Gladys A. Cotter

Electronic collection management and electronic information services

As the life cycle of information products has become increasingly digital from “cradle to grave”, the nature of electronic information management has dramatically changed. These changes have brought new strategies and methods as well as new issues and challenges. At the bottom line the services are increasingly delivered to a desktop from distributed publishers or information providers. Information organizations act either as primary information providers or as brokers between the user and the primary service provider. This paper covers developments in the factors and strategies affecting collection management and access. It discusses major trends in electronic user services including electronic information delivery, information discovery and electronic reference. Finally, it addresses the challenges in user and personnel education in response to this electronic environment and an increasingly information literate user population.

International Aerospace Information Network: international cooperation and resource sharing

The identification, acquisition, and utilisation of scientific and technical information is of paramount importance to the efficiency of the research and development (R&D) process. With the advances in information technology and information management, increased international participation in the aerospace field, and the realities of scarce resources for every nation, the strategies and benefits for international cooperation and resource sharing are readily apparent. With this in mind, a Working Group was established in 1994 to examine the issues, strategies, and actions required to develop a mechanism for improving the access to, and use of aerospace and aerospace‐related information by developing a self‐sustaining, worldwide network of partner organisations committed to sharing their data and information resources. The Working Group decided that the Internet would be the most suitable vehicle to provide such a mechanism and developed a prototype International Aerospace Information Network (IAIN) Web site, providing a catalogue of aerospace information sources from which information searches can be launched.

Integrated science for environmental decision-making: the challenge for biodiversity and ecosystem informatics

Information concerning biodiversity and ecosystems is critical to a wide range of scientific, educational, and government uses; however, much of this information is not easily accessible. This paper presents the core concepts underlying the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) , a Web-based system coordinated by the U.S. Geological Survey that provides data and information on U.S. biological resources and, through a variety of partnerships, biological resources in many other nations. This paper will highlight NBII development, implementation, technological innovation, and successful user applications at two regional nodes: the NBII Southern Appalachian Information Node and the NBII Central Southwest/Gulf Coast Node.

The National Biological Information Infrastructure: Coming of Age.

Coordinated by the US Geological Survey, the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) is a Web‐based system that provides increased access to data and information on the nation’s biological resources. The NBII can be viewed from a variety of perspectives. This article – an individual case study and not a broad survey with extensive references to the literature – addresses the structure of the NBII related to thematic sections, infrastructure sections and place‐based sections, and other topics such as the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (one of our more innovative tools) and the development of our controlled vocabulary.

Information science and technology developments within the national biological information infrastructure.

Abstract Whether your vantage point is that of an office window or a national park, your view undoubtedly encompasses a rich diversity of life forms, all carefully studied or managed by some scientist, resource manager, or planner. A few simple calculations-the number of species, their interrelationships, and the many researchers studying them-and you can easily see the tremendous challenges that the resulting biological data presents to the information and computer science communities. Biological information varies in format and content: it may pertain to a particular species or an entire ecosystem; it can contain land use characteristics, and geospatially referenced information. The complexity and uniqueness of each individual species or ecosystem do not easily lend themselves to todays computer science tools and applications. To address the challenges that the biological enterprise presents, the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) (http://www.nbii.gov) was established in 1993 on the recommendation of the National Research Council (National Research Council 1993). The NBII is designed to address these issues on a national scale, and through international partnerships. This paper discusses current information and computer science efforts within the National Biological Information Infrastructure Program, and future computer science research endeavors that are needed to address the ever-growing issues related to our nations biological concerns.