International Council for Science : Committee on Data for Science and Technology

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C O D A T A REPORT FOR 1993 OF THE COMMITTEE ON DATA FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (CODATA)

Dr. Gordon H. Wood, Secretary General

INTRODUCTION

CODATA is an interdisciplinary Scientific Committee of the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU) which seeks to improve the quality, reliability, management and accessibility of data of importance to all fields of science and technology.

MEMBERSHIP

Unchanged from 1992, with the exception of the Supporting Organizations, the current membership of CODATA includes 21 National Members, 16 Scientific Unions, 5 Co-opted Members, 1 Affiliate Member and 28 Supporting Organizations.

VITAL STATISTICS

For the period of the report, statistics on:

Number of members: 43
Number of scientific meetings organized: 11
Number of publications produced: 5 (1 Special Report, 4 Newsletters)

Regular meetings of the Executive Committee and the Officers were held; this being an odd-numbered year, no General Assembly was scheduled. Finances continued to be problematic as worldwide recessionary and political conditions made it difficult for some National Members to pay their dues in a timely manner. The Secretariat in Paris was maintained with a full time Executive Director and part time clerical assistance.

ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN DURING 1993

• Scientific Meetings
  In February, the Commission on Industrial Data and the CEC held a joint "Workshop on Materials Data for Computer Aided Engineering" in Germany. Also in Germany but in March, the Task Group on Biological Macromolecules organized a colloquium on "Why and How to Sequence a Genome", featuring lectures from the major international genome initiatives. Immediately following, the Task Group held a joint meeting with the Commission on Standardized Terminology for Access to Biological Data Banks to exchange information and ensure linkage of their activities. In September the Task Group on Biological Macromolecules convened a symposium entitled "CODATA International Workshop of Epitope Data" in Japan and the Task Group on World Data Depository for Experimental Data on Thermophysical Properties sponsored a "Workshop on Thermophysical Property Data Banks and Process Simulators" in Poland. Finally, in November, the Task Group on Artificial Intelligence and Computer Graphics arranged an international workshop on "Decision Making in Science and Technology: Design Needs in Materials Science" in France. In addition, six meetings of other Task Groups and Commissions took place.

• Activities Involving Developing Countries
  CODATA carried on the distribution, free of charge, of copies of the CODATA Referral Database to developing countries. Scientists from any country, depending on their interests and expertise of course, are welcome on CODATA Task Groups or Commissions; currently four Task Groups have members from developing countries. The CODATA Task Group on Data Sources in Asian- Oceanic Countries, especially, continued to provide a dynamic forum for such countries to participate in data activities.

• Publications
  "International Register of Materials Database Managers" (Second Edition), CODATA Special Report #14. "CODATA Newsletter", Nos. 62-65 (4 issues; distribution of 6000 copies each)

• Electronic Publication
  CODATA Referral Database (Produced by the CODATA Task Group on a Referral Database), 1400 computer-searchable sources of scientific and technical data, CODATA Secretariat, 51 Boulevard de Montmorency, 75016 Paris, France (1991) Formats: IBM-compatible high- and low-density 5¼" disks and low-density 3½" disks, US$175.0

SPECIAL PROJECTS

The ad hoc Committee on Data Issues, convened by ICSU, with representatives from CODATA, FAGS, WDC Panel and IGBP-DIS prepared and presented an interim report entitled "Report on ICSU Activities in Data and Information" to the ICSU General Assembly in September. CODATA provided secretariat services to the Committee. For the same General Assembly, at the request of ICSU, CODATA prepared and submitted a report on data activities in the Scientific Unions. New Areas of Interest

Existing Task Groups have proposed several exciting new projects. In the Asian-Oceanic countries, for example, it is proposed to initiate work on a database on animal viruses and, in three other ventures, to survey existing databases on microbes, fishes and environmental protection. On a different front, the role and impact of data engineering and trends in hybrid database management systems dealing with knowledge rules and interactive procedures will be investigated. A new Group is being proposed to create a taxonomically integrated master inventory of all the higher plants in the world; another Group will be modifying its mandate to produce key or recommended values for Barium, Strontium and Lanthanum and some of their important related compounds.

REPORT OF USE OF 1993 ICSU GRANT AND UNESCO SUBVENTION

• Task Group on Biological Macromolecules
  The Group continued its vital role of providing a forum for coordination of the international databases active in the biosciences. Specific examples were the colloquium on "Why and How to Sequence a Genome", in which presentations were given by representatives of all the major international genome projects, and the "CODATA International Workshop of Epitope Data" in which plans were documented for a feasibility study for such a data bank. Through joint activities with the CODATA Commission on Standardized Terminology for Access to Biological Data Banks international attention has been directed to the field of taxonomic nomenclature and the need to standardize usage within the biological databases.

• Commission on Data for Global Change
  Editing of the proceedings of the Workshop on Crop Modelling was completed and the text prepared for publishing as a monograph. During the reporting period, it became evident that, in order to complement the policy-related mandate of the ad hoc Committee on Data Issues, the Commission's activities should be modified to focus on practical scientific and technical issues. Studies dealing with data problems in the biosphere, particularly in bringing them into an international context, rather than a regional or local one such as they currently tend to be, have been suggested as one such task.

• Task Group on Materials Database Management
  An updated version of its "Register of Materials Database Managers" was published in July and a challenging cost/benefit survey was completed, with a preliminary report distributed to the Task Group in November. In addition, a study was initiated to determine what activity, if any, was needed in the area of ecologically sensitive materials. Production continued of the Materials Database Newsletter for insertion in the CODATA Newsletter.

CONCLUSION AND FUTURE PLANS

CODATA plans to support the work plans of its Task Groups and Commissions during the next biennium as it pursues its role as the ICSU body addressing the interdisciplinary issues associated with scientific and technical data. As one means of keeping its vision clear and current, CODATA is convening a two-day, long-term planning session in conjunction with its General Assembly in 1994. All aspects of its activities, including its structure and mandate, are to be scrutinized. In general, CODATA enjoyed an effective year. Most Task Groups and Commissions continued to be very productive but one or two struggled for reasons related to changes of personnel, shifting mandates and lack of resources. During the ongoing global economic restraint, one of CODATA's most significant challenges is the raising of adequate financial resources to respond to the many challenges and opportunities it foresees. Fortunately, CODATA is blessed with outstanding human resources, most of whom work voluntarily, who welcome those challenges and thrive on exploiting opportunities.