September 2013 - tdwg - lists.tdwg.org

In Memoriam Dr Richard Pankhurst
by Mergen Patricia 14 Dec '15

14 Dec '15

Dear Colleagues, On behalf of TDWG we are very sorry to inform you that Richard John Pankhurst passed away on Tuesday 26 March after fighting oesophageal cancer for many years. He was a very important contributer and friend of TDWG, as can be judged from his short CV from the BioCISE directory: Dr Richard Pankhurst began his career in computing in the computer section at CERN, Geneva in 1963, and moving back to Cambridge to work on Computer-Aided Design in 1966. In 1971 he moved to the Botany School, Cambridge to begin work on his PANKEY programs for identification and key construction. This was continued at the Botany department of the Natural History Museum from 1974 until 1991, where he was for many years curator of the British herbarium, and also worked on the Flora Meso-Americana. "Biological Identification", 1978, was the first textbook on computer methods in identification. A new version of this book was published by C.U.P in 1991. Also published in that year was the Flora of the Outer Hebrides. With over 50 publications of refereed papers and books in the fields of taxonomic computing he has made major contributions to these fields. Dr. Pankhurst has been very active recently in programming and managing botanical databases (Flora Europaea, BSBI database and PANDORA) and systems with images. He was appointed Principal Scientific Officer at the RGB Edinburgh in 1991. Dr. Pankhurst served on various committees of British and international organizations, among others. Botanical Society of the British Isles, Committee for Scotland and Database Committee. Botanical Society of Scotland, Council. Taxonomic Databases Working Group, convener of Descriptors Group. International Organisation for Plant Information, co-convener of Information Systems Committee, Checklist Committee. Dr. Pankhurst was the head of the Department of Taxonomic Computing at RGBE. After his official retirement, he compiled a large database of the Rose family. His work on recording the wild flowers of the Outer Hebrides took him frequently to these remote islands on behalf of the Botanical Society of the British Isles. His interest in Taraxacum (dandelions) was acknowledged when a species found only on St. Kilda was named *Taraxacum pankhurstianum*. In Richard, not only a very important scientist was lost to our community, but also a very pleasant collaborator and friend . <patricia.mergen(a)africamuseum.be> Dr. Patricia Mergen (General Secretary of TDWG, on behalf of the Executive Committee) Head of Biodiversity Information and Cybertaxonomy Royal Museum for Central Africa Leuvensesteenweg 13 B-3080 Tervuren Belgium + 32 2 769 5 *626* patricia.mergen(a)africamuseum.be

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Fwd: Discovery Informatics Symposium: AI Takes a Science-Centered View on Big Data
by Hilmar Lapp 24 Sep '13

24 Sep '13

Begin forwarded message: From: Gully Burns <gullyburns(a)GMAIL.COM> Subject: Fwd: Discovery Informatics Symposium: AI Takes a Science-Centered View on Big Data Date: September 24, 2013 1:51:57 AM EDT [apologies for cross-posting] CALL FOR PARTICIPATION Discovery Informatics Symposium: AI Takes a Science-Centered View on Big Data November 15–17, 2013, Arlington, VA (USA) AAAI Fall Symposium Series Program available at: http://www.discoveryinformaticsinitiative.org/dis2013 IMPORTANT DATES Registration deadline: October 18, 2013, through https://www.regonline.com/fss13. Westin Arlington Gateway Hotel cut-off date: October 24, 2013. Symposium: November 15-17, 2013 DESCRIPTION Discovery Informatics focuses on intelligent systems aimed at accelerating discovery, particularly in science but also from any data-rich domain. It is a generalization of scientific informatics work (e.g., medical-, bio-, eco- or geo-informatics) that seeks to apply principles of intelligent computing and information systems in order to understand, automate, improve, and innovate any aspects of discovery processes. A range of AI research is directly relevant including process representation and workflows; intelligent interfaces; causal reasoning; machine learning; knowledge representation and engineering; semantic web; advanced visualization toolkits and social computing. The application of AI approaches to assist in scientific discovery is an open ended knowledge-driven challenge with a very high potential impact. This is especially true in this era of big data, which provides the theme of this symposium. INVITED SPEAKERS - Richard J. Doyle, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. - Michel Dumontier, Stanford University. - Haym Hirsh, Cornell University. - David Jensen, University of Massachusetts at Amherst. - Peter Karp, SRI International. - Claire Monteleoni, George Washington University. - Zoran Obradovic, Temple University. - Christopher Re, Stanford University. - Andrey Rzhetsky, University of Chicago. - Kiri L. Wagstaff, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. ACCEPTED PAPERS - "Finna: A Paragraph Prioritization System for Biocuration in the Neurosciences". Kyle Ambert, Aaron Cohen, Gully Burns, Eilis Boudreau and Kemal Sonmez. - "Forensic Reasoning about Paleoclimatology". Elizabeth Bradley, Laura Rassbach de Vesine, Kenneth Anderson, Marek Zreda and Christopher Zweck. - "ELSEWeb meets SADI: Supporting Data-to-Model Integration for Biodiversity Forecasting". Nicholas Del Rio, Natalia Villanueva-Rosales, Deana Pennington, Karl Benedict, Aimee Stewart and Cj Grady. - "Linkitup: Link Discovery for Research Data". Rinke Hoekstra and Paul Groth. - "Capturing Data Analytics Expertise with Visualization in Workflows". David Kale, Samuel Di, Yan Liu and Yolanda Gil. - "MetaShare: From Data Management Plans to Knowledge-Based Systems". Leonardo Salayandia, Deana Pennington, Ann Gates and Francisco Osuna. - "Creating an Urban Legend: A System for Electrophysiology Data Management and Exploration". Anita De Waard, Jeremy Alder, Shawn Burton, Richard C. Gerkin, Mark Harviston, David Marques, Shreejoy J. Tripathy and Nathaniel N. Urban. ACCEPTED ABSTRACTS - "Computational Ideation in Scientific Discovery". Ashok K. Goel. - "Exploration Using Signatures in Annotation Graph Datasets". Louiqa Raschid, Guillermo Palma, Maria-Esther Vidal, Andreas Thor. CO-CHAIRS Gully APC Burns, University of Southern California Yolanda Gil, University of Southern California Yan Liu, University of Southern California Natalia Villanueva-Rosales, University of Texas at El Paso

