IN23B-1075
The new ICSU World Data System: Building on the 50 Year Legacy of the World Data Centers
The International Council for Science (ICSU) World Data Center (WDC) system was established in 1957 in response to the data needs of the International Geophysical Year (IGY). Its holdings included a wide range of solar, geophysical, environmental, and human dimensions data. The WDC system developed many innovative data management and data exchange procedures and techniques over the last 50 years, which mitigated effectively the impact of global politics on science. The beginning of the 21st century has seen new ICSU requirements for management of large and diverse scientific data from major international programs such as the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) Global Earth Observation Systems of Systems (GEOSS), the International Polar Year (IPY), the Millennium Ecosystems Assessment (MEA), and the Coordinated Energy and Water Cycle Observation Project (CEOP). As a consequence, a completely new ICSU data activity, the World Data System (WDS) is being created which will incorporate the major ICSU data activities including in particular the WDCs and the Federation of Astronomical and Geophysical Data- Analysis Services. Using the legacy of the WDC system, the WDS will place an emphasis on new information technology as applied to modern data management techniques and international data exchange. The new World Data System will support ICSU's enduring mission and objectives, ensuring the long-term stewardship and provision of quality-assessed data and data services to the international science community and other stakeholders. It will have a broader disciplinary and geographic base than the current ICSU networks and be recognized as a world-wide "community of excellence" for data issues. It will use state-of-the-art systems interoperability, international very high bandwidth capabilities and a coordinated focus on topics such as virtual observatories. It will also encourage the establishment of new data centers and services, using modern paradigms for their establishment and using state-of-the-art approaches to global, distributed data management and exchange.
IN23B-1076
Development of XML Schema for Broadband Digital Seismograms and Data Center Portal
There are a number of data centers around the globe, where the digital broadband seismograms are opened to researchers. Those centers use their own user interfaces and there are no standard to access and retrieve seismograms from different data centers using unified interface. One of the emergent technologies to realize unified user interface for different data centers is the concept of WebService and WebService portal. Here we have developed a prototype of data center portal for digital broadband seismograms. This WebService portal uses WSDL (Web Services Description Language) to accommodate differences among the different data centers. By using the WSDL, alteration and addition of data center user interfaces can be easily managed. This portal, called NINJA Portal, assumes three WebServices: (1) database Query service, (2) Seismic event data request service, and (3) Seismic continuous data request service. Current system supports both station search of database Query service and seismic continuous data request service. Data centers supported by this NINJA portal will be OHP data center in ERI and Pacific21 data center in IFREE/JAMSTEC in the beginning. We have developed metadata standard for seismological data based on QuakeML for parametric data, which has been developed by ETH Zurich, and XML-SEED for waveform data, which was developed by IFREE/JAMSTEC. The prototype of NINJA portal is now released through IFREE web page (http://www.jamstec.go.jp/pacific21/).
IN23B-1077
Arctic Synthesis Collaboratory: A Virtual Organization for Transformative Research and Education on a Changing Arctic
About the Arctic Synthesis Collaboratory The Arctic Synthesis Collaboratory concept, developed through a series of NSF-funded workshops and town hall meetings, is envisioned as a cyber-enabled, technical, organizational, and social-synthesis framework to foster: • Interactions among interdisciplinary experts and stakeholders • Integrated data analysis and modeling activities • Training and development of the arctic science community • Delivery of outreach, education, and policy-relevant resources Scientific Rationale The rapid rate of arctic change and our incomplete understanding of the arctic system present the arctic community with a grand scientific challenge and three related issues. First, a wealth of observations now exists as disconnected data holdings, which must be coordinated and synthesized to fully detect and assess arctic change. Second, despite great strides in the development of arctic system simulations, we still have incomplete capabilities for modeling and predicting the behavior of the system as a whole. Third, policy-makers, stakeholders, and the public are increasingly making demands of the science community for forecasts and guidance in mitigation and adaptation strategies. Collaboratory Components The Arctic Synthesis Collaboratory is organized around four integrated functions that will be established virtually as a distributed set of activities, but also with the advantage of existing facilities that could sponsor some of the identified activities. Community Network "Meeting Grounds:" The Collaboratory will link distributed individuals, organizations, and activities to enable collaboration and foster new research initiatives. Specific activities could include: an expert directory, social networking services, and virtual and face-to-face meetings. Data Integration, Synthesis, and Modeling Activities: The Collaboratory will utilize appropriate tools to enable the combination of data and models. Specific activities could include: a web-enabled model library, user forums, a data search and discovery system, and an online library. Support Scientist Professional Development: Experts at all career levels must keep pace with the newest developments in data integration and modeling, interdisciplinary science, and cyber-enabled collaboration. Specific project activities could include: web seminars, short courses, and a mentor program. Education, Outreach, and Policy Resources: An Arctic Virtual Outreach Center (AVOC) will provide critical education, outreach, and policy elements of the Collaboratory. Specific activities could include: public eSeminars, a virtual pressroom, K–12 classroom resources, and an eNewsletter. A Collaboratory Implementation Workshop is being planned for winter 2009; further details will be available soon. For more information, contact Helen V. Wiggins, Arctic Research Consortium of the U.S. (ARCUS) at: helen@arcus.org, or go to the website of the community workshop, "New Perspectives through Data Discovery and Modeling," at: http://www.arcus.org/ARCSS/2007_data/index.html.
