networking content repositories to provide meaningful services

to usersexperiences from the agricultural &

biodiversity domains

Nikos Manouselis, Giannis StoitsisAgro-Know Technologieshttp://wiki.agroknow.gr

networking content repositories to provide meaningful services

to usersexperiences from the agricultural &

biodiversity domains

Nikos Manouselis, Giannis StoitsisAgro-Know Technologieshttp://wiki.agroknow.gr

Opening Up Digital Collections to (real?)

Users

our team• 16 people on a full-time basis

– ~10 more on a part-time basis

• 50% PhD holders (1 candidate)– 50% MSc holders (2 candidate)

• Computer Engineers, Agronomists, Information Scientists, Financial Engineers, other

our team• 16 people on a full-time basis

– ~10 more on a part-time basis

• 50% PhD holders (1 candidate)– 50% MSc holders (2 candidate)

• Computer Engineers, Agronomists, Information Scientists, Financial Engineers, other

what we do

• research-oriented small enterprise (SME)– knowledge-intensive technology innovation

for agriculture and rural development– systems and services for agricultural

knowledge organization and delivery

• deployment and testing – in education & training, commerce, public

administration settings

data & information we work with

often distributed, unorganised• stats• gene banks• GIS data• blogs• journals• open archives• raw data• learning objects• …

at the end, its still like this…

two case studies

• agricultural research & innovation domain– experience from agINFRA

• biodiversity & natural history education– experience from Natural Europe

“We will promote research for food and agriculture, including research to adapt to, and mitigate climate change, and access to research results and technologies at national, regional and international levels.

We will reinvigorate national research systems and will share information and best practices.

We will improve access to knowledge.”Heads of State and Government, World Summit on Food Security, Rome,

November 2009

key issues

a) aggregating datab) finding relevant knowledgec) providing more storage & computing

power

• stats

• gene banks

• gis data

• blogs,

• journals

• open archives

• raw data

• technologies

• learning objects

• ………..

information officer

view

• stats

• gene banks

• gis data

• blogs,

• journals

• open archives

• raw data

• technologies

• learning objects

• ………..

organic educator

view

• stats

• gene banks

• gis data

• blogs,

• journals

• open archives

• raw data

• technologies

• learning objects

• ………..

hydroponic farmer

view

• stats

• gene banks

• gis data

• blogs,

• journals

• open archives

• raw data

• technologies

• learning objects

• ………..

content base

content base

isolated access through portals

simplified version of problem

• interfaces to search/browse through metadata descriptions of agricultural learning resources

• backend: periodical harvesting of metadata from various providers – through OAI-PMH protocol/targets, as well as

human-facilitated ingestion/import– different metadata schemas/specs combined– indexing metadata element values to use for faceted

search/browse

23

example: educational contentBut what’s behind thisBut what’s behind this

metadata aggregation infrastructure

More than a harvester:

Validation Service Repository Software Registry Service Harvester

25

Powered by

a validation service

26

• Tool to provide automatic validation of metadata instances against predefined application profiles, e.g. IEEE LOM

• Combines different sorts of validation techniques: XSD Schema is used for structural validation of xml metadata Schematron Rules are used for checking elements,

e.g. checking the presence of empty attribute fields

http://ariadne.cs.kuleuven.be/validationService/

a metadata repository service• Management of metadata records in an open and

scalable architecture• Open Standards & Specifications support

SQI , SPI, OAI-PMH, RSS

• Metadata schema support– IEEE LTSC LOM (by default)– Any schema with an XML binding

• Indexing with open source Apache Lucene framework• Open source license

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a collection registry service

• A catalogue service: – Manages up to date information on metadata providers‐ ‐– Supports open standards & specifications (IEEE LOM, SQI , SPI, OAI-PMH, RSS,

…)– Facilitates interconnection of numerous providers– (Automatic discovery of new repositories)

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a harvester service

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• Incremental, scheduled harvesting• Supports SPI specification for publishing metadata into:

i. a specified component of the ARIADNE storage layer,ii. any other repository that has an SPI target on top of its

repository Integrated with other services in the infrastructure:

1. Validation Service2. Registry Service

exposing metadata to front-end

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towards a common workflow

Harvesting Validating Transforming

OAI target - XMLs

IndexingStoring

Automatic metadata generation

De - duplication service

XMLs

Triplification

content growth

semantic evolution

AGRIS Harvester (FAO)Organic.Edunet Harvester (UAH)

VOA3R Harvester (UAH)...

