A new dawn for e-collaboration in science

Panelists

Plone panel, Naples 2007

University of Aarhus, DenmarkPaul Henning KroghMazama Science, WashingtonJonathan CallahanZitelab, DenmarkNiels Steen Krogh

Telecommunications Research Center, Vienna, Austria

Marcin Davies

Presentations

DANBIO The Danish experience using Plone as the core tool building af nation-wide research database in health care (Rheumatology)

N. S. Krogh11:26

11:33

11:19

11:12

11:05

Science in the Trenches: Can Plone Help?

J. Callahan

Conceptions of collaborative research processes

P. H. Krogh

Discussion

Plone for Research: Requirements Revisited

M. Davies

Panel objectives

• What is needed for international scientific collaboration?

• What can Plone offer as an e-collaboration tool to support research infrastructures?

Conceptions of collaborative research processes

Paul Henning Krogh

Why a special CMS application for Science?

• Science is forced to be done in geographical separation by individuals and teams

• Science, too, is under fierce pressure to increase its capacity to innovate – this calls for collaboration and efficient knowledge and document handling

• Science encounters, too, the problem of loosing the capacity to share tacit knowledge when not face-to-face

The CMS and the research projects must enter into a dialogue

CMS Research project

General aims of a CMS for research projects

• Increase research performance• Ensure research objectives are met• Aid project management• Stimulate exchange of ideas• Sharing of knowledge• Support teams• Increase visibility for insiders and outsiders• Bridging different domains: handle cross disciplinarity• Creating a common social identy – loyality to the project

team and aims

The ecology of a research project

Sponsor

Stakeh

olders

Scientific

community

The project

The pu

blic

A research project is living in an environment where it communicates by: exchanging information and knowledge and receiving feed-back.

The ICT infrastructure delivers the communication channels and interfaces

A new dawn for a scientist

• Chat, e-phone and meet on your common project portal

• Get the data of your colleague now!• Information and literature searching – watch what

your colleagues have watched• Paper - and bookreading – keeping in pace with

state of the art of her knowledge domain• Doing experiments and investigations• Do your analyses using rpy Plone products• Paper co-writing on your portal

Crucial questionsRitterskamp & Prilla (2006):”the question of how ICT design paradigms may affect a

system’s success within an organization usually receives less attention”

So, what is actually the Plone® design paradigm and is this particularly supportive for scientific use?

Do we have an adequate conceptual model of the scientificworking processes?

Forschungszentrum Telekommunikation Wien

Plone for Research: Requirements Revisited

Plone Conference 2007, Naples, Italy

Marcin Davies <davies@ftw.at>Telecommunications Research Center Vienna (ftw.), Austria

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Introduction and motivation

~ 3 years of planning and development of ICT-platforms within research projects at the Telecommunications Research Center Vienna (ftw.) Motivation for master’s thesis about this topic [1] -some of the results/concepts are presented here

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[1] Davies, M: Towards a Knowledge Portal for European Research Projects, Vienna University of Technology, 2006 (available from: http://marcin.davies.at).

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Problem domain

European research situation• Characterized by a strong fragmentation of activities,

which is a major handicap to Europe’s competitiveness• Framework programmes (FPs) try to address these

weakness by implementing large, international research projects:

Scientific collaboration in general• A multitude of complex requirements has to be met to

enable successful scientific knowledge sharing• Organizational requirements: awareness, funding, etc. • Technical requirements (too many to mention here...)

• Limiting factors for cooperation:• Cooperative and structural factors (group diversity/size...)• Scientific recognition (competition, trust)• Technology acceptance (design challenges)

• Scientific collaboration is not well-structured...