IN23B-1078
Using GeoTIFFs for Data Sharing: Limitations and Solutions
GeoTIFF is an important and often requested format for raster data but challenges exist in representing remote sensing data in this format. Challenges result from coordinate system definition differences between the GeoTIFF format and most remote sensing raster data. The Geographic Coordinate System (GCS) and the Projected Coordinate System (PCS) are necessary to geolocate raster data. The GCS defines the coordinate values of locations (usually latitude and longitude) on a specified spheriod (i.e. a sphere or oblate ellipsoid). It defines the datum, unit of measurement and a prime meridian. One example of a GCS is WGS84. The PCS defines a map projection and the mapping of coordinate points to the x,y plane. GeoTIFF headers can define the GCS and a map projection but not a full PCS. Most GIS software uses the GCS to define important characteristics of the PCS, in particular the projection spheroid used by the PCS. However, many remote sensing datasets use two different spheroids in their GCS and PCS definitions and thus cannot be fully represented by GeoTIFF or GIS software. This paper discusses implications of the limitations described above, proposes possible modifications to the GeoTIFF format, and presents an imperfect solution which uses the open source GDAL and PROJ.4 utilities to create GeoTIFFs usable by GIS applications.
IN23B-1079
NetCDF-4 and the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model
The recent 4.0 release of the netCDF library allows users to create HDF5 data files; this format provides new features such and chunking and data compression. This paper describes modifications to the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model to allow use of netCDF-4. Some performance measurements are presented.
IN23B-1080
Automated Visual Event Detection, Tracking, and Data Management System for Cabled- Observatory Video
Ocean observatories and underwater video surveys have the potential to unlock important discoveries with
new and existing camera systems. Yet the burden of video management and analysis often requires
reducing the amount of video recorded through time-lapse video or similar methods.
It's unknown how many digitized video data sets exist in the oceanographic community,
but we suspect that many remain under analyzed due to lack of good tools or human resources to analyze
the video. To help address this problem, the Automated Visual Event Detection (AVED) software and The
Video Annotation and Reference System (VARS) have been under development at MBARI.
For detecting interesting events in the video, the AVED software has been developed over the last 5 years.
AVED is based on a neuromorphic-selective attention algorithm, modeled on the human vision system.
Frames are decomposed into specific feature maps that are combined into a unique saliency map. This
saliency map is then scanned to determine the most salient locations. The candidate salient locations are
then segmented from the scene using algorithms suitable for the low, non-uniform light and marine snow
typical of deep underwater video.
For managing the AVED descriptions of the video, the VARS system provides an interface and database for
describing, viewing, and cataloging the video. VARS was developed by the MBARI for annotating deep-sea
video data and is currently being used to describe over 3000 dives by our remotely operated vehicles (ROV),
making it well suited to this deepwater observatory application with only a few modifications.