HARVESTER

OAI-PMH Service Provider #1

Schema Mapper#1

OAI-PMH Service Provider #n

Schema Mapper#n

INDEXER

AggregatedXML Repository

Web Portals

Open AGRIS (FAO)AgLR/GLN (ARIADNE)Organic.Edunet (UAH)

VOA3R (UAH)

AGRIS AP Schema

IEEE LOM Schema

DC Schema

...

RDF Triple Store

Common Schema

SPARQL endpoint(Data Source #1)

SPARQL endpoint(Data Source #n)

AGROVOC

INDEXER

Web Portals

SPARQL endpoint

NOW (2012) CASE OF AGRICULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURES 2015 (AgINFRA) CASE OF AGRICULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURES

Storage and Processing Monitoring/Management/Allocation layer

Virtualization of Infrastructure Layer

Virtual Machines

Virtualization of Infrastructure LayerVirtualized Infrastractures Management LayerGUI tools and APIs

Cloud provider A Cloud provider B Cloud provider B

next challenges

1. Social Research Networking• Connecting peers & visualising social networks,

connecting researchers with publications, recommending relevant research– Mendeley (www.mendeley.com), ResearchGate (

http://www.researchgate.net), Academia.edu (http://academia.edu), ArnetMiner (http://arnetminer.org), …

– Social research components in popular CMSs (JomSocial, Drupal’s Buddylist, Elgg…)

– Social research components in institutional CMSs (VIVO, openAGRIS, …)

connect peers/publications (+APIs)

http://dev.mendeley.com/

extending social CMS components

http://voa3r.cc.uah.es

extend institutional CMS & services

http://agris.fao.org/openagris/search.do?recordID=JP2010001379

2. Enriched research objects• Complex, linked research objects

– executable scientific workflows, e.g. MyExperiment (http://www.myexperiment.org), Kepler (https://kepler-project.org)

– data sets e.g. PLoS (http://www.plos.org), FigShare (http://figshare.com)

– processing web services e.g. BioCatalogue (http://www.biocatalogue.org)

– Scientist generated classifications/taxonomies e.g. Scratchpads (http://scratchpads.eu)

– thematic networks/catalogues e.g. TELeurope (http://www.teleurope.eu), VOA3R (http://voa3r.cc.uah.es)

composite/networked research

http://education.natural-europe.eu/green/exhibits/show/grape-cultivars/to-begin-with

3. End-user interfaces and access• Facilitating and monitoring usage and access

– Visualising social bookmarks (Klerx & Duval)– TinyArm (http://atinyarm.appspot.com) – MACE (http://portal.mace-project.eu) and maeve

interactive installation at Venice Biennale (http://vimeo.com/1738770)

research visualisations & analytics

interactive navigation interfaces

biodiversitybiodiversity used to support education used to support education

this is NOT athis is NOT an educational n educational resourceresource

alt:alt: this is this is NOT a NOT a learning objectlearning object

……but but maymay become become oneone

how could museums how could museums and cultural centers and cultural centers connect connect their their digital digital collections collections with their with their

educational activities?educational activities?

1. 1. need to need to go to the go to the usersusers

• ……cannotcannot bring them bring them where where we assume that we assume that theythey are are

probably not here...

...but here

2. find their practices2. find their practices

• ……and mimic in the tools and mimic in the tools to make it easier for them to make it easier for them to connectto connect/integrate/integrate

teachers think activities

…lets help them create/find

School community

Pre-structured Pathway Pattern

From Teachers & Museum Educators

(formal) inquiry-based educational (formal) inquiry-based educational pathways…pathways…

……and non-formal pathwaysand non-formal pathwaysLifelong Learners

Open Pathway Pattern

From Museum Educators

……in the museum….in the museum….