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Deficits of current approaches

Organizational problems:• No re-usable framework • Late start of building ICT-infrastructure

Technical deficits:• Scattered and isolated system components lead to a lack

of user acceptance and high maintenance efforts• Functional deficits: missing possibilities for

• personalization: e.g. subscriptions, notifications

• interaction: e.g. contact search, messaging, ratings, comments, presence awareness, working environments

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Plone for scientific knowledge portals

Plone and Zope are fitting nicely:• Rich set of advanced functions out of the box

(SmartFolders, WebDAV access, LiveSearch, etc.)• Rich user interface• Many add-on products available to implement functions of

a scientific knowledge portal• Custom (scientific) content types: Archetypes, ArchGenXML• Version Control: CMFEditions• Ratings: ATRatings, Subscriptions: PloneSubscription• many more...

• Highly customizable and extendable - integrates well into existing installations

• Standards-based, technology-neutral• With Zope/ZEO: performance, flexibility, and scalability • Works well with other open-source components to build a

robust infrastructure (Apache, OpenLDAP, etc.) - no licensing costs

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Nice, but...

From our current experiences, building a scientific portal based on Plone still needs significant effort and expertise. Many components are there, but integration and coherence are suboptimalWe need a common set of specific products like done with the Plone4Artists package (Plone4Scientists?)But before we need a:

• Wider assessment of currently used applications• Refinement of requirements based on more extensive end

user participation (and input by site integrators) etc.

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What can you do?

Please subscribe to our dedicated mailing list: scientific@lists.plone.orgParticipate & spread the word!

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Science from the TrenchesScience from the Trenches(Can (Can PlonePlone Help?)Help?)

Jonathan CallahanJonathan CallahanMazama ScienceMazama Science

Two Views of TrenchesTwo Views of Trenches

WorkersWorkers ManagementManagement

Two Views of ScienceTwo Views of Science

WorkersWorkers ManagementManagement

Good software makes life easier Good software makes life easier for for workers workers ‘‘inin the the trenchestrenches’’..

What do scientists do all day?What do scientists do all day?

►►Design experimentsDesign experiments►►Search for existing dataSearch for existing data►►Collect new dataCollect new data►►Assemble new and existing dataAssemble new and existing data►►Analyze dataAnalyze data►►Create data visualizationsCreate data visualizations►►Write resultsWrite results

Experimental DesignExperimental Design

Old StyleOld Style

►► Individual effortIndividual effort►► Small contextSmall context►► Goal =Goal =

journal articlejournal article

New StyleNew Style

►► Group effortGroup effort►► Big pictureBig picture►► Goal =Goal =

sustained, multisustained, multi--decade effort (trends)decade effort (trends)

►► Web based toolsWeb based tools

Data DiscoveryData Discovery

Old styleOld style

►► FriendsFriends►► MeetingsMeetings

New styleNew style

►► FriendsFriends►► MeetingsMeetings►► Searchable repositoriesSearchable repositories►► Web based toolsWeb based tools

Data CollectionData Collection

Old styleOld style

►► IndividualIndividual►► Custom instrumentsCustom instruments

New styleNew style

►► GroupGroup►► Shared resourcesShared resources►► CollaboratoriesCollaboratories►► Web based toolsWeb based tools

Data AccessData Access

Old styleOld style

►► No versioningNo versioning►► FTP from friendsFTP from friends►► No standardsNo standards

New styleNew style

►► Data repositoriesData repositories►► Internet accessInternet access►► Standard formatsStandard formats►► Web based toolsWeb based tools

Data AnalysisData Analysis

Old styleOld style

►► Custom codeCustom code►► Custom algorithmsCustom algorithms►► Desktop onlyDesktop only

New styleNew style

►► Institutional softwareInstitutional software►► Vetted algorithmsVetted algorithms►► Web based toolsWeb based tools

Data VisualizationData Visualization

Old styleOld style

►► Home grown codeHome grown code►► Graphics designersGraphics designers►► Desktop onlyDesktop only

New styleNew style

►► Institutional softwareInstitutional software►► Scientist generatedScientist generated►► Web based toolsWeb based tools

Writing up ResultsWriting up Results

Old styleOld style

►► Email MSWord docsEmail MSWord docs►► Versioning?Versioning?

CurrentCurrent stylestyle

►► Email MSWord docsEmail MSWord docs►► Versioning?Versioning?

Can Can PlonePlone help?help?