To meet the compute and data intensive job of video processing, a distributed heterogeneous network of
computers is managed using the Condor workload management system. This system manages data storage,
video transcoding, and AVED processing. Looking to the future, we see high-speed networks and Grid
technology as an important element in addressing the problem of processing and accessing large video data
sets.
http://www.mbari.org/aved
IN23B-1081
Autoplot: a Browser for Science Data on the Web
Autoplot (www.autoplot.org) is software for plotting data from many different sources and in many different file
formats. Data from CDF, CEF, Fits, NetCDF, and OpenDAP can be plotted, along with many other sources
such as ASCII tables and Excel spreadsheets. This is done by adapting these various data formats and APIs
into a common data model that borrows from the netCDF and CDF data models. Autoplot uses a web
browser metaphor to simplify use. The user specifies a parameter URL, for example a CDF file accessible via
http with a parameter name appended, and the file resource is downloaded and the parameter is rendered
in a scientifically meaningful way. When data span multiple files, the user can use a file name template in the
URL to aggregate (combine) a set of remote files. So the problem of aggregating data across file
boundaries is handled on the client side, allowing simple web servers to be used. The das2 graphics library
provides rich controls for exploring the data. Scripting is supported through Python, providing not just
programmatic control, but for calculating new parameters in a language that will look familiar to IDL and
Matlab users. Autoplot is Java-based software, and will run on most computers without a burdensome
installation process. It can also used as an applet or as a servlet that serves static images. Autoplot was
developed as part of the Virtual Radiation Belt Observatory (ViRBO) project, and is also being used for the
Virtual Magnetospheric Observatory (VMO). It is expected that this flexible, general-purpose plotting tool will
be useful for allowing a data provider to add instant visualization capabilities to a directory of files or for
general use in the Virtual Observatory environment.
http://www.autoplot.org
IN23B-1082
Using Semantic Web Technologies to Streamline the Implementation of the OGC Web Service Interface Specifications for Coverage and Feature Data Within OPeNDAP.
The OPeNDAP Data Access Protocol has seen widespread adoption within the science community. OPeNDAP servers are currently deployed by individual investigators, academic institutions, and at national and international data repositories to provide distributed data access for their respective user communities. Many of these data providers anticipate that there will be significant demand for data access by applications using the suite of OGC web service specifications. Supporting multiple data access protocols can be expensive, both in the initial acquisition and deployment cost for the software components as well as for the potentially redundant maintenance and security costs required when supporting multiple server implementations operationally. To provide a cost-effective solution for these data providers OPeNDAP is developing extensions to its data access protocol to enable the use of semantic web technologies for data and metadata transformations, and extensions to its server architecture to support request and response operations simultaneously for multiple data access protocols. The OGC Web Coverage Service Interface Specification is the initial data access protocol to be layered onto the OPeNDAP server for this multi-protocol support. Supporting data access through the OGC service interfaces comprises operations that are both mechanical and semantic. The OPeNDAP server architecture (Hyrax) uses a Lightweight Front-End Server (OLFS) that is responsible for interacting with the requesting client application. The OLFS is extensible and in this project has been extended to support the OGC web service interface specifications. Coupled with the OLFS the Hyrax architecture uses a Back-End Server (BES) to provide data access, processing, and response generation that are then returned through the OLFS to the requesting client. Similar to the OLFS, the BES is extensible and for this project has been extended to support various mechanical actions required in support of the OGC service's request and response interface specification. In addition to the simpler, mechanical aspects required to support these multiple protocols, semantic operations are required in order to interpret request elements and for constructing well-formed OGC responses. To support these semantic operations we"ve developed ontological representations of the OGC, OPeNDAP, and NetCDF/CF data models, and the relationships between those models. The OLFS has been extended to support XSLT operations transforming OPeNDAP's XML data descriptor (DDX) to a Resource Description Framework (RDF) representation. Modules executing within the BES operate on these RDF representations, using these ontologies to crosswalk the metadata elements between the protocols.
IN23B-1083
Web centric data management for the Hanford 300 Area IFC
The Hanford 300 Area IFC (Integrated Field Challenge) is a
multidisciplinary, multi institutional project sponsored
by the Department of Energy - Office of Science. A core
part of this project is a highly instrumented and characterized
well field. Data which is and will be collected for this well
field includes thirty different data types, including cores, geophysical and geological logs, hydrological data,
geochemical data, time lapse electrical resistivity data,
biogeochemical data. In order to ensure that all data from this site is available both for project scientists and
future research an integrated data management effort is underway as an essential part of this project. In this,
all data is stored in relational databases, access to which is provided through a central webportal. In addition
to providing an unified interface to all project members, this allows for easy integration (through a SOA
approach) of external tools for visualization and basic data analysis. I will discuss both the architecture of this
system (which uses open source components) as well as give examples of system functionality.
