Informatics training

From NCEAS Knowledge Base

Upcoming postdoc training workshop at NCEAS:

August 2-3, 2007

Thursday am: Session I

Thursday pm: Session II

Friday am: Session III

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Below is a generic outline for (rapid) Ecoinformatics training, in 3 half-day sessions. For an example of a more extensive workshop on KNB-specific tools and concepts, refer to the [2004 KNB Workshop].

Session I

Making your data work for you

1. Intro to (eco)informatics issues, history, directions
2. Approaches to data management/analysis: A Goofus and Gallant case study
   • The siren song of spreadsheets
   • The perils of point-and-click (aka, scripts are super)
     • Recollection
     • Reproduction
     • Reuse
   • Cross-platform is cool
   • - more -

Session II

Sharing is caring

1. NCEAS Ecoinformatics program
   • History
   • Current activities
2. Metadata
   • Why is data description so important?
   • Metadata standards and such
   • Ecological Metadata Language: A practical overview
3. Registering and accessing (meta/)data through the web
   • The NCEAS data registry
   • The Knowledge Network for Biocomplexity (KNB)
4. Morpho: Desktop software for managing data/metadata
   • Where to get it
   • How to use it (search & retrieval; enter your data/metadata via wizards)

Session III

Get ready for the future...

1. Kepler: Scientific workflow management
   • Overview
   • Examples of workflows
   • Hands-on Kepler activities? (Guided lab or free-form?)
2. EarthGrid: Beyond the KNB
3. Other projects in the pipeline?
   • REAP