[Taxacom] A little more on Species Entities

[Paul Kirk]

Stephen - at last something we can agree on ... ;-) 

"new databases ... suffocating themselves in their own complexity"

You all have a good weekend,

Paul

-----Original Message-----
From: taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
[mailto:taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu] On Behalf Of Stephen Thorpe
Sent: 02 October 2009 07:39
To: Peter DeVries
Cc: taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
Subject: Re: [Taxacom] A little more on Species Entities

Nice propaganda! :)

>exists only in an obscure journal that no one can get to
this is a problem, but DarwinCore isn't going to solve it. Instead, we
need a centralised electronic library of digitised literature, made as
comprehensive as possible, and freely available Can't see many
publishing houses supporting this, though - unless we can pay them to
release copyrights

If there is a perception of taxonomists as "name changers", then that
needs to be changed by way of education and "more appropriate
propaganda". More emphasis needs to be put on the multitudes of unnamed
species, requiring a name in the first place (for example, this new
family of mite
http://species.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Enarthronota_new_family.jpg,
which luckily is being described, based in large part on specimens I
have supplied). If existing names need to be changed, this is to make
them more meaningful and useful indicators of relationships.

>I believe that it will also create a whole new funding stream to 
>produce well documented species descriptions that are open and 
>accessible
I don't see a lack of funding per se as a problem - it costs relatively
little to do taxonomy for many groups. The problem is with managements
of institutions whose main focus is on "the bottom line". Taxonomy was
never going to be a profitable enterprise, and so it struggles to
survive in today's environment. If new databases and associated
standards are going to change this at all, then they are going to have
to be as simple and widely understandable as possible. From what I have
seen and heard, the initiatives underway are in danger of suffocating
themselves in their own complexity...

Stephen

Find out about CABI's global summit on 'Food security in a climate of change' at www.cabiglobalsummit.com 
19 - 21 October 2009, London, UK.

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