http://geophysics.inel.gov/ifc
IN23B-1084
The Climate Data Analysis Tools (CDAT): Scientific Discovery Made Easy
In recent years, amount of data available to climate scientists has grown exponentially. Whether we're looking
at the increasing number of organizations providing data, the finer resolutions of climate models, or the
escalating number of experiments and realizations for those experiments, every aspect of climate research
leads to an unprecedented growth of the volume of data to analyze. The recent success and visibility of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Annual Report 4 (IPCC AR4) is boosting the demand to
unprecedented levels and keeping the numbers increasing. Meanwhile, technology available for scientists to
analyze the data has remained largely unchanged since the early days. One tool, however, has proven itself
flexible enough not only to follow the trend of escalating demand, but also to be ahead of the game: the
Climate Data Analysis Tools (CDAT) from the Program for Climate Model Diagnosis and Comparison
(PCMDI). While providing the cutting edge technology necessary to distribute the IPCC AR4 data via the
Earth System Grid, PCMDI has continuously evolved CDAT to handle new grids and higher definitions, and
provide new diagnostics. In the near future, in time for AR5, PCMDI will use CDAT for state-of-the-art remote
data analysis in a grid computing environment.
http://cdat.sf.net
IN23B-1085
Network of Research Infrastructures for European Seismology (NERIES)—Web Portal Developments for Interactive Access to Earthquake Data on a European Scale
The Network of Research Infrastructures for European Seismology (NERIES) is European Commission (EC)
project whose focus is networking together seismological observatories and research institutes into one
integrated European infrastructure that provides access to data and data products for research.
Seismological institutes and organizations in European and Mediterranean countries maintain large,
geographically distributed data archives, therefore this scenario suggested a design approach based on the
concept of an internet service oriented architecture (SOA) to establish a cyberinfrastructure for distributed
and heterogeneous data streams and services. Moreover, one of the goals of NERIES is to design and
develop a Web portal that acts as the uppermost layer of the infrastructure and provides rendering
capabilities for the underlying sets of data
The Web services that are currently being designed and implemented will deliver data that has been adopted
to appropriate formats. The parametric information about a seismic event is delivered using a seismology-
specific Extensible mark-up Language(XML) format called QuakeML (https://quake.ethz.ch/quakeml), which
has been formalized and implemented in coordination with global earthquake-information agencies. Uniform
Resource Identifiers (URIs) are used to assign identifiers to (1) seismic-event parameters described by
QuakeML, and (2) generic resources, for example, authorities, locations providers, location methods,
software adopted, and so on, described by use of a data model constructed with the resource description
framework (RDF) and accessible as a service. The European-Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC)
has implemented a unique event identifier (UNID) that will create the seismic event URI used by the QuakeML
data model.
Access to data such as broadband waveform, accelerometric data and stations inventories will be also
provided through a set of Web services that will wrap the middleware used by the seismological observatory
or institute that is supplying the data.
Each single application of the portal consists of a Java-based JSR-168-standard portlet (often provided with
interactive maps for data discovery). In specific cases, it will be possible to distribute the deployment of the
portlets among the data providers, such as seismological agencies, because of the adoption, within the
distributed architecture of the NERIES portal of the Web Services for Remote Portlets (WSRP) standard for
presentation-oriented web services
The purpose of the portal is to provide to the user his own environment where he can surf and retrieve the
data of interest, offering a set of shopping carts with storage and management facilities. This approach
involves having the user interact with dedicated tools in order to compose personalized datasets that can be
downloaded or combined with other information available either through the NERIES network of Web services
or through the user's own carts. Administrative applications also are provided to perform monitoring tasks
such as retrieving service statistics or scheduling submitted data requests. An administrative tool is included
that allows the RDF model to be extended, within certain constraints, with new classes and properties.
http://www.neries-eu.org/
IN23B-1086
The NOAA Weather and Climate Toolkit
The NOAA Weather and Climate Toolkit (WCT) is an application that provides simple visualization and data
export of weather and climate data archived at the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) and other
organizations. The WCT is built on the Unidata Common Data Model and supports defined feature types
such as Grid, Radial, Point, Time Series and Trajectory. Current NCDC datasets supported include NEXRAD
Radar data, GOES Satellite imagery, NOMADS Model Data, Integrated Surface Data and the U.S. Drought
Monitor (part of the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS)).
