[Taxacom] Biodiversity websites

Wed Jul 8 02:29:28 CDT 2009

Just to let you know that my "meta-site" (as someone [Michael?] helpfully called it) http://www.cmar.csiro.au/datacentre/taxonomy/mainlist.htm has had quite a few entries and features added since my previous note to the list, more are in progress and suggestions are still welcome. This is of course not to distract from the TDWG list already mentioned, which I will also use to refresh my knowledge of relevant activities already listed there.

Regards to all - Tony

-----Original Message-----
From: taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu [mailto:taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu] On Behalf Of Piers Higgs
Sent: Tuesday, 7 July 2009 2:53 PM
To: Jim Croft; Cynthia Parr
Cc: taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
Subject: Re: [Taxacom] Biodiversity websites

Hi,

This is a great idea!

I was involved in developing the Biodiversity Projects site, and continue to support the TDWG web sites and servers with a group of other people.   I'm happy to take the lead on enhancing the current site and producing regular articles/review summaries if there is sufficient support.

I think the idea of a regularly published article will also help address the main failing of the site as it stands now - there appears to be no real incentive to populate the database.  

We've also looked at crawlers and other technology to see if we can automate the population somehow, but as with many of these volunteer projects, they've stalled through a shortage of time.  If anyone is interested in helping out let me know and we'll see what we can throw together.

Piers

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Gaia Resources
Environmental Technology Consultants
Perth, Australia
p +61 8 92277309
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-----Original Message-----
From: taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu [mailto:taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu] On Behalf Of Jim Croft
Sent: Tuesday, 7 July 2009 5:38 AM
To: Cynthia Parr
Cc: taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
Subject: Re: [Taxacom] Biodiversity websites

yes, that would be a great enhancement.  the TDWG twiki could be
configured to enable ratings, reviews and comments, and perhaps even a
hotness index based on the number of times a resource is looked up or
a link is followed.

will petition Lee about it... :)

jim

On Tue, Jul 7, 2009 at 12:32 AM, Cynthia Parr<parrc at si.edu> wrote:
> It would be cool if the TDWG project database also allowed for ratings and
> reviews.  I think that's what Michael is asking for.
>
> Michael Galperin summarizes the state of molecular databases every year in
> the journal Nucleic Acids Research:
> http://nar.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/36/suppl_1/D2
>
> We discussed doing something like this at an ATOL meeting a couple of years
> ago. It would take a bit of cash to set up. At EOL we've got some
> annotations we've made to the TDWG project database that we'd be happy to
> share. Whoever take this and runs with it would be sure to have a highly
> cited review article every year.
>
> Cyndy
>
> On Mon, Jul 6, 2009 at 10:03 AM, Jim Croft <jim.croft at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> http://www.tdwg.org/biodiv-projects/
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Jul 6, 2009 at 6:27 PM, <michael.heads at yahoo.com> wrote:
>> >
>> > There now seem to be hundreds of so-called 'biodiversity' sites that
>> > list names and not much else, and are practically worthless (unless you want
>> > to make another list...). Some have additional information for a few taxa,
>> > sometimes even maps, but often of a very low standard.
>> >
>> > There are some truly awful sites out there - I won't name names but I
>> > wish someone would! Has anyone written a review of the most significant
>> > sites, with a few lines giving their strengths and weaknesses - something
>> > like Frodin's invaluable book 'Guide to the standard floras of the world'?
>> > (Tony Rees' 'metasite' is a great step in this direction but doesn't
>> > actually review the sites it lists). Or does everyone just have to figure it
>> > out for themselves? Sites like GBIF and EOL have major flaws and blind spots
>> > as well as strengths, but it takes a while to work out just what they are.
>> > (Of course groups such as the birds of the US are always covered
>> > brilliantly, but that information is easily available anyway).
>> >
>> > Michael Heads
>> >
>> > Wellington, New Zealand.
>> >
>
> --
> Cynthia Sims Parr
> Director of the Species Pages Group
> Encyclopedia of Life http://www.eol.org
> Office: 202.633.8730
> Fax: 202.633.8742
> parrc at si.edu
>
> Mailing address:
> National Museum of Natural History
> P.O. Box 37012
> MRC 106
> Washington, DC 20013-7012
>

-- 
_________________
Jim Croft ~ jim.croft at gmail.com ~ +61-2-62509499 ~
http://www.google.com/profiles/jim.croft

... in pursuit of the meaning of leaf ...

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