Achieving additivity of structured taxonomic character data by persistently linking them to preserved individual specimens

在一个先驱项目中，我们已经实现了EDIT（欧洲分布式分类研究所）网络分类平台，一个全面的分类数据管理和出版环境的工作流程。目的是组织（a）个体生物的调查样本，（B）从它们获得的研究数据，（c）保存在研究收藏中的这些个体的标本，以及（d）分类群分配（“鉴定”）之间的联系被调查的个人。在此基础上，拟议的项目将优化分类研究过程，对分类群进行定界和定性（“描述”）。被子植物被子植物样本数据处理的工作流程将扩展为包括两个相互连接的功能：首先，以结构化形式记录和存储单个标本而不是分类群的特征和特征状态矩阵中的特征数据（关于任何类型的基因型和表型特征的数据，这里集中于形态学），将允许通过聚合所包括的单个标本的数据集来生成分类群表征。语义网技术将用于建立和不断完善专家社区协调的范例词汇与术语本体和解释的字符和状态。第二，通过标准交换格式，将基于XML的字符数据集与保存在研究收藏中的单个标本持续联系起来，将保证这些字符数据的高度可见性和即时可重用性。考虑到分类单元概念在系统生物学知识生成过程中经常发生变化，从标本到分类单元水平的特征数据的可加性极大地促进了从变化的标本和特征数据集构建、扩展和再现分类单元特征。

In a precursor project, we have implemented a workflow on the EDIT (European Distributed Institute of Taxonomy) Platform for Cybertaxonomy, a comprehensive taxonomic data management and publication environment. The aim was to organise the links between (a) investigated samples of individual organisms, (b) research data obtained from them, (c) specimens of these individuals deposited in research collections, and (d) taxon assignments ("identifications") of the investigated individuals. On this basis the proposed project will optimise the taxonomic research process with respect to delimitation and characterisation ("description") of taxa. The angiosperm order Caryophyllales will provide exemplar use cases through cooperation within the Global Caryophyllales Initiative. The workflow for sample data handling will be extended to include two functionalities connected with each other: First, recording and storing character data (data on genoptypic and phenotypic characters of any type, here focusing on morphology) in structured form in character and character state matrices for individual specimens instead for taxa, shall allow to generate taxon characterisations by aggregating the data sets for the individual specimens included. Semantic web technology will be used to establish and continuously elaborate expert community-coordinated exemplar vocabularies with term ontologies and explanations for characters and states. Second, persistent linking of specimen-based character data sets with the individual specimens preserved in research collections via standard exchange formats shall guarantee a high visibility and instant re-usability of these character data. Taking into account that taxon concepts frequently change during the knowledge generation process in systematic biology, additivity of character data from specimen to taxon level therefore greatly facilitates the construction, extension as well as the reproducibility of taxon characterisations from changing specimen and character data sets.