……across the across the museums…museums…

……open to the educational communityopen to the educational community

http://education.natural-europe.eu/natural_europe/

Manolis

Iasmi

Apostolis

Field trip to a lake Kournas in Crete

Data collection

Field trip to the Caribbean in 2006

Exposes legacy data and photos to Manolis

Provide raw data and photos to Manolis

Manolis

MULTIMEDIAAUTHORING

TOOL

Ingest

Annotate

Manolis Ingests the data & content & enriches metadata

Uploads content & provides metadata from scratch

MULTIMEDIAAUTHORING

TOOL

I have to ingest and enrich!

Manolis

I have to upload and annotate!

Multimedia Content Uploader

Multimedia Authoring

Environment

Data are published on the Natural Europe Federation

Apostolis

Data are published on the Natural Europe Federation

Iasmi Manolis

Catherina

I want to teach my pupils about water pollutionIn NHMC we research

environmental issues like water pollution

Dimitris

ARIADNE Harvester

PATHWAYAUTHORINGTOOL

Dimitris

Collections of Educational &

Cultural Resources

Pathway Editor

Pathway Template Editor

Learning Models

Catherina

Pathway accessible through ARIADNE

Pathway accessible through NHM website

TeachersVisitorsFamilies

PATHWAYAUTHORINGTOOL

Dimitris

Europeana Objects findable through pathways in museum’s web site

METADATA METADATA INFRASTRUCTUREINFRASTRUCTURE

EDUCATIONAL EDUCATIONAL TOOLS TOOLS

COLLECTION COLLECTION TOOLS TOOLS

curatorscurators

educatorseducators

teachersteachers

pupilspupils

familiesfamilies

ESE-CHO Application ProfileESE-CHO Application Profile

CHO Authoring & AnnotationCHO Authoring & Annotation

CHO HarvestingCHO Harvesting

ESE OutputESE Output

Cultural Material Cultural Material Search serviceSearch service

Organising/managing digital Organising/managing digital collectionscollections

73IEEE LOM Application ProfileIEEE LOM Application Profile

Pathway Pathway Authoring & Authoring &

AnnotationAnnotation

Pathway Template Pathway Template Authoring Specs & PrototypeAuthoring Specs & Prototype

ARIADNE ValidationARIADNE ValidationServiceService

next challenges

1. Enhancing existing educational activities

• Introduce concept of educational pathways over collections & exhibitions through museum web sites (http://education.natural-europe.eu) for more museum visitors

• Cross-collection pathways for pan-European themes/topics of interest– e.g. World War I, Theory of Evolution

content for teacher activities

parents don’t (?) think activities

content for family activities

2. New technology services• Mobile, smartphone & tablet apps connected

dynamically with digital collections/Europeana API• Enriching technology platforms & tools used to

develop educational applications around cultural collections/exhibitions– educational platforms such as Learning Management

Systems (e.g. Blackboard), Course Management Systems (e.g. Moodle)

– cultural platforms such as virtual exhibition tools (e.g. Omeka)

mobile apps enhancement

http://www.museums2go.comhttp://cs.wellesley.edu/~davistui/iPhone/prototype.html

learning systems enhancement

http://www.eummena.org/index.php/labs

virtual exhibition systems

http://wiki.agroknow.gr/agroknow/index.php/Green_Hackathon

3. Creativity campaigns• Connect school activities/contests with

themes of interest– eTwinning networks, Open Discovery Space

campaigns– Thematic Europeana activities/projects

• Enrich existing educational activities with cultural content (e.g. digital storytelling platforms/tools)

• Citizen science campaigns

EU school projects/contests

http://www.etwinning.net

enhanced digital storytelling

http://learningaboutpolitics.eu/more-stories/ http://www.europeana1914-1918.eu/en/explore

wrap upwrap up

targeted domaintargeted domain

• rich in data-oriented problems and cases

• focused on “real” users• inter-disciplinary work• results related to societal

goals/challenges

increase use & reuseincrease use & reuse• digital sources and collections

material to be used (and potentially re-used) in several contexts

– even different than originally expected/thought of

our workour work• at the forefront of such activities• collaboration with international

stakeholders• (usually ) appreciated by users• …we grow fast

– (and need new people!)

thank you!info@agroknow.gr

http://wiki.agroknow.gr