25.07.2013 Biodiv

Meeting Notes: call on Biodiv (web conferencing)

Date: 25-07-2013 12:10 – 13:15

Topics:

• Environmental enrichment
• Define environmental datasets
• Species name reconciliation
• Rule frame
• Taxamatch

Participants

• E.vdBerghe, A.Ellenbroek, P.Pagano, GP.Coro, G.Aldemita.

Notes

1. Environmental enrichment
   1. AE report on call with F.Brito; BioOracle can be reviewed by Edward. Fabrice send a message to EvB outlining the Terradue activities.
   2. EvB: look for collab with NODC in Silver Spring. So far positive, Edward asks how to continue.
   3. Proposes focus group with GP and Fabrice to discuss with NODC. Needs go-ahead from Nicolas, possibly in consultation with Donatella. Through Nicolas, other iMarine partners can be informed and involved.
   4. Nicolas can invite IOC, VLIZ, IRD, FAO to collaborate.
2. Define the Spatial and Temporal resolutions that can be used.
   1. E.g. do we need Monthly or annual averages ? How to deal with seasonality?
   2. Need to form a small group to understand the need and data offer (see above).
   3. Edward to describe the offer of NODC, WOD, MyOcean and BioOracle; compile list of priority layers, as tasked before. List is urgently needed so that CNR and TerraDue can act on these
   4. WOD has raw observations. WOA is the atlas derived from this. The problem of reducing the WOD to the WOA is very similar to finding the data in WOD (or other data stores) that are relevant to our biodiversity mapping exercise. Hence the need to talk to NODC (where both WOD and WOA are created/maintained), to see whether we can build on their expertise
   5. GP: WOA has 1 degree info, which makes it sometimes difficult today.
   6. EvB proposes to use WOD and aggregate ourselves, re-using NOCD knowledge. Considers to involve Terradue
   7. GP: In another project, we deal with satellite data. We can propose to re-use their satellite to grid logic.
   8. EvB: Will work on list of priority layers. Propose to start with temp, salinity. Adding a pH map would also show the usefulness of iMarine to outside world. Will propose a list by Friday.
3. Taxon name reconciliation.
   1. Edward will report on findings with separate data cleansing tools, and prepare a proposal to use the algorithm proposed by CNR.
   2. Problem to reduce the number of positives: names in OBIS are not ‘dirty’ enough to serve as good test cases.
   3. Will also include a note on visualization
4. Rule frame
   1. http://wiki.i-marine.eu/index.php/Rule_frame#Taxon_name_reconciliation_rules
   2. PP asks for examples.
   3. EvB will explain how this combines with e.g. Fabio’s parser. The frame is descriptive, and not an implementation proposal. Some of the rules need to be implemented; others may be covered by the parsing tools. EvB: The rules are not implemented in R, only a tool to quantitatively compare the performance of different settings of Fabio’s SpeciMEn.jar, and later possibly other taxon name matching engines. R script is available on iMarine’s SVN
   4. GP: The rule frame combines several different activities. If all rules comprise a complete WF, it is a useful description.
5. Taxamatch
   1. FIN still working on enhancements of the algorithm. No other matching added to SOUNDEX.
   2. Access is still pending last bug-fixes.

Follow-up actions

• Edward to share document on name matching ‘ONYM’
• Edward to draft list of priorities with Nicolas for environmental enrichment.
• Anton to review environmental data enrichment
• All to continue on the name reconciliation rule frame
• Casey to notify when taxamatch is ready.
• Next meeting 01 Aug 12.00