The WCT Viewer provides tools for displaying custom data overlays, Web Map Services (WMS), animations
and basic filters. The export of images and movies is provided in multiple formats. The WCT Data Exporter
allows for data export in both vector polygon (Shapefile, Well-Known Text) and raster (GeoTIFF, Arc/Info
ASCII Grid, VTK, NetCDF) formats. By decoding and exporting data into multiple common formats, a diverse
user community can perform analysis using familiar tools such as ArcGIS, MatLAB and IDL. This brings new
users to a vast array of weather and climate data at NCDC.
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/wct/
IN23B-1087
New Zealand Seismographic Information Service --- Enhanced Access to Seismographic Data for Research and Teaching
We are developing web services that facilitate rapid access to New Zealand's seismographic data via the
high-speed Kiwi Advanced Research and Education Network (KAREN) to facilitate research and teaching in
New Zealand and internationally. Currently, approximately 3.5 GB of continuous broad-band seismographic
data --- as well as strong-motion records, geodetic deformation measurements, and volcano and tsunami
data --- are collected and archived daily by the GeoNet geophysical monitoring network. These data are
increasingly used by educators and researchers around the world. Current requests for seismographic data
are handled by an email-based system, "AutoDRM", which does not integrate well with modern cyber-
infrastructure or data demands: the system does not readily cope with large data requests such as "give me
a year's data from every station in the network, please", and has a limited range of output formats. The new
Seismographic Information Service is based on a flexible, service-oriented architecture and standards-based
web services. It provides access to archived seismographic data in a range of output formats and waveform
durations. Within New Zealand, the data are transmitted over the KAREN network at rates of up to 10
gigabits per second. As part of an ongoing ambient noise correlation tomographic study of the New Zealand
plate boundary, these services are being integrated with grid-based computational workflow models to allow
large-scale distributed data processing (deconvolution) and cross-correlation.
http://www.geonet.org.nz
IN23B-1088
Time Scale Creator – A Visualization and Database Tool for Earth History
Unravelling Earth's history requires the ability to compare biologic, lithologic, chemical, magnetic and other records from different regions. Published correlation charts provide some details, but tend to be unwieldy, difficult to update, and awkward to merge with other records. The Time Scale Creator program of the International Commission on Stratigraphy provides a suite of global and regional reference datasets (approximately 20,000 Phanerozoic datums, plus geochemical and other trends) within a visualization package. Users can append additional regional lithostratigraphic or other datasets, then create on-screen charts for any portion of the geologic time scale with any subsets of the extensive stratigraphic data. In addition to scalable-vector graphics (SVG) or PDF file output, the on-screen display contains "hot-cursor- points" which open up windows with additional information on events, zones, and URL links to external documentation. For example, a user can select from within a datapack with 50 representative stratigraphic columns spanning the British Isles, then display lithologic sections against models of global sea-level trends or adjacent to Sub-boreal ammonite zones, and the pop-up window for each formation is linked directly to the British Geologic Survey lexicon entry. Much in the way that GIS greatly enhances accessibility to spatial data, the Time Scale Creator and its temporal data are completely digital, allowing quick and easy distribution and updating. The database and visualization package are a convenient reference tool, chart-production device, and educational program.
IN23B-1089
Forcing Interoperability: An Intentionally Fractured Approach
The NSIDC is attempting to rebuild a significant portion of its public-facing cyberinfrastructure to better meet the needs expressed by the cryospheric community. The project initially addresses a specific science need - understanding Greenland's contribution to global sea level rise through comparison and analysis of variables such as temperature, albedo, melt, ice velocity and surface elevation. This project will ultimately be expanded to cover most of NSIDC's cryospheric data. Like many organizations, we need to provide users with data discovery interfaces, collaboration tools and mapping services. Complicating this effort is the need to reduce the volume of raw data delivered to the user. Data growth, especially with time-series data, will overwhelm our software, processors and network like never before. We need to provide the users the ability to perform first level analysis directly on our site. In order to accomplish this, the users should be free to modify the behavior of these tools as well as incorporate their own tools and analysis to meet their needs. Rather than building one monolithic project to build this system, we have chosen to build three semi-independent systems. One team is building a data discovery and web based distribution system, the second is building an advanced analysis and workflow system and the third is building a customized web mapping service. These systems will use the same underlying data structures and services but will employ different technologies and teams to build their objectives, schedules and user interfaces. Obviously, we are adding complexity and risk to the overall project however this may be the best method to achieve interoperability because the development teams will be required to build off each others work. The teams will be forced to design with other users in mind as opposed to building interoperability as an afterthought, which a tendency in monolithic systems. All three teams will take advantage of preexisting software and standards whenever possible. We present this topic to stimulate discussion within the development, operational and research communities on how best to proceed.
