ITR/AP: The Analytic Web

麻省理工学院的阿默斯特·莱昂·J·奥斯特维尔说，互联网已经永远改变了科学的完成方式。像NSF赞助的Globus和GriPhyN这样的合作机构正开始利用互联网接入，以促进全球地理分布的研究人员社区之间的数据共享和快速合作。这创造了通过使用共享数据和专业知识更好地开展科学研究的机会，但它也带来了风险，原因是不确定互联网接入的数据集是如何产生的，以及如何使用它们。如果科学家无法确定具体结果是如何获得的，这些结果随后可能会以导致不正确或误导性结论的方式组合在一起，可能会产生毁灭性的影响。我们的项目将开发、演示和评估技术，通过支持整合和组合基于网络的数据集和工具的科学过程的定义、验证、重复性和适应性来促进社区共识的建立。尽管关于科学研究中使用的最合适的模型、方法和结论总是会有争论，但我们的工作应该帮助科学家专注于分歧的领域，并更快地解决这些分歧，或许可以通过进一步的实验和调查。因此，我们的工作还将在科学成果是关键因素的领域帮助决策者，如经济政策、环境管理和社会倡议。

ABSTRACT0205575U of Mass, AmherstLeon J. OsterweilThe internet has changed forever the way science is done. Collaborations such as NSF-sponsoredGlobus, and GriPhyN are beginning to employ internet access to facilitate data sharing andexpedite collaboration among worldwide communities of geographically distributed researchers.This creates opportunities to do better science through the use of shared data and expertise, but italso creates risks arising from uncertainty about how internet-accessed data sets were producedand how they can be used. If scientists cannot determine how particular results were obtained,those results may be subsequently combined in ways that will lead to incorrect or misleadingconclusions, possibly with devastating effects.Our project will develop, demonstrate, and evaluate technologies to facilitate the building ofcommunity consensus by supporting definition, validation, repeatability, and adaptability ofscientific processes that integrate and combine web-based data sets and tools. Although there willalways be debate about the most appropriate models, methodologies and conclusions used inscientific inquiry, our work should help scientists focus on areas of disagreement and resolve thesedisagreements more quickly, perhaps through further experimentation and inquiry. Thus, our workwill also help policy makers in areas where scientific results are critical ingredients, such aseconomic policy, environmental management, and social initiatives..