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[TDWG2013] Upcoming Deadlines
by Kampmeier, Gail E 20 Sep '13

20 Sep '13

It's just over 5 weeks before the start of the 2013 TDWG Annual Conference in Florence, Italy. http://www.tdwg.org/conference-2013/ But before we arrive, there are a number of deadlines to keep in mind, the first is: Presentation titles and abstracts are due 25 September (that's Wednesday!!). You will need to register in the Open Conference System, which is separate from other TDWG functions http://www.tdwg.org/conference-2013/#c1465 Most tours and excursions<http://www.tdwg.org/conference-2013/#c1460> have deadlines later in October, closer to the meeting, except for the Special Opening of the Vasari Corridor, whose deadline is 27 September --this unique tour http://www.tdwg.org/index.php?id=1178#VasariCorridor will be offered only on our half day off Thursday 31 October. It requires 15 people minimum to sign up, with a maximum of 25 people. Although the early registration deadline has passed, the deadline for normal registration is Monday September 30. Conference registration is handled through RegOnline, which requires a different sign-on http://www.tdwg.org/conference-2013/#c1466 Nominate members to the TDWG Executive by Tuesday, 1 October http://www.tdwg.org/homepage-news-item/article/call-for-nomination-of-tdwg-… --we particularly need nominations for Oceania, Asia, and for Treasurer. Onsite meeting registration opens Sunday 27 October at 15:00 and runs to 18:30. Pick up your badge and registration materials. This should also allow those taking advantage of Sunday Excursions time to get back and register before a Welcome Reception at La Specola, starting at 19:00. Luca Bartolozzi will be our host at The Section of Zoology "La Specola," at The University of Florence's Museum of Natural History, which will be open to us during the reception--you won't want to miss this!! http://www.tdwg.org/conference-2013/#c1507 Florence and its environs provide ample opportunities for accompanying persons to explore. Each day, starting Saturday 25 October and running through 3 November there will be full and half day excursions available for those not attending the meetings. These excursions are exclusively associated with the TDWG meeting and have deadlines closer to the meeting, aside from the earlier mentioned Special Opening of the Vasari Corridor, many have deadlines as early as 24 October. Check out the many offerings and bring family and friends. http://www.tdwg.org/conference-2013/#c1460 Looking forward to seeing everyone in Florence! Ciao! Gail Program co-Chair TDWG 2013 Gail E. Kampmeier Illinois Natural History Survey Prairie Research Institute University of Illinois 1816 So. Oak St. Champaign, IL 61820 www.inhs.illinois.edu/~gkamp<http://www.inhs.illinois.edu/~gkamp>

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Release of TDWG Vocabulary Management Task Group report
by Éamonn Ó Tuama [GBIF] 20 Sep '13