IN23B-1090
Evaluation of Collaborative GIS Usage
Remote real-time shared displays of information in a GIS user interface or geobrowser can provide valuable support to multidisciplinary research teams spread across different locations, emergency management personnel, and teams in the field. In terms of the classic computer supported cooperative work (CSCW) application matrix, this falls in the "same time, different place" quadrant. This shared remote interaction with multiple active participants is distinct from typical "collaborative GIS" research, which has emphasized publishing GIS data for researchers to use, making data available to the public, and large screen support for multiple people to interact with the GIS. This is a research study of small groups of people using standard computer applications - off the shelf GIS and remote control software - to collaboratively perform spatial search and analytical tasks. This system architecture implements a floor control policy specifying only one user at a time controlling the input but with all users immediately seeing the results. A simple request and approval process allows the users to change between controlling and viewing roles. The objective of this research is to improve the design of remote real-time shared GIS software based on empirical data focused on user-software interaction in a realistic scenario. The focus is on the interaction of the people with the software. The participants in the study evaluate the system in terms of ease of use and related factors. The evaluation includes the core of the Computer Usability Satisfaction Questionnaire (Lewis, 1995) enhanced with questions specific to remote collaboration. The results from the study serve to identify requirements for a more robust and usable approach to remote collaboration using spatial data. In addition to the basic requirements for sharing, the factors for designing a highly usable and effective system are described. CSCW issues of awareness, concurrency, and remote deictic references are addressed specifically for implementation in GIS.
IN23B-1091
Surficial geologic research program in the southern Mackenzie valley, Northwest Territories, Canada: its Significance and use in Planning Pipeline Construction and Resource Development
Surficial geologic research conducted by the Geological Survey of Canada in the southern Mackenzie Valley from 2005 to 2007 covered approximately 100,000 km2 and has yielded a large amount of geoscience data, including: surficial geology maps, till geochemistry, geotechnical analyses, drift isopach maps, stratigraphic correlations, and clast lithology-till provenance studies. In recognizing the pressing need for geoscience data in planning for the proposed Mackenzie Valley Gas Pipeline, the project has involved a wide variety of disciplines and each of these has produced published data in a variety of formats. Geological data is being published in digital format as: 1) Surficial geology maps placed on digital topography at a scale of 1:100 000; 2) Radarsat image maps; and 3) Landslide maps linked with a database. A CD-ROM will be produced containing all of the above mentioned maps, and in addition, will contain geochemical data, drift isopach (thickness) maps, and potential granular aggregate maps. Surficial geologic polygons will be linked to sites and their description, and are captured as figures showing stratigraphy accompanied by photographs, sample locations, lithology pie charts, and geochronological data where available. Sample numbers will be linked with geochemical data, geochronology reports, and macrofossil reports, etc. Of special significance to the pipeline and resource development is the detailed mapping of landslide data, which in some areas has been carried out up to 50 km east and west of the pipeline. Till, glaciolacustrine sediments and shale bedrock are the most common lithologies along the eastern boundaries of the Mackenzie Mountains and plains to the east: the area covered by this program. Here, postglacial stream incision reaches depths of over 100 metres. Landslide development is most common in areas of recent river and stream development and is widespread and active today, often changing the appearance of a landscape over the span of a single year.
