Knowledge Management and Visualization Tools in Support of Discovery

Börner, K., Bettencourt, L. M., Gerstein, M., & Uzzo, S. M. (2009). Knowledge management and visualization tools in support of discovery, NSF Workshop Report, Indiana University, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Yale University, and New York Hall of Science.

This report summarizes the results of two National Science Foundation (NSF) Workshops on “Knowledge Management and Visualization Tools in Support of Discovery” that were inspired by NSF’s Cyber-Enabled Discovery and Innovation (CDI) initiative. The two workshops took place at the National Science Foundation, Arlington, VA, DC on March 10 & 11, 2008 and the New York Hall of Science, Queens, NY on April 7 & 8, 2008. 

Workshop (I) brought together 17 leading experts in biomedical research and science of science and innovation policy research (SciSIP). The participants came from the U.S. but also from Japan and Europe. In addition, 20 agency staff members joined different sessions. The workshop produced a set of challenges faced by biomedical and SciSIP researchers and practitioners. Challenges that might be solvable in the next 10 years were identified and usage scenarios were detailed.

Results of Workshop (I) were communicated to participants of Workshop (II) consisting of about 20 leading academic, government and industry experts in database research and digital libraries, cyberinfrastructure/e-Science design, and social science from the U.S. and Europe. The goal of the second workshop was the identification of socio-technical opportunities, existing and evolving technologies, and incentive structures that might help create, serve, and sustain novel tools and cyberinfrastructures (CIs) that meet the challenges identified in Workshop (I).