20 Sep '13

Report of the TDWG Vocabulary Management Task Group (VoMaG) http://www.gbif.org/orc/?doc_id=5422 On behalf of my co-conveners, Dag Endresen, Steve Baskauf and Gregor Hagedorn, I have the pleasure of releasing the report of the TDWG Vocabulary Management Task Group. With input from the wider community, we have developed a set of recommendations on how TDWG can best move forward on the TDWG Ontologies and, more generally, on vocabulary development, governance and management. The outcomes of the report will be discussed in two dedicated session at the forthcoming TDWG conference in Florence. With regards, Éamonn Ó Tuama On behalf of VoMaG co-conveners (Dag Endresen, Steve Baskauf, Gregor Hagedorn)

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FW: Job posting: Post doctoral researcher- Neuroptera Anatomical Ontology
by Kampmeier, Gail E 18 Sep '13

18 Sep '13

FYI --gk Postdoctoral Researcher – Neuroptera Anatomical Ontology (NAO) University of California, Davis & the California State Collection of Arthropods The UC Davis Department of Entomology & Nematology, and the California State Collection of Arthropods invites applications for a post-doctoral scholar to help develop and curate the Neuroptera Anatomy Ontology and to design research that tests the utility of semantic approaches to phenotype description. The successful applicant will work on morphological imaging and the application of ontologies to facilitate the dissemination of phenotype data, as well as matching of the NAO with other arthropod ontologies. Required Qualifications: 1) Applicants should have a PhD in Computer Science or related field. 2) Excellent written and oral communication skills. 3) Strong interest in semantic reasoning, ontology development and standardization of anatomical terminology Preferred Qualifications: 4) Familiarity with genomics, phylogenetics and bioinformatics. 5) Familiarity with insect taxonomy, morphology, and evolution. This is a collaborative National Science Foundation (NSF) project on green lacewing (Chrysopidae) evolution and development of an anatomical ontology for Neuroptera (NAO). The successful applicant will work in the Winterton lab at the California State Collection of Arthropods (Sacramento, California), but will also be expected to work in close collaboration with project participants at the University of Kansas (Engel lab) as well as with collaborators at the Illinois Natural History Survey and Pennsylvania State University. There will be opportunities to travel to work with collaborators and present at international conferences. Interested individuals should e-mail a cover letter, CV, and the contact information for three references (including major professor) to wintertonshaun(a)gmail.com<mailto:wintertonshaun@gmail.com>. We encourage applications from individuals of diverse backgrounds. Review of applications will begin immediately with the preferred starting date of January 1st, 2014 or shortly thereafter. Appointment is for two years full time. Employment will require successful completion of background check(s) in accordance with University policies. The position comes with standard University of California, Davis benefits for postdoctoral researchers. More details can be found at the follow link: http://gradstudies.ucdavis.edu/postdocs/ -- Dr Shaun L Winterton California State Collection of Arthropods, California Department of Food & Agriculture, 3294 Meadowview Rd. Sacramento, CA, USA 95832-1148 phone: +1 916 262 1166; cell: +1 916 599 0810 http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/PPD/staff/swinterton.html ResearcherID: http://www.researcherid.com/rid/C-3804-2009 Co-Editor: Systematic Entomology

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Full, open proceedings available for DC-2013 in Lisbon
by DCMI Announce 15 Sep '13

15 Sep '13

**** Please excuse the cross-posting **** DC-2013 ONLINE PROCEEDINGS =========================== PROCEEDINGS URL: http://dcevents.dublincore.org/index.php/IntConf/dc-2013/schedConf/presenta… CONFERENCE HOME URL (for session descriptions): http://dcevents.dublincore.org/index.php/IntConf/dc-2013/ =========================== The collocated conferences for DC-2013 and iPRES-2013 in Lisbon attracted 392 participants from over 37 countries. In addition to the Tuesday through Thursday conference days comprised of peer-reviewed paper and special sessions, 223 participants attended pre-conference tutorials and 246 participated in post-conference workshops for the collocated events. The peer-reviewed papers and presentations are available on the conference website Presentation page (URLs above). In sum, it was a great conference. In addition to links to PDFs of papers, project reports and posters (and their associated presentations), the published proceedings include presentation PDFs for the following: TUTORIALS: -- Ivan Herman: "Introduction to Linked Open Data (LOD)" -- Steven Miller: "Introduction to Ontology Concepts and Terminology" -- Kai Eckert: "Metadata Provenance" -- Daniel Garjio: "The W3C Provenance Ontology" SPECIAL SESSIONS: -- "Application Profiles as an Alternative to OWL Ontologies" -- "Long-term Preservation and Governance of RDF Vocabularies (W3C Sponsored)" -- "Data Enrichment and Transformation in the LOD Context: Poor & Popular vs Rich & Lonely--Can't we achieve both?" -- "Why Schema.org?" WORKSHOPS: -- Vocabulary Day -- CAMP (Cyber Infrastructure and Metadata Protocols)-4-DATA

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