iassist 2006: data in a world of networked knowledge may 23-26, 2006 - ann arbor, michigan...
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IASSIST 2006: Data in a world of Networked Knowledge
May 23-26, 2006 - Ann Arbor, Michigan
Delivering Government Data to Lawyers and Journalists
Susan Long Linda Roberge
Syracuse UniversityTransactional Records Access Clearinghouse
http://trac.syr.edu
IASSIST 2006
Our Center in Brief
Where does our data come from?
Use FOIA to obtain release of info from federal administrative databases tracking govt’s own activities
Create databases: document, validate and supplement, combine sources, build indices
IASSIST 2006
Our Center in Brief
How is data delivered to users?develop reports and deliver on webdata mining tools and data warehouse
for users to access our data
Center is self-supportingfree public web sitesubscription service: data mining
IASSIST 2006
TRACFEDCriminal
CivilAdministrative
PeopleMoneyContext
RAW
DATA
Find
Get
Clean
Validate
Enhance
Organize
Load
OUTPUT
STORED
DYNAMIC
Reports
Tables
Graphs
Maps
Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse
IASSIST 2006
Evolution in TRAC’s Delivery
Pre-web (18 years ago)Web – stored pages (12 years
ago)Web – dynamic, database driven
content delivery (past 10 years)
IASSIST 2006
TRAC’s Users
MediaLawyersLibrariesAcademicGovernmentPublic Interest
GroupsPublic at large
IASSIST 2006
Challenge: Diverse User Needs
Wide variety in data sophisticationVarying knowledge about governmentBreadth vs. Depth
Specificity of information requiredUnstructured vs. structured questions
Data mining for non-statisticians
IASSIST 2006
Aides to Understanding: The Basics
Carefully designed tables
Strategic use of graphics
Access to underlying data
IASSIST 2006
Online Help: Need for movement
express_allrank.html
tutorial movies(express)
http://trac.syr.edu/suelong/iassist/
IASSIST 2006
Online Help: Need for movement
stf_godeep_current.html
tutorial movies(drill down)
http://trac.syr.edu/suelong/iassist/
IASSIST 2006
Online Help: Experimenting with voice
houston_example.html
http://trac.syr.edu/suelong/iassist/
IASSIST 2006
Concluding Remarks
It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.
(Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1859 - 1930)
It is our job to make data usable by those who theorize, especially the journalists, lawyers, and policy makers.