Taxonomic Total Immersion

[Lois Blaine]

The CODATA Commission on Standardized Terminology for Access to
                     Biological Data

         invites your participation in a two-day
               "Taxonomic Total Immersion"

     Monday, September 19 and Wednesday, September 21

                       during

        The 14th International CODATA Conference
             18-22 September, Chambery, France


Two Symposia entitled "Master Species Inventories and
 Biodiversity Data Systems" and "Biodiversity: Taxonomic and
 Information Structures" will be held on Monday, September 19.

                       followed by

A full day open session of the CODATA Commission on Wednesday,
 September 21, devoted to furthering cooperation among taxonomic
 data resource providers.

  Participants will address questions such as:

What is a taxonomic data resource?
     - software systems and data models vs. databases

What are the overlaps in existing taxonomic data resources?

What areas of taxonomy are not covered by existing resources?

What is needed by data and software providers to improve their
 resources?

Would a freely available electronic directory of taxonomic
 resources (metadatabase) be of value to the biological
 community?

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We invite the participation of all interested persons, either by
 attendance at the CODATA Conference or through other means of
 communication.  We welcome your comments, questions, and input
 on our discussion topics.  Information on existing taxonomic
 data resources would provide valuable background for our
 discussions.
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For Further Information or Replies Contact:
Lois Blaine, Chairman CODATA Commission
American Type Culture Collection
12301 Parklawn Drive, Rockville, MD 20852 USA
Phone: (301)816-4370  Fax: (301)770-1541 Email: lblaine at atcc.org