Microsoft Corporation• JISC (Project STORE)• Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition• Teragrid