1. Symposium on Knowledge Environments for Science: Past, Present and Future Panel 2 Technical Aspects of Environments for Scientific and Engineering Discovery Dave Fulker, NSDL Executive Director University Corp for Atmospheric Research Boulder, Colorado

2. SLIDE 2 The Story of a Boy & a Spreadsheet solving mixed-fraction problems of the form: 3 1/2 + 2 3/4 = ?  Some observations  The assignment required more work with the computer than without it (though Kevin didn’t think so)  Kevin used the computer to construct—not to take delivery of—the answers for his assignment  Kevin built a representation of his knowledge  I collaborated with him to build it -Columns for integer1, numerator1, denominator1, integer2... -Syntax of conditional constructs, etc.  Kevin couldn’t wait to share the representation with others  HyperCard would have worked better than Excel

3. SLIDE 3 Computers as “Cognitive Tools”  Principles from Jonassen &. Reeves, 1996*  Definitions of media as conveyors of information, communicators of knowledge, or tutors of students [are] inherently flawed [because they fail] to recognize learners as active constructors of knowledge.  With cognitive tools... learners themselves function as designers using technologies as tools for analyzing the world, accessing information, interpreting and organizing their personal knowledge, and representing what they know to others.  Some of the best thinking occurs when students try to represent what they know. Representing knowledge as a mindful task can be enabled by cognitive tools such as hypermedia construction software or electronic spreadsheets.  A question: Are these principles different for researchers? *Learning with Technology: Using Computers as Cognitive Tools. A chapter in Handbook of Research for Educational Communications and Technology. Macmillan Library Reference USA. pp. 693-719.

4. SLIDE 4 Collaboratories: Why Not Universal as Yet? “Cognitive Tool” Priorities  Spontaneous interaction (ideally at low cost)  Rapid, informal discourse (especially voice)  Sharable knowledge representations (incl. data, formulas, images, & associative relations)  Specialized communities (with agreed jargon, tools...)  Remote facilities (real-time access/control) A few Technical Correlates  E-mail, telecon, chat, wiki  Access Grid & other e-tools  Teleconference  Access Grid & other e-tools  Word/html/tech, sgml, xml, wiki, mathml, netcdf, fips  Ontologies, MultiValent docs, OpenGIS, concept maps, SRB  PACI, Internet2, E-print servers, metadata/content standards, OAI  Numerous examples... Collaboratory Budget Drivers?

5. SLIDE 5 The Four Pillars of the NSDL An Emphasis-Clarifying Answer to the Question: What is the National Science Digital Library?  A library of exemplary collections and services with practical educational value  A community center, focused on digital- library-enabled science education  A center of innovation in digital libraries applied to education  A partnership of NSDL-funded projects* *Now numbering >100, including the “Core Integration” project led by UCAR, Cornell, & Columbia

6. SLIDE 6 A few Current & Needed Technologies organized according to the 4 aspects of NSDL  Exemplary Collections & Services  OAI framework for sharing structured metadata  Search services, based on metadata, content, & context  Persistent archival of (regular) content snapshots  Data visualization (utilizing 3rd-party metadata)  Digital-Library Innovation  Framework for interoperability among services  Framework to characterize item contexts & associative relations  Means to handle multiple classification vocabularies  A Science-Education Community Center  Collaborative editing/annotation of semantically-rich documents  Framework for other forms of constructivist learning  A Partnership of NSDL-Funded Projects  Good virtual meetings (at the desktop?)

7. SLIDE 7 Concluding Thoughts on eScience  A priority on human interaction  Spontaneous, voice- & document-centered  Lightweight tools for the desktop -Applications for collaborative editing & annotation -Low-cost sensors + models = adaptive, virtual meeting space  A priority on practical approaches to sharable knowledge representations  Hyperlinked documents, rich with equations, explicit semantics, & embedded interactive data visualizations  Concept graphs, formalisms... Don't be afraid to take a big step. You can't cross a chasm in two small jumps. — David Lloyd George