IN23B-1092
Interaction Support for the Global Fluxnet Data Set
The FLUXNET synthesis data set contains on the order of 960 site-years of sensor data from over 260 sites
around the world. This is a living data set; a data update this year should add new site-years from over 200
sites. The data are the ground truth for carbon-climate studies linking models and remote sensing as well as
comparative field analyses. Over 65 synthesis teams are using this data to do global and regional scale
analyses. The size of the dataset makes browsing the data difficult; for example, a search of the dataset for
sites with particular meteorological characteristics would require a download of the complete dataset and
then running all of the data through a preliminary analysis. Synthesis studies often need additional non-
sensor measurements such as root biomass, soil composition, or fire occurrence; some of these variables
require detailed knowledge of the site and the science. The large number of sites makes the assembly,
cleaning, and long term curation of the non-sensor data daunting; a virtual conversation between the data
providers, data users, and data curators is needed. The large number of sites also makes tracking updates
to the site information and communicating with site PIs difficult for synthesis study teams.
We have developed a collaborative web portal which enables data browsing on line, orchestrates the data
curation virtual conversation, and enables the synthesis team conversation with sites. Behind the portal is an
archive database and OLAP data cube for simple data browsing through query. Scientists can download data
files, browse data summaries, update metadata and annotate the data through the portal. Synthesis teams
can select sites and exchange e-mail with those sites through the portal. The data can also be browsed
directly from Excel spreadsheets or MatLab from the scientist desktop; the scientist sees no difference
between data "in the cloud" and on the desktop. We believe the portal enables science researchers to
concentrate on science rather than data management and the collaboration features enable continued
growth.
http://www.fluxdata.org
IN23B-1093
Collaboration in River Basin Management: The Great Rivers Project
The health of the world's freshwater ecosystems is fundamental to the health of people, plants and animals around the world. The sustainable use of the world's freshwater resources is recognized as one of the most urgent challenges facing society today. An estimated 1.3 billion people currently lack access to safe drinking water, an issue the United Nations specifically includes in its recently published Millennium Development Goals. IBM is collaborating with The Nature Conservancy and the Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment (SAGE) at the University of Wisconsin, Madison to build a Modeling Collaboration Framework and Decision Support System (DSS) designed to help policy makers and a variety of stakeholders (farmers, fish and wildlife managers, hydropower operators, et al.) to assess, come to consensus, and act on land use decisions representing effective compromises between human use and ecosystem preservation/restoration efforts. Initially focused on Brazil's Paraguay-Parana, China's Yangtze, and the Mississippi Basin in the US, the DSS integrates data and models from a wide variety of environmental sectors, including water balance, water quality, carbon balance, crop production, hydropower, and biodiversity. In this presentation we focus on the collaboration aspects of the DSS. The DSS is an open environment tool that allows scientists, policy makers, politicians, land owners, and anyone who desires to take ownership of their actions in support of the environment to work together to that end. The DSS supports a range of features that empower such a community to collaboratively work together. Supported collaboration mediums include peer reviews, live chat, static comments, and Web 2.0 functionality such as tagging. In addition, we are building a 3-D virtual world component which will allow users to experience and share system results, first-hand. Models and simulation results may be annotated with free-text comments and tags, whether unique or chosen from a predefined tag taxonomy. These comments and tag clouds may be used by the community to filter results and identify models or simulations of interest, e.g, by region, modeling approach, spatiotemporal resolution, etc. Users may discuss methods or results in real-time with a built-in chat feature. Separate user groups may be defined for logical groups of collaboration partners, e.g., expert modelers, land managers, policy makers, school children, or the general public, to optimize the collaboration signal-to-noise ratio for all.
IN23B-1094
Interactive Visualization of 3-D Mantle Convection Extended Through AJAX Applications
We have designed a new software system for real-time interactive visualization of results taken directly from large-scale simulations of 3-D mantle convection and other large-scale simulations. This approach allows for intense visualization sessions for a couple of hours as opposed to storing massive amounts of data in a storage system. Our data sets consist of 3-D data for volume rendering with over 10 million unknowns at each timestep. Large scale visualization on a display wall holding around 13 million pixels has already been accomplished with extension to hand-held devices, such as the OQO and Nokia N800 and recently the iPHONE. We are developing web-based software in Java to extend the use of this system across long distances. The software is aimed at creating an interactive and functional application capable of running on multiple browsers by taking advantage of two AJAX-enabled web frameworks: Echo2 and Google Web Toolkit. The software runs in two modes allowing for a user to control an interactive session or observe a session controlled by another user. Modular build of the system allows for components to be swapped out for new components so that other forms of visualization could be accommodated such as Molecular Dynamics in mineral physics or 2-D data sets from lithospheric regional models.