DANBIO The Danish experience using Plone as the core

tool building af nation-wide research database in health care (Rheumatology)

Niels Steen Krogh, Niels Steen Krogh, ZiteLapZiteLap ApSApS

www.www.zitelabzitelab..dkdk

DANBIO: DANBIO: www.www.danbiodanbio--online.online.dkdk

•• Danish, Danish, nationwide registry since nationwide registry since 20002000

•• Covers 92% Covers 92% of all treatmentsof all treatments

•• All departments of rheumatology All departments of rheumatology in Denmark in Denmark are reporting on are reporting on a a regular regular basisbasis

•• Online Online registrationregistration and feedback and feedback

•• Efficacy Efficacy ((outcome of treatmentoutcome of treatment))

•• Safety Safety (drug (drug safetysafety))

Cohorts Cohorts ((the the patients and patients and the content objectsthe content objects))

•• Biologic treatmentsBiologic treatments–– Reumatoid arthritisReumatoid arthritis: 3.900 : 3.900 treatmenttreatment seriesseries–– Ankylosing spondylitisAnkylosing spondylitis: 700 series: 700 series–– Psoriatic arthritisPsoriatic arthritis: 500 series: 500 series–– Other Other diagnoses: 400 seriesdiagnoses: 400 series

•• Early Early RA: 1200 RA: 1200 ptspts

•• Conventional treatmentsConventional treatments: 3.000 : 3.000 ptspts

•• 45.000 visits (45.000 visits (Content objectsContent objects))

AIMAIM

•• To present To present some of the some of the factors factors that we that we consider important consider important for for the success of the success of a a clinical clinical registryregistry

•• A central point to A central point to rememberremember:: The user The user is at is at the the same time same time –– a researcher a researcher –– responsibleresponsible for for the treatment of the the treatment of the

patientspatients–– An An emploeeemploee whowho must must documentdocument his his

outcome outcome ((efficacyefficacy). ).

Why open sourceWhy open source in in lifelife science research?science research?

•• Share methodsShare methods acrossacross bordersborders -- similarsimilar to to international research international research processesprocesses

•• Learning processes across different academic Learning processes across different academic fields fields –– medicinemedicine, , statisticsstatistics, IT, IT

•• No licensing costs No licensing costs –– cheapercheaper, more , more flexibleflexible

•• ComplexComplex, , integrated integrated solutionssolutions

•• Rapid Rapid development circledevelopment circle

•• No lockNo lock--inin

DANBIO DANBIO registryregistry

•• Based on Plone Based on Plone (2.1.2 and 3.0.1.) and (2.1.2 and 3.0.1.) and other open other open source source IT solutionsIT solutions

•• Combine quality development Combine quality development and research in and research in one one registryregistry

–– Feed Feed back at back at thethe patient patient levellevel–– Feed Feed back at back at the department levelthe department level–– ElectronicElectronic CRF in CRF in clinical trialsclinical trials–– Easy access Easy access to to additional open source toolsadditional open source tools

•• StatisticsStatistics (R(R--projectproject) ) •• ImagingImaging ((CDMedicCDMedic--PACS XPACS X--rayray server)server)•• Kiosk/Kiosk/Touchscreens Touchscreens for for the the patient (via patient (via FirefoxFirefox))

ConclusionsConclusions

•• Plone Plone is is usable usable as as the core tool the core tool in in the treatment of the treatment of patients and as a research patients and as a research tool tool at at the the same timesame time

•• With With Plone we can Plone we can have have very successfull very successfull implementations if we can implementations if we can have positive have positive impact on the impact on the core of the academic interests of the core of the academic interests of the researcherresearcher

•• Plone Plone is international and is international and will be will be put put into production into production in in Hospitals in Hospitals in NorwayNorway, , Sweden Sweden and Finland and Finland duringduring thethecomingcoming monthsmonths. .

•• Hospitals fromHospitals from allall over over the world are welcome the world are welcome for for collaborationcollaboration..

•• Time for Time for Screenshots Screenshots and and questionsquestions