Web 2.0 and Peer Production of Scientific Data April 22, 2008

SZB Room 556

Dr. William Anderson will speak on "If we believe in the long tail, then what is getting in the way? Web 2.0 and peer production of scientific data and information."

A recent news item in Science titled "Proposal to 'Wikify' GenBank Meets Stiff Resistance" describes the tensions in negotiating two-way access to scientific data; i.e., allowing the users of openly available data make corrections to the data and metadata. As researchers are comfortable with peer-review of our work. We are also getting acquainted with open access publication of research and scholarly output. But peer-production of research is something different. How do we make scientific information available to everyone?

Bill Anderson, formerly of Xerox, is a cofounder of Praxis101, where his consulting practice focuses on user-centered information systems architecture, participatory design, software engineering practice innovation, and organizational learning. He has published papers on digital library product development, participatory design of product prototypes, and software development practices and tools. Bill blogs about socio-technical concerns and more personally.

Official Website: http://www.utexas.edu/oncampus/calendar/index.php?cal=science&dt=20080422&id=AAAb6PAAPAAALGeAAA